Board of Trustees

Maree Pole

I have taken over for Matua Craig as the staff representive. It is interesting to see the ins and outs of how the school is run and what makes it tick. 

I am the full time teacher in Room 19 and the Team leader of Pihinga Waka that is made up of year 2s. 

Kia ora Te Whanau o Te Kura o Whakaahu
Ko Lucy Epapara toku ingoa.
I have been a Board member since 2010, the last 5 years as Chairperson. I am also currently on the board at Kaitao, the last 18 months as Chairperson.
My three youngest children have all received their education at both schools.
I am also known at WHPS as “The Lunch Lady” as I cook and supply school lunches to our tamariki from Monday to Thursday. A job I absolutely love, as it gives me the opportunity to get to know our tamariki on a daily basis, and consequently their whanau.
I firmly believe in what our school is trying to achieve for our tamariki, their whanau and our community.
I fully support our 8 Habits and can see the positive effects on our tamariki daily. I believe we are “the school of choice” in our area, as evidenced by us being zoned over the last few years.

Kia Ora,

My name is Brooke Ellis and I am a current Board of Trustee member. I have two children and nieces and nephews who attend Western Heights Primary.
I joined the Board three years ago as I wanted to be involved in the decisions that affect my family’s
education both now and in the future. I now feel a responsibility for all the students who attend our school and want the very best for them and their whanau.
Western Heights Primary has an amazing culture and a great community and I would love to continue to be a part of it.

Kia Ora Koutou
My name is Sylvia Samuels, I am 35 yrs old and I am a parent representative on the 2016 Board of Trustees.
Here’s a little bit about myself and my family. My partner is Eddie, we have three children, our eldest Jasmine was deputy head prefect 2015 and has moved onto Kaitao Middle School, she misses the school deeply and even more so the staff. Our younger children Lukas and Jayde are current students of WHPS.
I was a past student a longish time ago and have lived in the Western Heights area nearly all my life. I have seen how much the school and our community has grown and changed. Western heights primary school is awesome, their use of the 8 habits are great and has definitely made a difference in my children and in our family.
I am currently studying at Waiariki, as a fulltime student. I am in my 3rd year of my Bachelor of Nursing degree and my goal is to graduate at the end of the year. I had to create structure and routine within our family that we had to adjust to. I found time management had played a big part in accomplishing all things in our family life, school life, and sports commitments daily. My children are very understanding of my commitment. I am grateful for their support and although our lives are super busy and not always easy, we get there in the end.
Prior to my study, I was an active parent helper at the school, attending school trips or assisting where I could. I look forward to being able to do this again. I support Western Heights Primary School 100%.

Hei konā, Amy J

 “Kia Ora e te whānau ō Te Kura o Whakaahu. As a current board member I have been fortunate to learn about governance and how a school should be run.  And I can attest to the fact that WHPS is run like a well oiled machine, from the top to the bottom and everywhere in between – exactly how a school should be.  This brings me great comfort and a sense of security to know and be a part of this.  I have learnt so much in such a short amount of time, and none moreso than to learn first hand just how committed the senior management team and all staff are committed to providing a quality education for our tamariki.  I have two children currently at WHPS, one of which is a 2018 prefect; and it brings me great pleasure to know that she is being mentored by such “top-notch” staff to enable her to develop her leadership skills.  I look forward to learning more and helping to make the WHPS whānau, a sustainable ‘force to be reckoned with’ ;) Ngā mihi whānau katoa ”