The Speakers Series

St Cuthbert’s College Speakers' Series Coordinator, Mrs Ann Rodgers, says the aim of the Speakers Series is to have speakers present ideas and issues which are intended to extend the students’ beyond their own experiences and environments, and provoke discussion and debate about a variety of current and future issues.
“It is a responsibility of the College to expose students to a variety of viewpoints and to encourage them to question and investigate the information and knowledge they receive. This is the perfect opportunity to encourage exploration outside the students’ personal environment and practice sound decision-making techniques.”

2010 Speakers Series

The theme for the 2010 Speakers Series is "Leadership - How have the leaders in our community developed and made use of their natural skills and talents so that they can reach their potential and in so doing benefit both themselves and the community as a whole."

Hon. John Key

Concluding the College’s Speakers’ Series on a high note was the Hon. John Key, Prime Minister and leader of the National Party.
He spoke to a packed Joan Holland Auditorium about some of the attitudes that have helped to make him successful.
“Lots of people will tell you that you can’t do it,” he said, “but don’t listen to too many people who are negative.
You need amazing self-belief and must back yourself 100%.
Have a dream, have a big ambition and go for it.”
He quoted his mother, who told him: “You get out of life what you put into it.”
Most interestingly coming from someone in the Prime Minister’s position was how relaxed he generally remains. His secret? Staying focused and not getting fixated on the things you can’t control.

Daniel Vettori

He’s been playing cricket for his country since the age of 18 and at 31 is a successful captain of our national team. Yet Daniel Vettori comes across as a modest, slightly shy man. In fact, he chose not to give a speech for his appearance in our Speakers’ Series but preferred an informal question-and-answer session with his large audience of rapt students and staff.
He considers the questions thoughtfully before answering. Much of his success he attributes to beneficial influences from his parents, who encouraged him to excel.
Leadership programmes at his school were also crucial – so make the most of those at St Cuthbert’s! And he also mentions something nobody should forget – hard work.
An interesting idea he expressed about leadership was the idea of making everyone around you feel good about themselves. Another lesson he imparted was taking ownership of your situation: “My success or failure stems from what I do. You’re the only one to blame if you fail.” Daniel is also convinced that you have to enjoy what you’re doing. “I really do believe that most guys play because they enjoy it,” he says about his team.
He believes they need to be good role models and are responsible for behaving “in the right way.”

Christine Gordon SC

Knowing that Christine Gordon has been on the Trust Board of St Cuthbert’s College for nearly 16 years and is the current chairperson, it is easy to forget that she is also one of New Zealand’s most powerful lawyers.
It was in this capacity that she spoke to a group of enthralled students and staff in the Speakers’ Series.
She is the Crown prosecutor, the barrister at Meredith Connell responsible for prosecuting some of the most gruesome, nastiest cases in recent New Zealand history and therefore for putting some real villains behind bars for long periods. She spoke about the value of teamwork and good preparation – especially as criminal cases can take many months to come to court.
She talked unflinchingly about the unpleasant side of some of what she had seen, and not to let that get into your head but to remain focused on the bigger picture of convicting a dangerous criminal.
And she advised her audience not to be afraid to change direction. But perhaps the best advice she gave was to keep setting goals for yourself, and that piece of wisdom is shaping up to be a common theme among the College’s various speakers.

Rob Mathews

“I’m not blind, it’s just that I can’t see,” Rob Matthews said tellingly during his highly motivating talk in the 2010 Speakers’ Series.
Blind by the age of 20, he found focus and inspiration in running and went on to win 29 international gold medals at Paralympic Games and other major events.
He has set 22 world records and received the MBE for Services to Sport for the Disabled.

In an action-packed life, he has run his way around the world, cycled around Europe, driven a racing car at high speed at Brands Hatch, skied and played golf, football and cricket.
Rob Matthews believes it’s your attitude to life that dictates the outcome. “The people who helped me most were those who said all the things I couldn’t do – it became a challenge to prove them wrong,” he said, adding, “It’s too easy to give up.”

After 23 years of running for Great Britain, Rob now represents New Zealand. He won Silver in the 2009 World Paralympic Triathlon Championships on the Gold Coast. His most important tip was to set goals, and he has one of his own – Rob aims to cycle for New Zealand at the 2012 Paralympic Games in London.
While in the College, Rob signed copies of his autobiography Running Blind.

Dr Lester Levy

Dr Lester Levy was the first speaker in the 2010 Speakers Series. He is Head of the New Zealand Leadership Institute at the University of Auckland Business School and Professor of Leadership and a Fellow of the New Zealand Institute of Management.He has an MBA as well as a medical degree and was recently appointed chairman of the Waitemata District Health Board.
Dr Levy is the author of the book “Leadership and the Whirlpool Effect”.
He spoke about the qualities that make good leaders and high achievers, citing scientist Marie Curie and Starbucks founder Howard Schultz as good examples and saying that what they had in common was aspiration, which is a blend of hope and optimism. It can be learned, he said. “Emotional intelligence is also critical,” he said, “and you can develop it by practice.” Just as important is psychological capital, which is made up of the four qualities of confidence, optimism, hope and resilience.
Dr Levy spent time speaking with Sir Edmund Hillary, who stressed that he put much of his own success down to two factors: determination and perseverance.
But probably most important of all for the age we live in is tacit intelligence, which Dr Levy defined as the ability to unlearn and relearn. The good news is that these are all attributes that can be learned.

2009 Speakers Series

The theme for the 2009 Speakers Series is "Challenge – the challenges facing individuals, the nation and the world and how we can each collaborate to make a difference".

Rosalind Hursthouse

The first speaker was Auckland University philosophy professor Rosalind Hursthouse, the author of multiple books about virtue ethics.
She defined virtues as the character traits that we all need in order to live well together - a definition that Aristotle used over two and a half thousand years ago and little changed today.
Professor Hursthouse maintains that in the last 20 years or so we have become conscious of the fact that it is no longer just a matter of us living well together, it is our living together, together with everything else in the natural world which we are currently destroying - and there will be no living together well if we destroy the very substance of our survival.
Virtues are not something that is personal opinion or is culturally based.
The United Nations has recommended a list of over 100 such character traits as being suitable for any culture.

Mike McRoberts

Mike McRoberts, 3 News anchor and 60 Minutes host, shared the challenges he has encountered in his journalism career.
He spoke about what it was like to go from the top of his school, to the “bottom” at his first work-place, Radio NZ, and then to experience similar feelings as he moved into broadcast journalism and faced the initial conflict between his shy manner and Maori upbringing and the expectations of being a confrontational current affairs reporter.
He captivated the audience with his vast experiences as an international journalist, including tales of Iraq, Gaza, China and Zimbabwe, and how important he believes it is, to have a New Zealand perspective on international stories.

Lisa Blaker

Through international medical organisation Medecins Sans Frontieres, New Zealand nurse Lisa Blaker spent nine months working in Darfur, Western Sudan and has written a revealing book Heart of Darfur about the humanitarian challenges she faced in the region plagued by government and tribal civil fighting.
During her session, Lisa spoke of the inspiring individuals she met during her placement and the way they challenged her to keep going despite feelings of hopelessness.
Lisa encouraged the audience to find and use their individual talents. She said if any of them had been there, they could have helped mix rehydration solution, negotiate time with soldiers, write patient reports or even take temperatures. “To step up to the plate is the most important thing you can do.”

2008 Speakers Series

St Cuthbert’s College students will begin their holidays with interesting discussion starters following the first two presentations of the College’s 2008 Speakers Series.
Herald columnist Tapu Misa spoke on child poverty in New Zealand and Mohawk Media managing director Helen Baxter talked about the future of the internet.
The Speakers Series is a lunch time programme of guest speakers organised by the St Cuthbert’s College Advanced Learning Centre.
This year is its first and the theme is ‘What it means to be a New Zealander’.
Tapu wanted to straighten out some preconceptions about the poor in New Zealand.
“It’s not about envying the lifestyles of the rich and the famous. They have modest wants.”
Helen, also a creative columnist and strategist, geek girl on Radio NZ National and creator of new Alt TV programme the G33k Show, wanted to impart her enthusiasm to students considering career paths in her industry.
“The key point for me is there is no manual (for the future) – it’s a blank piece of paper. People need to start doodling.”
Guest speakers at the College after the school holidays were the Dean of Parnell’s Holy Trinity Cathedral, the Very Reverend Ross Bay, Olympic swimmers Dean Kent and Glynn Snyders and Chair in Paediatrics at the University of Auckland, Professor Innes Asher.

In addition to this, the Advanced Learning Centre has responded to a challenge made during a recent visit by
Dr Leonard Sax, author of Why Gender Matters (Doubleday 2005), to encourage more girls to consider careers in the IT field.
Dr Peter Kay, Senior Lecturer at Massey University has been invited to present an introductory computer programming course.
Other features of the Gifted and Talented programme include former Associate Principal of Kristin School, Michael Gifford, working with students on ‘A Practical Approach to Realizing Remarkable Futures’.