Nau mai, haere mai! Welcome! Talofa lava!
Malo e lelei! 

Coming to Laidlaw College, you are entering into a community that has been shaped by the Gospel and sustained by God’s faithfulness for over one hundred years. At Laidlaw, we learn together so that we are better equipped to renew God’s world. Orientation Week is our opportunity to welcome you; to introduce you to (or reconnect you with) the Laidlaw whānau; and to help orient and re-orient you on this part of your study journey. During the week you will meet your lecturers and classmates, receive support and study advice about the semester ahead, and connect with the community. 

Returning students—we want this week to be a time for refreshment and renewal—to replenish you with some encouragement and energy before we dive into another semester of lectures, assessments, and learning. For Auckland students, this will also be an opportunity to orientate yourselves to our new campus.

We will begin our week in Tāmaki Makaurau / Auckland with a Pōwhiri and in Ōtautahi / Christchurch with a Mihi Whakatau for new students and staff. There is plenty of parking in both locations. Any Distance Learning students in Auckland and Christchurch are more than welcome to come and join us for this! And any returning students are invited to help us welcome our manuhiri. Please dress for this special occasion—long skirts or pants and tops with shoulders covered. No shorts, please!

We look forward to connecting across the week – on community days and your programme specific days.

Timetables

Timetables for the week will be here by early February 2024. For now, please note the days you will need to be on campus:

Auckland – 3 Smythe Road, Henderson

• Monday – All new and returning students
• Tuesday – Education and Theology students (new and returning)
• Wednesday – Counselling students (new and returning)
• Thursday – Community Day - all students

Christchurch – 70 Condell Avenue

• Monday – New students only
• Tuesday – Education students (new and returning)
• Wednesday – Counselling students (new and returning)
• Thursday – Theology students (new and returning)

If you have any questions at all, please reach out to us via email—if you scroll below, you can find a list of people who would be happy to help.

We can’t wait to see you! The Laidlaw College Orientation Team

We look forward to meeting you and welcoming you into our community. During the week you will meet your lecturers and classmates, receive support to complete your personal and study admin tasks and be introduced to academic student life at Laidlaw College. We’ll worship, laugh and eat together. We can’t wait to meet you!

We look forward to hanging out and catching up in person and having some time for fun and reflection. This week will have plenty of opportunities for relational connection and conversations to build a bridge back into your study semester. Come and join us for our community campus days and the programme day(s) for your studies.

We will be welcoming new and returning Distance Learning students online via Zoom on the Wednesday evening of Orientation Week at 7.30 pm. The Zoom link will be on the timetable and also emailed to you closer to the time.

If you are able and interested we would love to welcome you onsite at one of our campuses. Check out the schedule for the campus nearest you and let us know if you're able to join us! We're eating community lunches most days and would love to have you at the table with us.

Whakawhanaungatanga:  A warm welcome into the Laidlaw community (or welcome back if you are a returning student) with opportunities to connect with fellow students and staff and share kai together. 

Communication: We will keep you up-to-date via email, Facebook, and our website and are here to answer your questions as best we can!

Whakawhanaungatanga: Your presence and participation. Let’s do this together. Come and get to know us!

Study details: We expect you to have completed your personal administrative tasks to be ready for your study and be prepared to learn more from us about what the semester has in store. Come and see us during O-week to finalise: public trust forms, study contracts and student ID cards. Henderson students will also need to get their campus access sorted (via a phone App) and collect their carpark pass, if needed. We can also support you with changes to course selections.

Communication: We expect you to ask questions if something isn’t clear or you don’t understand. No question is too silly.

AUCKLAND STUDENTS

Orientation schedules and sessions: Moira Krishna
Student and community life: Jenny Mackie

Programme-specific questions:    
Education & Counselling: Tracey Hunt  
Theology: Brittany Hartmann
Theology - Postgrad: Miriam Drake

Course selection – Theology: Fiona Sherwin 
Course selection – Counselling and Education: Tracey Hunt
Study Contracts and Public Trust Forms: Rita Liu

Pouako Tautoko / Māori Student Support: Lorraine Taogaga
Pasifika Student Support Advisor: Moira Krishna 

Library related support, including login issues: Jeremy Adams, or Joanna Sharp for general library queries

CHRISTCHURCH STUDENTS

All general Christchurch campus and student questions can be directed to Mele Ta’akimoeaka
Course advising – Theology: Rowena Stevenson
Course advising – Counselling: Sue Dodge 
Course advising – Education: Erica McQueen 
Library related support: Hugh Joughin

DISTANCE LEARNING STUDENTS

All distance learning students can contact Imoa Setefano [email protected] for more information.