Planting a growth mindset
Ōmokoroa Point School principal Vicki Knell says it’s time to go. She can rightly feel she is retiring on a high, having bested the roll growth challenges of recent years.
“As a friend once told me there are only two types of All Blacks coach: those on the way up and those on the way out. I feel as if I’ve been riding a 50ft wave scoring a 9.5 and I don’t want to feel like I fell off the surfboard,” she says.
The new senior teaching block is perhaps the jewel in the crown; the latest in a long line of property maintenance projects. These have included the relining of the swimming pool and resurfacing of the tennis courts, the creation of the covered outdoor theatre space and a raft of classroom redevelopments. The self-styled “Best Little School in the Bay” has gone through refurbishments to what are now known as Rooms 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5. The former library was converted into classroom 5L. There was also the crucial development of the Whare Manaaki multipurpose space from the old Rooms 1 & 2, which the Ministry of Education had wanted to demolish. One of Vicki’s first jobs was to rename all of the classrooms, as they used to be numbered in the order the buildings had arrived on site, rather than the progression of children through the school.
Vicki taught at Maungatapu from 1989 to 1997 before coming to OPS as the fifth teacher and Deputy Principal in 1998. She taught Years 5 and 6. That year, the roll grew from 120 to 135. In 2004, Vicki took over teaching Years 7 and 8. In 2011, young Jack Farrell became the 200th child to enrol at OPS, under then principal Hugh Smith. Vicki became principal in 2013. Fast forward six years.
In 2019, OPS began the year with 272 on the roll and ended up with 309. This year, the initial 280 has already become 301. There has been a 50% roll growth in just eight years.
When I caught up with Vicki she apologised for a croaky voice, having been singing up a storm with the kapa haka children.
“It’s hugely rewarding if you open yourself up to opportunities in the community. It’s satisfying to forge those networks and relationships. I have a genuine love for children and supporting learners with their quirks. You’ve got to be a person who wants to lead a team, to recognise and grow the strengths of others. You’ve also got to love paperwork and systems and working alongside the Ministry to get the best deal for our children,” she says.
“This school has been fortunate to have long-serving principals Colin Pettigrew and Hugh Smith. I’ve been building on a really great platform. It’s important to acknowledge what has gone before. There are still people with long associations like Cushla in the office, who arrived here just a year after me.
“I think 11 to 13 is a special age, when most children start to feel strongly about a sense of fairness as they view the world around them. They start to build a social conscience and realise they can make a difference. Our trips to Northland and Wellington set them up with great memories and instill in them what it means to be a New Zealander.”
Vicki pays tribute to the Boards of Trustees, teaching and support staff and PTAs of her tenure and is happy to be handing over to Sandra Portegys - of Maungatapu.