BOARDING Ben looks back
As both Head of Boarding and Head of School House, Year 13 student Ben Murray has learned a lot about leadership and responsibility in his final year.
“I think it’s helped me become a better person, I’m now more confident and understand how important it is to be a positive role model. Senior students set the standard, they’re the ones the younger boys look up to and they influence the whole feel of the House.” He has enjoyed working with Director of Boarding Darrell Thatcher to improve the boarding experience, and says the introduction of extended opening hours in the Gymnasium and Weights Room, the pre-sport fuelling station, and seeing greater interaction between boys across all
boarding Houses were highlights of his time at the top. According to Ben, the boarders have been privileged to hear from some inspirational guest speakers this year, including Jeremy Scott, author of The Long Road from a Broken Heart , and Old Boys Tomo Harada and Andrew Mills. “Jeremy really connected with the boys, talking about his adventures, the countries he’s visited and the people he’s met, whereas Tomo and Andrew talked about what boarding was like when they were at College and how it affected them. Tomo, being an international student, was especially relevant. It
was good for the boys to hear what it was like and it really made them think about how they treat other people.” The opportunity to attend the New Zealand Boarding Schools’ Association student conference and meet Heads of Boarding from schools all over the country was another high point. “It was a bit of an eye-opener. We all had to do a presentation and it was very interesting to see how other boarding schools are set up. It made me realise things at College are good, our systems work and we have a wide range of activities available.” A student-driven Christchurch boarding schools’ initiative emerged from that conference and Ben has been part of a group that plans to foster more collegial relationships, as well as a bit of healthy competition, amongst the city’s boarding schools. “We’re starting with a quiz night at Rangi and a touch tournament at College. It’s good to get something underway this year, so next year they can hit the ground running.” That is part of his legacy and now Ben feels ready to pass the baton on. “It’s been cool to be one of the leaders in the school and, although it feels like the end of the year is coming up fast and there’s still so much to do, I’m ready to leave and looking forward to the next stage of my life.”
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Christ’s College Canterbury
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