Auckland Girls’ Grammar School’s 2023 Head Girls are urging local parents to take a look at what they call Ponsonby’s hidden gem.
AGGS is the second oldest school in New Zealand and the oldest all-girls school in the City of Sails yet many of the students aren’t local – they travel in from all around greater Auckland.
The school’s 2023 Head Girls Te Kahurangi Whata and Safa Nazari are out to change that and are challenging parents and girls from Ponsonby and its surrounding suburbs to come and take a look at the school which both Te Kahurangi and Safa love.
Says Te Kahurangi: “The connections you make and the bonds that you build with your peers and with your teachers, I think that’s one of the best things you can get as part of your education.”
Safa agrees, saying the second she started as a new student at AGGS she felt as though she was accepted. “Your culture, your identity, it’s all celebrated,” she explains.
Both girls also praise the close-knit AGGS’ staff, who they say care not only about academic achievement, but also about pastoral care and student wellbeing. There’s a complete wraparound Health Centre at the school plus a doctor and a psychologist who come in regularly and two full time counsellors and a social worker.
Ngaire Ashmore, Principal, who’s been at the helm for seven years, is super proud of what’s on offer at her school. We have a real focus on achieving outcomes for students academically and the belief that all students have the potential to be high achievers. We also have wonderful sporting prowess, we have a very strong arts programme and many opportunities for cultural development.
Another feather in the AGGS' cap is that it’s home to one of the country’s most celebrated Māori Units, Ngā Tūmanako o Kahurangi, led with mana by Joey Rogers. “Our girls in Kahurangi strive for excellence,” Rogers says, “in every form, not just academically, but as young Māori wahine. That is the essence of our kaupapa.”
Head Girl Te Kahurangi says one of the first decisions she made – even before coming to AGGS – was to be a part of the Kahurangi unit. “I think it’s a space that really nurtures and grows me in Te Reo Maori – which I hadn’t had as much access to prior to coming to AGGS,” explains Te Kahurangi. “I think knowing who I am and knowing where I’m from and knowing the values of Te Reo Maori will be able to help shape me for who I am going to become.”
Both Head Girls can’t stress enough that Auckland Girls’ Grammar School is all about setting students up for a 'real world', not only in Aotearoa but also globally.
With the 2023 Open Day at Auckland Girls’ looming, both of the school’s 2023 Head Girls have their own message for Ponsonby parents and girls looking for the perfect High School for them. Our message is: Definitely, definitely consider AGGS! Come and meet us at our Open Day on Tuesday 13 June.
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29 May 2023