Taradale Primary School celebrates the past and future

Taradale Primary School celebrates its 130th year with the opening of a ‘high tec’ media suite that will ensure its students are at the forefront of computer technology for years to come.

The school and its community will be celebrating the opening of the $200,000 suite at the annual Founders’ Day being held at the school on Tuesday August 18. Jim Clayton, one of the school’s oldest former pupils and Mathew Adkins, the youngest current student will cut a ribbon to officially open the new suite.

Another feature of the Day will be the launch of two initiatives that provide former and current pupils and their families the opportunity to provide tangible support for the school, which is one of the longest serving in Hawke’s Bay.

The first is the Founder Families and Supporters’ Group, and Jim Clayton, who started at the school as a five year old in 1922 and subsequently went on to develop an interest in horticulture nurtured by the school into a highly successful career, is the first to make a contribution to this fund. Mr Clayton’s name will feature first on a new ‘honours’ board created specially. It will be flanked by two historic honours boards that have been retrieved from storage and reinstalled in pride of place in the school hall.

The other initiative is an ICT Gold Club and current families have been invited to pledge support to the school’s ICT programme. Currently six families and businesses have signed up.

“We’re aiming for Taradale Primary School to have the best and most up-to-date ICT programme and equipment in Hawke’s Bay,” says Taradale Primary principal, Allen McMillan. “We want our children to be confident and competent in working with new technologies as this will be the way of the future for them.”

The Founders’ Day celebration will begin at 10am in front of the School Library. Speakers will include Kathy Furlong, Napier City Deputy Mayor, Board of Trustees Chair, Jude Minor and Allen McMillan, the school Principal. The School Choir will also perform.

A morning tea where a special 130th year commemorative cake will be shared, will then be held in the school hall for special visitors, friends of the school, and staff members.

Taradale Primary School currently has a roll of 443 pupils and that number is expected to exceed 465 before the end of the year. There are currently 18 classrooms with plans for a new one being drawn up.

The new media suite is an extension of the school library which was built in 1995, and incorporates a new fibre optic data network linked throughout the school to provide more high speed computer connections for all classrooms. Interactive whiteboards are being installed over the coming months as part of the upgrade in ICT equipment.

ENDS

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