President's Welcome

What does it mean to be “committed to raising student achievement”? And what do we, as boards of trustees need to do differently to ensure that each student in our school achieves to the highest standard they are capable of? To ensure that they each develop the skills they need to create the lifestyles, the relationships, and the society we would wish for them?

There is an old saying that “the hand that rocks the cradle rules the world.” Obviously, that isn’t talking about mothers of young babies standing for parliament. Rather, it’s an acknowledgement that we hold our world in trust for the generations who come after us, and that the people who mould the characters and values of those future generations therefore have a huge influence on – and a huge responsibility for – how that turns out.

In our society, there are many hands that help to rock the cradle. Parents, whānau and whanaunga are the obvious ones. Sports clubs, community groups, church groups, friends, youth workers, healthcare professionals, and sometimes WINZ or CYF, the Police, or even the courts have a part to play. But there are two places more than anywhere else that our children and young people learn what life has to offer, and what they can hope to do with theirs: home, and school.

“Be nice to your kids – they’re the ones who’ll choose your rest-home”
There’s another saying, “it’s the little things you do that make the big things happen.” The “big thing” for us as school trustees is creating a school that produces the kind of people we want to leave in charge of our future. To make that happen, we need to do the “little things” well: manage the school finances; choose the right principal; ask the right questions; make sure the grounds and buildings are safe, uplifting, and fit for purpose; create a group dynamic that celebrates the achievements and the potential of adults and students alike; communicate openly, early and often, with the other people who make up our school community… These don’t always feel like “little things” and we all know they are not always easy - but compared to the prize we are playing for, that’s what they are. They are the steps that begin the journey of a thousand miles, the drops that eventually fill the bucket, the link that determines the strength of the chain. If the ankle twists on the first step, or the water source is stagnant, or the link is weak, it is the future of our children and our friends’ and neighbours’ children that we have compromised. But then you already know that!

So this is what our conference is about: how to do those “little things” well enough to let the big things happen for the most able, the most challenged, and the most challenging students in our schools as well as all the others in between. Running a school – or governing one - is a team effort. We’re not “there” until the last member of the team has crossed the finish line safely. We’re not doing our job well enough until every last one of our students is leaving our gates happy and fulfilled and ready to take their place in the world beyond school.

So, once again you will find lots of information and plenty of inspiration at Conference 2012 to help you do that.  Whether you are still working on getting the basics right, or whether you think you are approaching “perfection”, Conference 2012 in Wellington is the place you will want to be.

We’ve been told a number of times that this is the best education conference in New Zealand. We certainly think it is. The seminar programme and the keynote speakers will again be top notch, but the thing that really makes our Conference something out of the ordinary is the fact that it is full of people like you: school trustees, committed to ensuring that every child and young person in New Zealand achieves to their potential.

Come join us in Wellington

Noho ora mai

Na

Lorraine Kerr MNZM
President