The last couple of years have been challenging for us all, but schools around Southland are having to adapt once again to celebrate the students’ achievements and keep within the restrictions associated with Covid-19.

For some, the changes have had added benefits.

James Hargest College has always had three ceremonies due to the size of their venue and, in the past, only those receiving prizes have been able to attend.

This year they have decided not to wait for exams to be over for their year 11-13 ceremony but ran their prize giving as the seniors went on study leave with live streaming instead.

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Mike Newell, Principal of James Hargest, was very pleased they decided to get in the professionals.

“Sono Sound did an amazing job and set up two cameras so there were even close ups” he said.

“I’ve had such great feedback with parents commenting that they were able to get better views than they have ever had”.

He also said that the link was able to be shared with families in New Zealand and overseas which actually opened it up to more family members being able to be a part of the ceremony.

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“Obviously it is gutting for the Year 13 parents not to be there in person for their child’s last prize giving, but I feel we have given them a top quality alternative”.

Hargest is still to hold their other two ceremonies and plan to live stream these as well.  

It’s much the same for other schools. Waiau Area School is a Year 1 to 13 school with 140 pupils and their principal, Andrew Pardoe-Burnett, is keen to be able to keep the usual activities but just adapt to ensure they stick to the 100 people.

The plan is to split the junior prize giving in two (Years 1-4 and 5-8) and run during the school day but will be consulting with parents regarding the actual timing.

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“We will still have a musical item and a Christmas Carol. We’ll social distance and reduce the entertainment but still use our same format. Maybe even look at having it outside if the weather is nice.”

They plan to still have their senior prize giving at night with the leavers having priority for guests but Andrew is determined that it will be memorable for his students.

It’s a similar story for Blue Mountain College with the years 7-12 having their prize giving during the school day with no parents able to attend.

Parents won’t miss out however as Principal Lindy Cavanagh Monaghan said that they have plans to live stream the ceremony.

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“Parents will have the opportunity to be part of it albeit virtually and we will also be taking photos of each prize winner” For their Year 13s they have decided to make it extra special with a leavers’ dinner and prize giving in Gore with the students and their parents.

“We are also videoing the Year 13 ceremony so we can put it up on our Facebook page as a celebration of our graduands (sic) and inspiration for their younger peers.”

Gore High School has released their plan via their Facebook page and they also are having a bit of a change.

They are having to use Calvin Church for the ceremonies because of the delay in the NCEA exams caused by the lockdowns, as their hall is still in use for exams.

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Their Year 13 ceremony is still to be held in the evening and is limited to 100 guests but will be videoed so those who can’t get to the ceremony will still be able to watch it afterwards.

A few days later they are holding another evening Prize Giving at the Calvin Church which will be by invitation only. This ceremony will also be videoed.

They have said that any Junior cups and prize certificates not given out at the evening ceremony will be awarded in core class groups by the Rector and Dean during the day with photos being taken and posted on the school Facebook page.  

Northern Southland College, in Lumsden, has plans to run everything during the last day at school.

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“The seniors usually return for that last day to do a prize giving practice before the ceremony at night so we will just run through it in the morning and then do the official prize giving in the afternoon.”

Principal Pete Wilkinson said, “So many of our students live out of Lumsden so we didn’t think it fair to make parents bring them back in for an evening ceremony that they couldn’t stay at.”

Originally they had thought that they would keep their options open with the possibility of still going ahead with an evening ceremony with parents and caregivers but the traffic light system is making this look less likely and the feeling is that the daytime ceremony will be less disruptive for everyone.

“We are still going to be celebrating the successes, and the school leaders for 2022 will be announced at the ceremony as usual. We also have plans to live stream and record the ceremony so nobody will miss out.”

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So while Covid might have changed the look of things, technology means that more people will actually enjoy the school ceremonies with nobody to see if they are actually reclining in their comfy chairs tucked up in their onesies with a cup of tea and a nice slice of cake.

Some parents have already said that they enjoyed that they were able to talk during the ceremony without being growled at!

The family pets can also enjoy the celebrations and nobody will be any the wiser!

Perhaps schools will make live streaming a part of their prize giving ceremonies in the future even when Covid restrictions are relaxed?