Latest news with #TePukeHighSchool
NZ Herald
22-05-2025
- Entertainment
- NZ Herald
Project Hip Hop Dance Competition celebrates youth talent at Baypark
'Project was designed to provide an opportunity for entry-level dancers to experience a high-quality dance competition event to gain confidence to enter other national events,' Martin said. 'A full-circle moment for me this year is seeing Te Puke High School entering again for the first time in over a decade, led by their head of dance, Jennifer Cram, who was a student of mine back when it all began.' From humble beginnings at Baycourt in 2010 with just nine crews and 70 dancers, Project Hip Hop has become a major event on the national dance calendar. In 2024, the competition attracted 1004 dancers across 94 crews, drawing in more than 2400 spectators. This year, the event is set to be even bigger, with 102 crews registered. This event is supported by the Tauranga Event Fund, which helps fund arts, culture, and sporting events that enrich the city. Tauranga City Council venues and events manager Nelita Burne said the event was a great example of the creative, vibrant, and inclusive initiatives the fund aims to foster. 'We're proud to support events like Project Hip Hop. Dance - particularly hip hop - is a crossover between sport and culture, demanding the physicality and discipline of sport, alongside the creativity and storytelling of the arts. Events like this resonate with many young people in our city, reflecting their passions and giving them something positive to aim for.' Bay Venues head of events Amanda West said it was an occasion that truly reflects the power of youth-led expression. 'This event is a vibrant celebration of Aotearoa's street dance culture, bringing together talent, creativity, and community from across the motu. We're proud to host an event that uplifts young people and showcases the power of dance.' Long-time MC of the event Hadleigh Pouesi said Project's impact went far beyond the stage. 'Over the last 15 years, I've seen firsthand how this event shapes the dance industry and our wider community,' said Pouesi. She said it had launched careers and helped 'thousands of rangatahi [youth] unlock leadership, creativity, and confidence'. 'The kaupapa has never changed, it's about giving young people a platform to express themselves, challenge themselves, and feel empowered.' Saturday will feature beginner and school-age crews in the Primary, Junior Novice, Varsity Novice, and Mega School divisions. Sunday sees top open division crews compete in Junior, Mini, Varsity, Adult, and Mega Crew categories, with $22,000 in prize money. The details: When: Saturday, May 31, and Sunday, June 1
Scoop
22-05-2025
- General
- Scoop
Jules Finds Her Joy In Volunteering
Press Release – SociaLink The 17-year-old Te Puke High School student Jules Delaere says her job was simple – helping hand out goody bags, helping at a few stations, walking the children to the local early learning cantre and helping them make flower bombs of seeds … May 19, 2025 Young volunteer Jules Delaere is finding there's a joy in volunteering to help others. She's just completed her first volunteer sessions, first with Ōtanewainuku Kiwi Trust clearing trails, and then with COLAB in Te Puke's Kai Resilience movement, supervising activities on last month's Kids' Kai Trail. The 17-year-old Te Puke High School student says her job was simple – helping hand out goody bags, helping at a few stations, walking the children to the local early learning cantre and helping them make 'flower bombs' of seeds to plant out at home. 'I saw an ad for volunteers to help out with the Kids' Kai Trail last month and thought that's a bit of me, that sounds cool.' She'd already had a taste of volunteering at Pukehina, helping with veges grown for The Daily cafe to use in their school lunches and family meals. 'It's my first year volunteering, and it's pretty cool.' Jules is part way through her Duke of Edinburgh Silver award and started volunteering to add to her service hours. 'There's a real joy in being involved in my community.' Her final year of school keeps her pretty busy, but she's also enjoyed working with the kiwi trust helping clear the trails. Next year she hopes to study chemical engineering at university – and still volunteer. For COLAB coordinator Christ Johnstone, managing young volunteers has been a new experience. 'We appreciate the energy and enthusiasm they contribute.' COLAB is a collective of individuals and groups working together to create a thriving, sustainable community in Te Puke. The Kids' Kai Trail was designed as an educational opportunity for tamariki, as part of the Flavours of Plenty festival. The children were able to take part in a variety of free activities, learning about how food is grown, planting seeds, and finishing with making their own pizza toppings at The Daily. 'We had a fantastic day, and this was a wonderful opportunity for COLAB to offer free activities for children to learn about food and growing. About 60 people took part and we had half a dozen young people volunteering. 'Young people bring a different energy to an event. They can relate to the kids and they don't have that 'parent' approach. The kids really appreciate that. The volunteers also had a ball on the day.'
Scoop
13-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Scoop
Project Hip Hop - Empowering Young Dancers To Take The Stage
Project Hip Hop Dance Competition returns to Mercury Arena Baypark this King's Birthday Weekend, bringing more than 1,000 young dancers together from across Aotearoa for a two-day celebration of movement, music, and mana. Held on Saturday, 31 May and Sunday, 1 June, this high-energy dance competition gives young people the opportunity to grow, create, and express themselves - whether they're just starting out or competing at an elite level. Founder and event director Sarah Martin began this competition while teaching at Te Puke High School. At the time, her students didn't feel confident entering national dance competitions, so she created a platform where they could build their skills and self-belief. 'Project was designed to provide an opportunity for entry-level dancers to experience a high-quality dance competition event to gain confidence to enter other national events,' says Sarah. 'A full-circle moment for me this year is seeing Te Puke High School entering again for the first time in over a decade, led by their Head of Dance, Jennifer Cram, who was a student of mine back when it all began.' From humble beginnings at Baycourt in 2010 with just nine crews and 70 dancers, Project has grown and become a major event on the national dance calendar. In 2024, the competition attracted 1,004 dancers across 94 crews, drawing in more than 2,400 spectators. This year, the event is set to be even bigger, with 102 crews registered. This event is proudly supported by the Tauranga Event Fund, which supports arts, culture, and sporting events that enrich the city as a place to both live and visit, and reflect Tauranga's unique lifestyle and identity. Nelita Byrne, Manager of Venues and Events at Tauranga City Council, says the event is a great example of the creative, vibrant, and inclusive initiatives the fund aims to foster. 'We're proud to support events like Project Hip Hop. Dance - particularly hip hop - is a crossover between sport and culture, demanding the physicality and discipline of sport, alongside the creativity and storytelling of the arts. Events like this resonate with many young people in our city, reflecting their passions and giving them something positive to aim for.' Bay Venues Head of Events Amanda West says it's an occasion that truly reflects the power of youth-led expression. 'We're incredibly excited to welcome the Project Youth Hip Hop Dance Competition back to Mercury Baypark. This event is a vibrant celebration of Aotearoa's street dance culture, bringing together talent, creativity, and community from across the motu. We're proud to host an event that uplifts young people and showcases the power of dance.' Long-time MC of the event Hadleigh Pouesi says Project's impact goes far beyond the stage. 'Over the last 15 years, I've seen firsthand how this event shapes the dance industry and our wider community,' says Hadleigh. 'Project has launched the careers of international superstars, but it's also helped thousands of rangatahi unlock leadership, creativity, and confidence. The kaupapa has never changed, it's about giving young people a platform to express themselves, challenge themselves, and feel empowered.' Saturday will feature beginner and school-age crews in the Primary, Junior Novice, Varsity Novice, and Mega School divisions. Sunday sees top open division crews compete in Junior, Mini, Varsity, Adult, and Mega Crew categories, with $22,000 in prize money. To build the hype, a special preview performance will take place at the Tauranga Waterfront on Saturday, 17 May, as part of the Hoops on the Waterfront event with Whai Basketball. Local dance school Phoenix Performing Arts will be showcasing its talent, with dance crew Flame performing at 11am, followed by a short hip hop teaching session for the public. Sarah Martin says the success of Project Hip Hop comes down to a collective effort. 'I want to thank my whānau, who've been part of every event, my incredible event team; our sponsors, Tauranga City Council, TECT, Lion Foundation, Pub Charity, and Custom Tees; and the parents, caregivers, and teachers who give their all to support the next generation. And most importantly, the young people, for having the courage to show up, step up, and express themselves.' Event Details: Hoops on the Waterfront with Whai Basketball When: Saturday, 17 May, 10.30am to 12.30pm Where: Tauranga waterfront, basketball half-court. Project Hip Hop Dance Competition When: Saturday, 31 May & Sunday, 1 June 2025 Where: Mercury Arena Baypark, Mount Maunganui.
NZ Herald
03-05-2025
- General
- NZ Herald
Jasleen returns to Te Puke as trailblazing police constable
Workplace variety One of the attractions was the idea that no two days of police work were the same. 'It's [also] something different. There are not a lot of female Indians in the job and there are a lot of things behind that – the thinking in our community that girls are not as strong as boys, or they may not be able to handle situations as men can, but my mum and dad always taught me that there's nothing that I cannot do that a guy can do, so I thought 'yes', let's do this.' After leaving Te Puke High School, Jasleen did a pre-police course. 'I had a few setbacks with Covid and a few injuries but eventually made it and went through Police College which was a good experience. It was hard to be away from home, but I had the support of my mum and dad and sister.' More to offer Jasleen quickly realised the impact she could have as a police officer. 'I realised I had way more to offer than I thought, just by being an Indian female, just going to jobs where there were Indian females who were afraid just to talk to males or non-Indian officers.' She found people opened up to her, and that sometimes resulted in action being taken that might not otherwise have been possible. 'Just being an Indian female and being there, being able to talk to them in their native language is really helpful.' Hometown Her parents were both born in India and the family lived in Italy for a decade before moving to New Zealand and Te Puke. 'I love this town, so when I saw the opportunity to come here, I jumped at it. 'As well as being home, it offered the chance for a different type of policing than she had previously experienced. 'It was good experience [working in Tauranga], but this is different – out here it's a different community and there were things lacking in my policing experience such as rural work.' Jasleen recognised the potential challenges of working as a police officer in the community where she lived. 'But I've got to manage it – I may know this person, or this person might be my neighbour.' Jasleen spoke both Punjabi and Hindi and still had a little Italian. She believed her background, culture and being multilingual would help her communication with the people she comes into contact with through work, and give her colleagues perspective by being able to explain Indian culture and religion. 'It's good to have me here where I can say this is why this is happening, or this is what's causing the issue.' She hoped to inspire other females with Indian heritage to follow in her footsteps. Te Puke Police Sergeant Mike Owen has welcomed Jasleen to the station. 'She brings with her a good skill set of all-around knowledge and is really looking forward to her becoming part of the team here and the community.'
