Winning Female ‘Voice of Tomorrow’

Our congratulations to Year 13 student, Harriette Baxter who won the National Council of Women New Zealand – Auckland Regional speech competition last night. 

Held at the Domain Lodge in Parnell, the topic was a challenging one for a student, ‘Local Government – who cares?’. 

Harriette made a mature, well researched speech about the need to address sex education and teenage pregnancy within our local regions.  It was a strong message that had a resounding impact on the judges and audience. 

In winning, Harriette received a significant financial reward and was also presented with tickets to the National Women’s Council’s annual dinner in June where representatives from local, regional and national government boards will attend. 

English teacher, Ms Ashleigh Gulliver, attended to the competition with Harriette and said, ‘It was a most enjoyable evening hearing some superb speeches on a broad cross section of topics. It is always a pleasure hearing from the female voices of tomorrow.’ 

Harriet isn’t the only student who has represented Saint Kentigern at speech competitions. Earlier in May, Year 11 students, Charlotte Cornwall, Danielle Mayer and Harjot Dharni represented the College and the Auckland region in the National Semi-Finals of the ‘Race Unity’ Speech Competition delivering a strong message that we must ‘Work for Justice and Unity’. Throughout the five stages of this competition, all three have captivated the audience with their personable delivery and relatable content. Danielle and Harjot did particularly well to finish in the top six from a field of 46 competitors. 

We congratulate these students on their ability and confidence to speak in public at this level of competition.