Top students set sights on the future

Tauhara College dux for 2025 Mikayla Turley

Tauhara College dux for 2025 Mikayla Turley was “definitely surprised” to get the top student award.

By Chris Marshall

“It was not a part of the plan at all. I doubted that would ever happen… It was a dream that I thought would never come true honestly...

“I knew I was going to get first or second in most of my classes, but (proxime accessit) Flynn Harrington every year is known for his top marks and getting first every year, so I thought I’m not going to beat that, but something obviously went right.”

Studying hospitality, dance, health, tourism and history, her plans are to get into a tourism course, once she turns 18 that will lead hopefully to becoming a flight attendant.

In the meantime, she will be working and saving.

“I really want to travel and make the most of everything.”

Her first choice of destination might surprise a few.

“The Solomon Islands, because my grandfather was in World War II there, so I really want to see what that was like, to relive it almost for him.”

Studying history has fuelled her desire to experience the world.

“I really enjoyed learning about everything, the past behind it all. That’s really interesting to me especially with my family history as well (other family members have also served overseas)

and also learning about America’s history… has I guess also been feeding my travel bug.”

Her time at Tauhara College had opened up a range of opportunities, she says.

“I went to the Cook Islands this year for Future Leaders Academy and also completed all the levels of Duke of Edinburgh Awards as well. It’s just unlocked a lot of opportunities that I never thought I would ever do.”

Over summer she will continue working her current after school job at Taupō Top 10 Holiday Park on reception and occasionally housekeeping.

“It’s quite good to be in the tourism sector already getting experience, interacting with all the customers.”

Tauhara College proxime accessit Flynn Harrington said he could see himself being pipped at the post by Mikayla for the school’s top student around the end of term three.
“Because dux was definitely on my mind. It was one of my goals since the beginning of the year.”

It often came down to a race between those in sciences and maths versus those in history and the social sciences, he says.

Tauhara College proxime accessit for 2025 Flynn Harrington.

“Mikayla did really well.”
Flynn’s English, calculus, chemistry, biology, and physics are leading him to Canterbury University next year to study mechanical engineering.
“The first year is general engineering and so I could go anywhere from that but at the moment I'm looking like building and prototyping is going to be the thing I want to do, so we'll see where that leads.”
Christchurch will be a new experience for Flynn – the South Island chosen over Auckland because it offers outdoor pursuits like hunting and mountain biking.
“Especially when you're down at uni doing something that you know is real challenging – mechanical engineering is a bit of a beast in terms of the science and the maths involved and so making sure that I've got something which gives me a bit of respite will be good.”
He's looking forward to thar hunting – to add to his deer and pig hunting experiences.
“So it's not just one endless slog in a laboratory or doing homework.”
His enrolment and accommodation are sorted and he will have a couple of mates also doing engineering in Christchurch and staying at University Hall.
It will be a big change for Flynn who admitted, with both parents teaching at Tauhara he “pretty much grew up” around the school.

“I've been running around since I was five or six through the corridors here… it was always kind of the end goal. I’ve just loved being here with my family. The teachers have been amazing, not only the ones that taught me but the ones that have just been around school. I've had the most positive interactions. They've been legends and they don't get enough recognition.”
Being deputy head boy has also contributed to his final year of schooling being “a pretty crazy year,” he said.

“But it's definitely been worth it to be so involved with the student executive.”
Fun but educational – passing some tips on to one of next year’s head students made him realise how much he had learnt about personal organisation.
“Holy moly, I didn't realise I actually knew this much until I tried to explain it to another person.”