Kia ora e te whānau

You will all have heard the announcement yesterday that once we move to COVID Alert Level 3, schools will reopen for students up to year 10. This is intended for those students who need to attend school.

Keep in mind that we are still unsure of the date for the re-opening of schools, which will be dependent on instructions from the Director General of Health. That said, a timeline was issued to you in an Education Ministry Bulletin, dated 9 April, based on the assumption that schools would begin to open for some students at the conclusion of Alert Level 4, but that it would be a staggered process.

Yesterday’s announcement, to reopen all schools for students up to year 10 at Alert Level 3, therefore came as a surprise. Principals immediately recognised the challenges this will create and many have voiced their concerns to me.  The concerns include the requirements for social distancing, having to operate both in face to face and distance learning modes and the health, safety and wellbeing of both staff and students.

This morning I have met with the Secretary for Education, Iona Holsted, and peak body leaders. Be assured that at the meeting, I shared all the concerns you had voiced to me and I thank you for raising them. Here, I will share with you highlights from that meeting.

We are required to work to the Government’s expectations and the Ministry of Education is committed to working with us to establish the details of how to make this work.

Safety will be of paramount importance and further public health information will be provided. This information will outline the rationale for choosing years 10 and under for the restart of schooling.

The emphasis continues to be on students staying at home if possible and provision will be made for vulnerable staff to continue to work remotely.

Careful planning will be undertaken to make the Government’s plan workable whilst maintaining the safety of staff and students. That includes the liklihood that students will not be allowed to randomly turn up at school. Rather, it is probable that an Alert Level 3 roll will be established for each school.

We continue to operate under a State of Emergency and under instruction from the Government. Principals and Boards will not be held liable for any COVID-19 illness experienced at school.

It is important that we continue to show strong and confident leadership, as you have been, and attack the issues we will face with generosity and understanding. We are all part of a much broader picture.

I do not underestimate the complexity of the challenge ahead of us, and I am confident that we can share our concerns respectfully, contribute to constructing a carefully worked through plan, and have trust in it.

This is the time for us, as leaders of our schools and communities, to step up, to put our collective shoulders to the wheel, and face the challenges ahead with positivity and passion. That’s what Kiwi Leadership is all about.

Ngā manaakitanga

Perry Rush
perry@nzpf.ac.nz