Transcript
According to the judges for this year's awards, engagement is the foundation for success at Toru Fetū Kindergarten.
They say the collaborative project has huge support from the Kindergarten Association, community, and families.
Its Whanau Manaaki Caroline Mareko says the award is a great honour both for Toru Fetu and the community it serves.
"Our families here are struggling in terms of housing, health, employment. But for us as educators its important that we push the children that we teach to whatever they want to aspire to. But it is also about looking at how to reduce those barriers so that they've got those pathways."
Preserving the language and culture of three Pacific countries is a significant responsibility being shouldered by Toru Fetu.
It is achieving this thanks to passionate and talented staff like Ngavaine John, who teaches Cook Islands Maori.
"And it really works well with the children even the parents. It's also hard with parents because their first language is English. Because they were born here raised here and so it is hard also for them to speak the language because they also need to learn the language."
With more Polynesians living in New Zealand than on many of their home islands places like Toru Fetu are crucial culture bases, according to Tuvaluan teacher Meleka Isaako.
"It is really hard in the Tuvalu room because we are working hard to keep alive the Tuvalu language. But being Tokelauan and Samoan and other languages that influence our room, like we got teachers who are Indian, Fijian and Cambodian we are just trying our best to maintain the Tuvalu language."
And there are many parents as well who are not from Tuvalu, Niue or the Cook Islands who are bringing their children to Toru Fetu according to Niuean teacher Georgina Ranfurly.
"The beauty of it is that they still learn our language too. So we have non-Niueans learning our language too, embracing our culture and just keeping, helping us keep it alive."
And it is this inclusivity which Caroline Mareko says everyone at Toru Fetu is committed to.
"Whether they are Tongan, Maori, Palagi, Syrian, Columbian we are not worried. For us it is about how we nurture all our children doesn't matter what culture but also our families are all committed to what we are doing here as well.
As part of winning the New Zealand prime minister's award for excellence in engagement, Toru Fetu kindergarten receives $NZD20,000 and a professional development opportunity.
The overall winner this year, taking out the supreme excellence award, was Flaxmere College in Hastings.
Over winners include Rotorua Girls' High School, St Paul's Collegiate in Hamilton and William Colenso College in Napier.
