by their board of trustees or school leadership, with complaints against them as recent as last week. The community held a protest against the school board and acting principal in the Pukekohe town square. The board of trustees declined to comment specifically on the complaints against the board itself and the acting principal, but said independent investigators have been hired to process the complaints.
Nearly 1100 people have signed the online petition, calling for the current acting principal to be removed, and for the board to be completely refreshed in the wake of multiple concerns over insulting words and inaction over bullying.
Of the 281 students on the primary school’s roll, roughly 80 per cent are of Māori heritage. Raeon Matene is a grandparent of two children enrolled at the Kura, and she believes the board isn’t working for the children they represent.
She stated that handing over their petition was emotional, and it felt good to be acknowledged. Around 40 families attended, and the children performed a haka. “The whānau had the opportunity to actually share and voice the mamae [hurt] that has been happening in the school,” she said.
