Anxious & frustrated parents need assurances

A group of concerned parents and community members is seeking an assurance that the Opononi Area School will continue as a full area school providing secondary education.

The parents are “anxious and frustrated” over an apparent lack of action to solve the school’s problems since a Commissioner was appointed to run the school more than two months ago.

In an e-mail to Education Secretary Karen Sewell, the group asks for a “clear unambiguous statement” that there is “an absolute commitment” to keeping the school open.

The e-mail, written on behalf of the group, also asks for a representative community group to be set up immediately, and for transparency in the Commissioner’s dealings with the school and the parent community.

Commissioners are required to report monthly on their progress, but so far the Opononi group, which lobbied for the appointment of a Commissioner and the sacking of the school board, had no opportunity to hear from the Commissioner of his plan.

Northland regional education manager, Chris Eve indicated at the time of the Commissioner’s appointment that a community liaison could be set up within a week or so of the appointment. No community hui has been held yet, the e-mail says.

“Concerned parents and community members grow increasingly anxious and frustrated as each day passes with no discernible difference other than the dissolution of the board and the part-time presence of the commissioner,” Mr Mita writes in the e-mail.

“The sustained pressure on the teaching staff and therefore the children, means Opononi Area School is still a dangerously unsafe environment. The incompetence of the leader aggravates a tense situation.

“The only indicators the school community hears about are record rise in stand downs or suspensions and with the series of recent mismanaged incidents where measures taken were disproportionate to the original incident, more families are having to explore taking children away from the school.”

It’s imperative for parents and students to end the school year knowing that positive progress is being made on the issues affecting the school, Mr Mita says.

The school roll has been plummeting more than 30 per cent in the past year as parents and students “vote with their feet”, and more parents will take their children out of the school – and the district – if they don’t have clarity before the end of the current school year.

The parents’ group plans to release a “community scorecard report” on the Commissioner’s progress and performance.