Figure 1.--
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Figure 1.-- |
The headmaster or principal at New Zealand schools, especially the secondary schools, provide annual or term reports on developments at their schools. These reports contain interesting information, not only about the specific school, but about New Zealand school trends in general.
The headmaster at this private Christian school in 1999 explains that it is easier to start a Christain school than to keep it Christain.
Greetings to you all from Term 4 - the term that barely gets under way and it seems to finish! The term is very full and details of many of the activities are
to be found further on in the newsletter.
I was recently challenged by the remarks of John Stackhouse, our Primary School Principal, in a recent newsletter to parents. He notes that two
frequently asked questions are - "Why send your children to Middleton Grange School?" and "What makes Middleton Grange School different?" Clearly the answers revolve around the fact that the school is a Christian school, with Christian staff nurturing students in Christian living and learning. There should be tangible evidence that this is the case everywhere one looks.
John Stackhouse quotes William McKinley, a US Christian educator of some thirty-five years experience. "It has often been said that it is easier to start a Christian school than to keep it Christian." We must continue to "pray without ceasing" that Middleton Grange aspires to be unique for Jesus' sake.
The following is a quote from a statement that the Education Minister, Nick Smith, made in the Eduvac on Monday 11 October. The headline reads--"Bethlehem College Granted Integration Approval". Nick Smith says, "This is an important milestone for the College and the Tauranga community. It has taken over a year of negotiation but is finally happening. With this integration, an extra $3million will be coming into the local community." The College currently has a roll of 891 Primary and Secondary pupils and expects to reach a maximum of 1,530 over the next five to seven years. "This is the largest integration to occur since Middleton Grange School in Christchurch in 1996 ... Schools such as this with their Christian based special character are the preferred choice for many parents ... Bethlehem College provides an excellent education for its pupils. The integration will ensure the special character of the school is retained and a far wider range of families will have the option of this school for the education of their children." Praise God that the Ministry of Education and others uphold the place of special character schools in the New Zealand system. I visited Bethlehem College recently and believe the front running role in Christian education once held by Middleton Grange is now the domain of Bethlehem College. We are not in a competition, but we are praying and working toward our school reclaiming its exciting, innovative edge as it seeks where God wants to take it.
At the beginning of this year I committed myself to lots of listening and learning. I have encouraged the Board, senior staff and others to reach out in prayer for a sense of the "heartbeat" of the Middleton Grange community, of God's ongoing provision for it and the opportunity to see, through His eyes, the way ahead. Can I urge you to complete, and return, the questionnaire enclosed with this newsletter. This will bring to an end a year of listening and learning. A full report will be presented to the Board on all information gained by talking to students, parents, ex-students and other stakeholders in the
school through 1999. From that report a strategic vision will be developed to take Middleton into the future. The details of that should be available to you
early in 2000.
Can I take this opportunity to thank all those who have made me feel so welcome and supported in my first year at the school. I know many have been praying and there have been lots of other tangible signs of your ongoing support. My family and I feel
richly blessed to be associated with the school. Please pray especially for the staffing and budgeting decisions which need to be made over the next few weeks as they are critical for the successful operation of the school next year.
