Principal’s Message
Te Kura Whaiora ki te Tonga/The Southern Health School is dedicated to supporting ākonga on their journey to health by providing personalised education, fostering confidence, and enabling successful transitions back into the wider world alongside their whānau, health teams, and schools.
Kō Ngā Tihi o Horomaka te maunga whakaruruhau,
Kō Ōpāwaho te awa whakaora.
He Tangata Tiriti ahau.
Kō te mātauranga o nga rangatahi i te mahi o tōku ngākau.
Kō Learne McArthur tōku ingoa.
Tēnā koutou katoa,
It is my privilege to be Acting Principal of Te Kura Whaiora ki te Tonga/The Southern Health School. I am fortunate to lead a team of exceptional kaiako/teachers and kaimahi/workers who hold the best interests of ākonga/learners at heart.
We have kaiako and sites in a wide range of locations across Te Wai Pounamu/The South Island. Where there is need, we will do all we can to
meet it.
This kura was set up to ensure that ākonga on a return to health journey did not face an added barrier because of missed school work. However, we do much more than that. Our work is about building the confidence, capability and dispositions to re-engage with learning and move out into the world. We look at the whole person in front of us, working with them, their whānau, their health team and their school of origin to design a way forward that is personalised and responsive to the needs of the ākonga.
We walk beside the ākonga as they build up the ‘match fitness’ they need to take their next steps in education and we support them to transition to those next steps. We want to be there for the ākonga who need us, while they need us. We also want to support them to move back into Te Ao Hurihuri/The ever changing world with courage and confidence.
