Mt Hobson Academy aims:

• To provide a window of opportunity for outstanding learning for Year 4-13 Teacher Led students and Year 1-10 Parent Led students.

• To play a significant part in preparing students for full and effective participation in their future academic, cultural, sporting, social and working lives.

• To provide a learning environment that is thorough, innovative and able to be applied to the best advantage to each student through their individualised education.

The Core Values of the School are:

• Excellence in learning.

• Cooperation among students, families and the community. 

• Building of personal character through applied Christian values.

• A strong emphasis on thinking skills and students understanding how they think and learn.

Our Vision Statement

To allow young people to develop and learn so as to give them a base for excellence in all spheres of life through effective teaching, quality facilities, an optimal day structure, and an integrated curriculum. 

History

The Villa Education Trust was formed in 2002 and opened Mt Hobson Middle School, in Newmarket, in February 2003. Within a year the roll was full with 48 students across Years 7-10.  Now entering its 20th year, Mt Hobson Academy continues to thrive and offers outstanding education in a small school environment. 

For the Trust, an opportunity for growth and expansion came in 2013 when the New Zealand Government established it's Partnership School policy, to enable change for priority learners – Maori, Pacifica and other students who were not achieving in mainstream education.      

Using its proven middle school model, Villa Education Trust was selected by the Government to operate one of the first partnership schools. In just 14 weeks a superb location in Manurewa was found, secured and renovated and a team of highly qualified teachers were employed. When it opened in February 2014 the school had a full roll of 180 students - with a waiting list for 2019 and 2020.

The following year, the Trust was selected to open a second partnership school, this time in West Auckland. In less time than before, the Trust located two sites, in Henderson and opened Middle School West Auckland in February 2015.  An ERO report published in December 2015 recognised the achievements of the school on providing quality education and support to students and their families. MSWA and SAMS are now state designated character schools and VET manages the operation of these schools.

In 2022 Mt Hobson Academy established an online school which provides quality education without the restriction of location and from the comfort of home. With smaller class sizes and live interactive learning environments, students participate in dynamic lessons and projects while nurturing relationships to form strong connections between students and teachers. We have a strong school community made up of students, teachers and families from all over New Zealand joining together through a hybrid experience.

Today

With three schools, the Villa Education Trust has confirmed its capability to set up and efficiently manage schools in a variety of locations, to meet a spectrum of learning needs, and for a range of families. Core values unite the communities across our three schools:

• Excellence in learning.

• Cooperation among students, families and the community.

• Building of personal character through applied Christian values.

• A strong emphasis on thinking skills and students understanding how they think and learn.

Our success draws visitors from around the world and we are in the process of the formalising partnerships with schools and educational organisations in the United States of America and China. This will increase learning opportunities for our staff and students.

The Future

The original aims of the Villa Education Trust included a focus on Years 7-10. Developmentally, this is a critical time of transition from childhood to adulthood. The Trust will continue to focus on middle schools as places where we create pathways to opportunity for our students.

This year we are working with approximately 500 students and their families.  We have opened 'villas' at Middle School West Auckland and South Auckland Middle School and expanded to develop Mt Hobson Academy which offers NCEA Levels 1-3 for students in Years 11-13.

In outcomes, this growth in numbers will enable:

• More students engaged in their learning.

• Continuously improving academic achievement for every child.

• More pathways to opportunity for the many students whose needs are not met in mainstream education.

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