Principal's Foreword

‘Find your passion and stick with it.’ This was the message John Cottle’s father, David, in John’s absence, passed on to us at our special Distinguished Old Collegians’ assembly on Wednesday. John, along with Cyril Baigent (1928-30), was being inducted into the gallery of Distinguished Old Collegians, an honour reserved for just two alumni each year.

John Cottle (1993-97) is a world-renowned Professor of Earth Science at the University of California, but due to his work, could not join us for the service. His mum and dad, Helen and David, attended and spoke for him. David went on to talk about John’s passion for geology and the remote corners of the world it had taken him to. He urged us to find something that makes you ask ‘why' or ‘how', and not let go of it. The world is changed, David argued, by people who are ‘obsessed’ and ‘stay curious.’ He explained that John was not the ‘smartest or most certain person in a room’, but he had experienced success and fulfilment in his chosen field because he found his passion and stayed curious. He wasn’t afraid to keep asking questions, even when the answers required ‘climbing a mountain or spending a month on the ice.’ David referred to the ‘McGlashan grit’, sticking at something until you find the answers.

These were great messages for the school to hear and connect with our wider messaging about pursuing personal potential. This is at the heart of our Excellence value, and is achieved by effort and leaning into the stretch and challenge. Our verb description for Excellence also underscores the centrality of curiosity to that. I believe that curiosity is a superpower, and I loved that this was at the heart of John Cottle’s story.

Events like the Distinguished Old Collegians’ assembly are important days for us. These are ritualised occasions that are imbued with meaning about who we are and what we value. As I explained to the students during the assembly, this is a moment when we trace whakapapa back and give it life. It becomes a tangible marker of who we are and where we have come from. It’s essential that our young people understand why we do things like honouring two Old Collegians every year, and why we attach a degree of formality to the occasion, such as being piped into the chapel and onto the stage.

The Old Collegians’ Association exists to support the school and provide a platform by which those who have attended the college can connect to each other and the college. We value this immensely. The association was established back in October 1921, when a group of former students gathered with Arthur Butchers, our first Headmaster, in his house one evening. They agreed to establish an alumni association, commenting that ‘the establishment of an enthusiastic, if small, Old Collegians’ Association affords gratifying evidence of the affectionate regard of the old boys of the college.’ Initially formed as a social club, it evolved into a network that supported the school. The association is an important and valued extension of John McGlashan College. As a new chapter begins at McGlashan, we are keen to strengthen the connection between the college and our alumni. This remains their place, their turangawaewae.

The Distinguished Old Collegians Gallery was established in 2012 when the OCA decided to induct two members each year. The criteria were based upon excellence and contributions in the arts, sports, professions, or community. The induction occurs close to Founder’s Day, an event I would like us to commemorate in a more deliberate manner going forward. Our origin stories are important, and that day is a special one for us.

Although their time at the college is separated by almost seventy years, the two Old Collegians inducted on Wednesday share experiences and notions of belonging to McGlashan. Their journeys were their own, but the sacred identity of our college brings them together. John Cottle graduated from the college in 1997, and Cyril Baigent in 1930. Cyril was recognised for military service and leadership. He was just 22 when he took over as Commanding Officer of 75 (NZ) Squadron in 1945, during the Second World War, the youngest in Bomber Command to hold that rank.

While our values have been refreshed, these are the same values that John and Cyril lived by during their time at McGlashan, and when they went forward into the world. They pursued their potential (Excellence), honoured the mana of others and themselves (Respect), and via their contributions and service, uplifted communities (Manaakitanga). These values have always been there. They reflect who we are at our natural best today, as they did for John and Cyril, in the late 1920s and 1990s, respectively. There is power in our young people knowing that, particularly when we talk about them as stewards of the college’s whakapapa and our expectation that they work individually and collectively to strengthen it, as John and Cyril did.

This is why we value events such as the Distinguished Old Collegians’ assembly. It strengthens whakapapa, honours legacy, and affirms that Old Collegians still belong. It keeps stories alive by preserving and strengthening who we are and what we value. Most of all, we build belonging across time and foster the concept of living whānau, while connecting our students to something bigger than themselves.

Waiho i te toipoto, kaua i te toiroa

Let us keep close together, not far apart.

Dr. Aaron Columbus

Principal | Tumuaki