Two precious korowai were presented to our Head Prefect, Lilly Taulelei, and Deputy Head Prefect, Pippa Nicol.

This year’s Head Prefect Commissioning Assembly was a little different than usual, and not just because we couldn’t all gather in the hall. 2022 was different because of a special taonga. Two precious korowai were presented to our Head Prefect, Lilly Taulelei, and Deputy Head Prefect, Pippa Nicol. He taonga ēnei na Karmen Wallace ki te whānau o QMC.

The idea to present our new leaders with korowai was initiated by Charlotte-Jane Mears, who was just Year 10 at the time. She realised that Te Whānau is an increasingly important part of congratulating our new student leaders, but she believed that we could do better. Charlotte-Jane began a journey of research and discovery, engaging the support of Jane Ball, Whaea Rāhera Meinders, and two very special friends of QMC, Karmen and her daughter Shanara Wallace. Together, they were able to design and create the beautiful korowai that were presented to our Head Prefects, Lilly Taulelei and Pippa Nicol, on Tuesday 1 February.

The blue korowai is based on the whakataukī “Ko te manu e kai ana te miro, nōnā te ngahere, ko te manu e kai ana te mātauranga, nōnā te ao”, which speaks of how, for the bird that consumes the miro berry, the forest is theirs. But the bird that consumes knowledge, the world is theirs. This represents the journey of students and the great value in this journey of theirs as they navigate and carve out their own place in this world.

The gradient of colour from the base of the korowai moves from darkness to light which represents the learning journey, from ignorance to knowledge; while the bottom stripe of blue and yellow reflects our college motto, “Light of Truth”.

The white korowai is based on the whakataukĪi “He kōtuku rerenga tahi”, which talks of how a white heron’s flight is seen but once. The event of a white heron’s flight is so special and rare, in many ways it can be likened to a students time at school where they are encouraged to seize the moments and the opportunities that appear to you.

In this korowai, you can also find the light and dark blue which represent the wider whānau of QMC, including family, staff and alumnae. There are also white and yellow tufts around the top. The yellow represents our motto “Light of Truth” and pays homage to our Old Girls’. The white feather represents the raukura of Te Ātiawa to pay tribute to and acknowledge the Mana Whenua of Te Ātiawa.

These korowai are great taonga of the college and shall be treasured for generations to come.