Former St Cuthbert’s College student Andrea Kapeteni at an Endeavour Scholars’ celebration late last year with her mother Serah, younger brother Anthony – also an Endeavour Scholar – and father Loia
Endeavour Scholar among top students in NZ
Law student Andrea Kapeteni is a very special scholar. The former St Cuthbert’s College Deputy Head Girl learned recently that she has won an NZQA Scholarship after sitting their examination in Geography last year.
The achievement puts Andrea in the top 3% of students nationally.
Andrea was able to attend St Cuthbert’s College after she was offered an Endeavour Scholarship. The Endeavour Scholarship programme, initiated in 2001 by St Cuthbert’s College together with King’s School and King’s College, is specifically for students of Māori and Pasifika descent and is the biggest scheme of its kind. It provides funding for education from Year 7 all the way through to Year 13 for girls and boys to enable them to develop their full potential.
All go forward to tertiary education, many – like Andrea – winning scholarships due to their outstanding achievements in academic, sporting and other areas while at school.
In Andrea’s case, these include singing in the College’s Saints Alive choir (they won a bronze in the Big Sing National Finale at Auckland Town Hall), playing basketball for the College’s under-19 B team, and winning double cultural honours for her involvement with the Samoan Cultural Group and her many accomplishments in music.
Andrea, who lives with her family in the South Auckland suburb of Weymouth, has also been a committed volunteer for many causes, particularly the Habitat for Humanity organisation, which builds homes for families in need.
She is now studying for a BA LLB degree at the University of Auckland. “University life is very different to St Cuthbert’s,” she said, “but so far I’m loving it!”
Andrea’s younger brother, Anthony, is also an Endeavour Scholar. He is 16 and in Year 12 at King’s College. When he received his scholarship to King’s in 2006, he and Andrea became the first “Endeavour siblings”.
The NZQA scholarship results confirm St Cuthbert’s College as New Zealand’s top school at Scholarship level for the sixth consecutive year. Students at the all-girls college were awarded a total of 120 scholarships.
Endeavour Scholars Enrich our Community
A lunch was held recently for Endeavour Scholarship students in the College. This was an opportunity for students in the junior and senior schools to come together and socialise.
Senior students mentor new students in the Junior School. In 2001, St Cuthbert’s College and King’s School launched a scholarship initiative aimed at enabling young people of Māori and Pasifika descent to gain the qualifications which will help them take their place as leaders in our community.
Fundamental to the Endeavour Scholarship programme is the principle that the College, families and communities work together to encourage the students to reach their full potential.
Endeavour Scholarships are funded by philanthropists and supporters of independent education and have the full support of leaders from Māori and Pacific Island communities.
Scholarships Let Girls Live Their Dreams
Mina Sheck (Y8) and Andrea Kapeteni (Y13) are years apart in age but the two have become firm friends as Endeavour Scholars at St Cuthbert’s College. Mina and Andrea are clearly delighted to be at St Cuthbert’s. When asked what she likes about the school she came to as a Y7 student last year, Mina quickly responds, “Getting a better education and becoming involved in a lot of different activities.”
For Mina, these include the sports of touch and basketball as well as playing trumpet in the Y7/8 Band and singing in the Song Squad. Drama and PE are among her favourite subjects. Mina is playing Grinch in the Y8 Show and is looking forward to acting as the mean, green character.
In PE, she especially loves dance and takes it seriously because she knows she will be assessed on it.
One of the challenges of joining the College was getting used to new timetables, going to a variety of specialist classrooms and having some different teachers for the various subjects. This is a benefit for students as it means the teachers are usually experts in their subject.
Mina’s transition to St Cuthbert’s was eased by having buddies from Y8 and Y12 to assist her, and she has clearly settled in well – in her first year she won a Parents and Friends’ Association Award for Fellowship and Service. Mina believes that confidence is the secret of being a scholar – knowing that you can succeed if you are given the opportunities.
It helps that her family are all very supportive too. “They are really happy that I could come to a school like this,” she says.
Her Y12 buddy was Andrea, and they are still good friends. Andrea has found the academic side of life at St Cuthbert’s College “challenging but in a stimulating way”. She enjoys having teachers who are specialists – “They are passionate about their subjects. I tried everything!”
Like Mina, Andrea values the support of her family. Her parents were “overjoyed” about her coming to St Cuthbert’s. This happened after her primary school in Manurewa put her name forward for an Endeavour Scholarship. “I’ll always appreciate the six years I’ll have spent here,” says Andrea, who is Deputy Head Girl of the College and plans to study law at university.
She makes the observation that her scholarship achievements are having a beneficial influence on members of her own family and community, as they see through her the value of a good education.
Endeavour Scholarships are not a one-way street where only the girls benefit. Having students like Andrea and Mina is good for St Cuthbert’s too. As Andrea says, “We are sharing our Samoan culture and helping St Cuthbert’s get rid of its image of blonde, blue-eyed, braces, brainiacs.”
The girls are learning lessons to take them successfully through life. As Andrea says with a smile, “It’s a cliché but it is true that you can take the girl out of St Cuth’s but you can’t take St Cuth’s out of the girl.”
An Endeavour Scholar
Tayla Hei Hei first visited St Cuthbert’s College as a Year 5 student from Manurewa East Primary School.“It was massive and completely different from our school.”Now, as a Year 12 student, Tayla is half way through her sixth year as an Endeavour Scholar at St Cuthbert’s.
Tayla can still remember finding out she was an Endeavour Scholarship recipient.
“It’s actually quite a funny story.”
She was playing elastics in the school yard when a “little kid” told her she had to go and see the principal. At first she ignored the instruction and finished off her game.
Then when she acted on it, she was greeted with the Deputy Principal - arms folded tightly – and began worrying about what she had done.
But her mum was just around the corner and broke the exciting news to her.
St Cuthbert’s College was completely different from Tayla’s primary school.
“There wasn’t a big academic jump, just the amount of work grew.”
Getting up at six to catch the bus in time for College took a bit of getting used to as Tayla’s primary school had been just down the road.
Within her first year, Tayla went on a sports exchange to Australia.
“It was really cool. The furthest we had been when I was at primary school was St Cuthbert’s College, and all of a sudden I got to go to Australia.”
A trip to the Sir Edmund Hillary Outdoor Pursuits Centre has been another highlight.
It has been difficult to take part in other extra-curricular activities, because of the distance she has to travel, however recently gaining her license will open up opportunities.
“I’d like to coach a netball team next year perhaps.”
She has enjoyed being a part of the Kapahaka group and is considering joining the Samoan group for a fresh change next year.
Tayla is very modest about her academic achievements. She gained a St Cuthbert’s College Scholars’ Award for her high achievement in NCEA Level 1 last year and after next year hopes to study medicine.
“It sounds so mainstream and like everyone wants to do it, but I really want to be a doctor. That would be so cool.”
Tayla has since been back to her primary school, which St Cuthbert’s College has a strong relationship with, to help out with athletics day and read to the kids.
“I always have younger kids saying hi. I don’t know who they are but just smile and say hi back.”
She would love to see another Manurewa East student go for an Endeavour Scholarship.
Y12 St Cuthbert's College Endeavour Scholars - Larissa Eruera, Tayla Hei Hei and Morgan Tupaea.