Prime Minister Chris Hipkins encouraged secondary school high achievers and future leaders to take new challenges in stride and keep a strong sense of their goals.
The Otago Daily Times Class Act ceremony took place at the Dunedin Public Art Gallery where 56 pupils from 28 Otago schools were acknowledged for their excellence in academics, sport and music and were recognised as future leaders.
Mr Hipkins, University of Otago acting-vice chancellor Helen Nicholson and ODT editor Paul McIntyre gave speeches honouring the success of the pupils.
Mr Hipkins encouraged the pupils to remain confident in their abilities and maintain empathy throughout their journeys.
"If you said to me this time last year that I would be standing here today, I wouldn’t have necessarily believed that.
"You have to grab opportunities when they’re in front of you and you have to approach them with the right attitude," he said.
Mr Hipkins said another part of leadership was leading by example and to do so the pupils had to maintain a sense of what their goals were and stick to their own core values.
The pupils received certificates and a handshake from Mr Hipkins before posing for a photo as a group in the foyer of the gallery.
Wakatipu High School pupil Marley King Smith, took the opportunity to grab a selfie with the prime minister when he went to receive his Class Act certificate on stage.
Marley said it felt special to be in the room with all the other high achievers in his year level and it was a great chance for him to meet some of them.Marley was being recognised for his outstanding achievements in rowing after being the only school boy to win the open men’s (adult) single scull title at both the Otago and Canterbury championship regattas.
He was tossing up between studying commerce and rowing at the University of Otago or somewhere in the United States.
Another Class Act recipient, Trinity Catholic College pupil Samuel Kelly, 17, said it felt really good to be recognised for his achievements.
Samuel planned on studying theatre and maths at the University of Otago and returning to school as a teacher.
He said his acting teacher had been an inspiration and pushed him to get to a higher level and he wanted to influence a younger generation in the same way.
