The 2012 school year is now well underway.  The roll has remained high in all regions.  CRHS – City has gone from strength-to-strength. The major property redevelopment at Lower North Youth Justice continues. Health teachers have welcomed additional part time staff to Manawatu, Kapiti, and Whanganui due to high rolls in these regions.  New CRHS offices in Manawatu, Lower Hutt and Horowhenua are located on school sites and contain a teaching space/classroom to enable some on site teaching for students. All the sites are stand-alone and operate independently of the host school.  A new office is underway for the Wairarapa teachers.

Behind the scenes we have had a major IT infrastructure upgrade and are now using eTap as the school’s Student Management System. Parents and students are unlikely to notice many changes with the move to eTap - maybe some alterations to the Individual Plan layout. It will reduce teacher paperwork and allow for the collection of data that will give the Board confidence that the school is achieving its goals.

The number of students on the roll with mental health conditions has increased to around 50 %. CRHS has already been responsive to this change with the establishment of CRHS – City. In the longer term there are implications in the other areas so we are working on ways to ensure the needs of all students, irrespective of geographic location, can be adequately met.

In May, 2012, one of our foundation teachers is hanging up her CRHS laptop to retire. Cathie Trotter was a Hospital Teacher before the establishment of CRHS. Cathie has been a highly dedicated teacher and has been a driving force behind the innovation and commitment to quality programmes and outcomes across the school. In addition to her role as a teacher Cathie also served 6 years on the Board as staff trustee. We all wish Cathie a long and happy retirement.

Kind regards

Ken