waihi school
HEADMASTER – ALLAN SHORT
Allan Short is an experienced leader in boys’ education and has worked across state and independent schools both in New Zealand and the UK. This is his ninth year as Headmaster of New Zealand’s southernmost Independent School, Waihi, in South Canterbury, and his passion for boys’ education, both inside and outside of the classroom, shines through. Together with his wife Kendra, who is an independent LMC midwife, and their four school-aged children, the Short family love their time at Waihi. Family is the word that probably best describes the Waihi community and with the majority of teaching staff and their children living onsite too, it really does create a unique environment for the boys to work, develop and play.
Allan says, ‘Waihi’s reputation as a school where every boy can find, explore and develop their talents has been well earned over many generations.
The sense of adventure, kindness and service, shared by Waihians young and old, also reflects the school’s founding values and core ethos.
‘The wellbeing of our boys is central to all we do. Our staff focus first on building relationships with each individual. We discuss the importance of areas such as “mental health”, “resilience”, “gratitude” and “grit” in order to develop character traits that promote the growth of our boys into fine young men.’
At Waihi, staff certainly live by the mantra of ‘ We believe in boys’ as their outdoor education and
STEM initiatives highlight. Allan says, ‘ The boys love the challenges created by STEM, which includes science problem-solving; coding and engineering. Outside they participate in team-building, bush craft, individual and group challenges on land and water, encouraging handson opportunities to take responsible risks, embrace their physical and kinaesthetic learning tendencies, and to get ver y dirty in the process!’
So whether it is cricket or chess, robotics or rock bands, drama or digital technologies, the Waihi boys seem to punch above their weight and do everything with smiles on their faces, and they have the unerring ability to see the world as a glass-half-full kind of place each and every day.