Ngā mihi nui ki a koutou katoa,

As the dust settles on a big week of news for secondary education, our community will likely discuss what it all means for our children.

The good news is that the Minister of Education has stated her support for NCEA as a valid assessment framework, and in many ways, the changes proposed are an iteration of the current standards-based assessment framework rather than, as at least one journalist has described it, a ‘radical overhaul’.

The strengthening of Literacy and Numeracy through previous changes will continue through a foundational qualification at Year 11. Students will still be assessed against standards rather than each other, and the proposal protects internal assessment, which rewards ongoing commitment to learning throughout the year, rather than forcing all assessment towards the end.

The proposed changes are a step in the right direction in terms of developing community support for the national qualification, and they do simplify what is currently a complex assessment framework. For more traditional schools like Mount Maunganui College, our school curriculum, timetable, and internal structures largely align with the proposal and will easily adjust to these changes.

It is important to note that the assessment framework that our students complete is merely a measure of the teaching and learning that happens within the classroom. Regardless of how our students are assessed, our teachers will always be committed to providing the same high-quality teaching that sees our students continue to thrive under the NCEA.

For all current students, the work remains business as usual. The changes will only affect 2026’s Year 9 cohort and those that follow.

The Ministry of Education has released this information package, which includes an opportunity for families to provide feedback at the bottom.

Finally, thanks to everyone who made it to our learning conferences this week. Our partnership for learning is vital to our students' success.

Ngā mihi,

Alastair Sinton
Principal

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PUNCTUALITY AND UNIFORM EXPECTATIONS

Punctuality and wearing the correct school uniform are key parts of maintaining high standards at our school. Being on time shows respect for learning and allows students to make the most of their education, while correct uniform fosters a sense of belonging and pride.

If your child is late to school for a legitimate reason and arrives before the end of Period 1, please provide them with a note to give to their Period 1 teacher, who will update the attendance system.

Students arriving after Period 1 must sign in at the front office to ensure their attendance is correctly recorded. Thank you for supporting these expectations.

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DUX 2025

SEEKING SPONSOR

We are seeking a new sponsor for our top academic award, as our previous long-term supporter has transitioned to other college initiatives.

This is an opportunity for a member of our school community or organisation to gain naming rights and visibility in our school magazine, newsletters, prizegiving program, and social media. Bids will be evaluated both on financial contribution and value alignment with the college.

Please submit your bid or inquiries to businessmanager@mmc.school.nz by Monday, 1 September 2025.

Brett Sorrenson
Director of Sport

Kia ora koutou,

As we head closer to Winter Tournament Week it is great to see the behind the scenes work going into the preparation. Winter Tournament Week kicks off from Sunday 24th August and is a highlight on the calendar, for all students involved it will always be a core school sporting memory. To all individuals and groups heading away we wish you all the best, enjoy all aspects and represent Mount Maunganui College with pride.

Please note applications for Mount Maunganui College Sports Awards 2025 are now open and will close Friday 29th August. Please ensure all Sports Award Application forms are complete to be considered for a Principal, Crimson or Special Trophy Awards. All nominations are to be submitted via this link: 2025 Sports Awards Application

Who are our people
Here at Mount Maunganui College Sport, we're proud of the community that positively contributes to our programmes – our students, staff, volunteers and supporters. This week we spotlight Isobella Davoren.

Student Sport Profile
Name: Isobella Davoren
Year: 13
Sport: Surf Lifesaving, Swimming, Water Polo
Why did you start your chosen sports: I began Surf Lifesaving at the age of 5 at Papamoa Surf Lifesaving Club because my whole family was involved, and both my parents are lifeguards. After nippers, I started racing and eventually became a lifeguard too. I started swimming lessons to stay safe in the water at the beach and never stopped, and I now swim competitively at a national level. I played flipperball in primary school because I was a good swimmer, and I continued to play water polo as I got older for both Mount Maunganui College and Tauranga.
Aspirations: I am currently part of the New Zealand High Performance Youth Squad for Surf Lifesaving, and I aspire to continue developing within the squad and eventually transition to the senior squad. I have been selected for the Battle of Tasman New Zealand Pathway team to race on the Gold Coast in late August, which is a first step towards becoming a Black Fin in the future.
What do you enjoy Mount Maunganui College Sport: I enjoy being able to play sport at school with a range of year levels and meet new people that I wouldn't usually play with in club and regional sport teams.

High Achievers

Mila Piatek - 16th in the world and now the U17 New Zealand record holder. Mila has been climbing for the New Zealand Youth Climbing Team at the IFSC Youth World Championship in Helsinki, Finland, in which she has recently set two PBs, landing a 8.65 in her final run and setting the new U17 New Zealand record.

What’s been happening?

NZSS Swimming Championship
From the 21st of July through to the 24th, a small swim team represented Mount Maunganui College at the NZSS Swimming Championships in Hamilton. The team consisted of Isobella Davoren, Kenz Jury, Bryan Li’Wagener, Sophia Maltai-Spence and Ryleigh McEwan. Throughout the championships every swimmer walked away with a PB. Their behaviour, sportsmanship, and grit both in and out of the pool were outstanding. A special shout out to Kenz Jury for being there poolside supporting her teammates despite not being able to swim due to injury.

BOPSS Junior Basketball Championships
Both the Mount Maunganui College Junior Basketball teams competed at the BOPSS Champs on Friday 1st August. The Junior Girls had three excellent wins vs Te Kura o Te Koutou, Tauranga Girls College and Rotorua Girls High School and took out the BOPSS Championship. The Junior Boys had three hard fought games with wins vs Raumata School and Tauranga Boys College and a loss to John Paul College. The Junior Boys came away with a three way tie for First Place.

Futsal
Alex Anderson was recently nominated by WaiBOP Football to attend the NZ Football Referee Development Academy (RDA). The RDA is an annual programme run by NZ futsal at the National Tertiary Futsal Championship which is competed between all the universities throughout the nation. It was a four day course consisting of practical on-court, theory, and fitness sessions. It is designed for promising match officials and to give them a pathway onto the national league of futsal in New Zealand. Only eight people were accepted to be a part of this course and Alex was the only person from WaiBOP. Alex talks about his experience below.

“Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed it and believe it was very beneficial for me to progress as a futsal match official. I learnt many new skills and things to be aware of, which I will definitely use in every game that I officiate in the future. My dream is to become a FIFA Futsal referee which is a qualification that allows you to officiate international matches and World Cups which is my ultimate goal.”

Eagles Golf Tournament
The Mount Maunganui College Golf team had a great day out on Monday 4 August at the Te Puke Golf Club for the annual Eagles Tournament. It was great to see a good contingent of players across different levels representing Mount Maunganui College Golf.
Individual highlights
- Tyler Ashton shot 74 and took out 2nd place for the Gross Competition.
- Luca Gray took out 2nd place for the Stableford Competition.
Team highlights
- Mount Maunganui College Team One consisting of Luca Gray, Jai Downie, Mitchell Hill and Tyler Ormsby came 4th place in the Teams Stableford Competition.

New Zealand Schools Surfing Championships
Last week Mount Maunganui College sent a team of our top surfers to compete in the New Zealand Schools Surfing Championships in Raglan.

The first scheduled day of competition was called off due to a weather bomb hitting the region, but the following day, a full schedule of heats were completed at Ruapuke Beach. Our team had a very successful outing, with eight out of ten surfers progressing through to finals day. The performances were a display of high quality surfing, composure under pressure, wise uses of priority, wave reading in a tricky line up and clutch finishes. Nature again came to play however, and finals day was called off due to the Civil Defense tsunami warning. If you would like to follow what our surfing students are up to, then information is posted to instagram account: mmc_surfing

U16 Boys
Zen Mouldey
Haru Marsden
Charlie Hartstone
Noah Ramsbottom
U18 Boys
Sol Fritchely
Remy Sale
Jaxon Willows
U16 Girls
Izzy Evans
Maddie Tod
U18 Girls
Sage Fritchely

What’s coming up?

BOPSS Skiing and Snowboarding Championships - Tuesday 19 August (Date change due to weather) - Whakapapa
Winter Tournament Week - Sunday 24 August - Friday 29 August - Various

Sports Awards
Sports Awards nominations are now open and will close Friday 29 August. Please complete your Sports CV to be considered for a Principal, Crimson or Special Trophy Award.
Link: 2025 Sports Awards Application

Fitness Centre
The Mount Maunganui College Strength and Conditioning Programme continues to run before and after school during the week. Students of all abilities wanting to improve their athletic performance are encouraged to sign up and embrace this opportunity to aid in their long term development. The cost is $65 per term.

Sign up:
- To sign up please complete the Strength and Conditioning sign up form: S&C Program Sign Up Form

Monday 25th August:
Angelo Medina is hosting an information evening at 7:00pm at the school fitness centre for parents of students involved in sport. This is an open community event focusing on Youth Development. To RSVP please email Angelo

Physio
Please ensure you look after yourselves off the field. As a Mount Maunganui College student you have free access to an onsite physio during the week. Bookings are available via the Body in Motion website: Body in Motion Bookings

Off-field Sports Uniforms
Off-field sports uniforms are available online at: Mount Maunganui College Sports Uniform
- These are available in store at NZ Uniforms, 94 Elizabeth Street, Tauranga. When representing Mount Maunganui College in sport it is important to ensure that you have the correct uniform and wear this correctly, we encourage students to buy a long sleeve or short sleeve tee and / or hoodie if they don’t already have an off-field uniform.

Daily Notices
The best place to get all information regarding key sporting dates is the daily notices. Students, parents and caregivers can access these at: Daily Notices.

Sponsorship
Thank you to our amazing group of sponsors who make a genuine difference to our school sports programme. Please reach out on bretts@mmc.school.nz if you’re interested in joining our sponsorship team to help sport thrive at Mount Maunganui College. We have a range of packages and sponsor benefits available and would love to connect with you to ensure a positive future for sport.
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Social Media
Please follow us on;

Facebook: Mount Maunganui College Sport
Instagram: Mount Maunganui College Sport

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SCHOOL ACCESS AND VISITOR PARKING

We acknowledge that the new school development will mean additional difficulties for some families accessing the school during drop off and pick up times.

The previous ‘main’ school carpark has now only one point of entry and exit, thereby making it inappropriate for drop off and pick ups and is now restricted to visitor parking only. If you do have to use this gate when visiting the school, be mindful of cars entering and exiting. See the map below that designates visitor parking.

The new staff carpark now has barrier arms and is limited to staff parking only. The arms will be down from 7:30 am through to 3:20 pm during weekdays. Outside of these hours the carpark will remain open to all.

If you plan on picking up and dropping off your child before and after school, this needs to happen on the surrounding streets.

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UNIFORM

Thanks to all our families who ensure our students head off to school in the correct school uniform. We know you have high expectations of how our students present themselves, so we appreciate your support.

Occasionally, students present to school in incorrect uniforms, and it can be disappointing for staff to have to start the day by having a negative conversation with a student about uniforms.

Here are some reminders to help ensure your child has a positive start to the day:

Uniform guidelines.
As per the Board approved uniform the school skirt is not to have the length modified (eg shortened).
If sandals are worn they must be black and have a back strap.
If shoes are worn they must be completely black and polishable.
Please ensure your child also adheres to our jewellery standards. No septums or rings are permitted on the face.
Eyelash extensions are not permitted.
We would like to remind families that only Mount Maunganui College trousers are to be worn. These can only be purchased from NZ Uniforms.
Students can wear a non-regulation waterproof jacket to and from school on wet days.
Discipline and defiance procedures will be used to deal with ongoing uniform issues if not resolved promptly.

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SCHOOL BUS SERVICE

This is a reminder to families that the school has a very efficient bus service. This service will ensure your child arrives at school on time and is ready for period 1 classes.

While students can use the commercial bus service free during school hours provided they have a BEE card they cannot guarantee that they will arrive ready for an 8.45 am start. Many of these services mean that students are missing up to 30 minutes of learning time each day.

Please encourage your child to use the school buses each day. This may mean they need to leave the house earlier, but it guarantees they are ready for the start of school.

Up-to-date information on the school buses is on the school website https://www.mmc.school.nz/key-info/bus-information

The afternoon buses leave the school grounds promptly at 3pm each day. The 712a buses are now arriving at 3 pm and the later one arrives at approximately 3.10pm.

Since the beginning of the 2025 academic year, we have seen an increase in the number of students travelling on some school bus services without a Bee Card.

While all school buses remain free to use, certain services require students to tag on and off with a registered Bee Card. This is important for monitoring usage and supporting ongoing planning.

To check whether a student’s school bus service requires a Bee Card, please refer to the list below or visit our website: www.baybus.co.nz/plan-your-trip/school-bus-services/below

School Services Requiring a Registered Bee Card:

710a Mount Maunganui College
711a Mount Maunganui College
712a Mount Maunganui College
712b Mount Maunganui Intermediate
714 Pāpāmoa College
802b Tauranga Girls' College
802c Tauranga Boys' College
803b Tauranga Intermediate & Tauranga Girls' College
901a Tauranga Girls' College & Maungatapu School
901b Tauranga Girls' College
902 Tauranga Girls' College & Maungatapu School

We kindly ask all parents, caregivers, and schools to ensure that students travelling on these services carry and use their registered Bee Card.

Please note that students without a registered Bee Card may be unable to travel.

Thank you for your continued support in helping us maintain a safe, reliable, and efficient school bus system.

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HONOURS BOARDS

Mount Maunganui College is looking to display our past achievements.

If you are a former student or know of someone who represented New Zealand or earned a national title while attending Mount Maunganui College and would like your name displayed, please complete the Google form.

We are also interested in former students who have represented New Zealand or earned a national title as adults.

While all information is appreciated, we are particularly interested in information from the 1960s to 2000.

All submissions must include any verification possible to ensure the information is correct. Achievements can be in Sports, Arts, Culture or Academia.

HONOURS BOARD LINK

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KEY DATES

2025 Term Dates (click to view)

2026 Term Dates (click to view)

August 2025
14         Pō Whakamānawa
20         Sports Team Photos
21         Engagement Reports Issued
25-29    Winter Tournament Week
25         Mid Term Break (School Closed)

September 2025
1-8        Derived Grade Exams
9-11      Literacy Numeracy Exams
16         Head Shave
17         Year 13 Quiz Night
18         Final Report Issued
19         Last Day Term 3

October 2025
6          First Day Term 4
14         Arts Awards
21         Sports Awards
29         Senior Prizegiving
29         Year 13 Breakfast

November 2025
4          NZQA Exams Start

December 2025
1          Year 13 Graduation
3          Pasifika Prizegiving
8-10      Year 10 Camps
8-10      Year 9 Activities
11         Deans Prizegiving
12         Junior Prizegiving
12         Last Day Term 4

WORLD VISION

PUNCTUALITY AND UNIFORM EXPECTATIONS

DUX 2025

BOARD ELECTIONS

SCHOOL ACCESS AND VISITOR PARKING

UNIFORM

ATTENDANCE MATTERS

SCHOOL BUS SERVICE

STUDENT ID PHOTOS

HONOURS BOARDS

ALUMNI

KEY DATES