Airpoints™ for Schools journeys
See how donations have made a difference to over 500 Kiwi kids.
Airpoints™ for Schools and Airpoints members have helped provide new opportunities to more than 500 Kiwi students who would otherwise not have had the chance to travel and broaden their horizons. Selected for their outstanding environmental, cultural, social or academic goals, these schools were able to embark on educational travel experiences to a wide range of destinations within New Zealand and overseas. See the schools who have participated below and read about how their trips have helped their students gain new experiences, knowledge, and inspiration to reach their potential.
Hatea-a-Rangi School - Tokomaru Bay
Students flew to Rarotonga to learn about Polynesian culture and the history of their school's ancestors, and performed at the Maeva Nui Festival.
Hedgehope School - Hedgehope
The whole school flew to Auckland and Northland to develop their knowledge of New Zealand history and build on their cultural understanding and empathy.
He Matariki Teen Parent School - Whangarei
Young student mothers flew to Wellington to learn outside the classroom, focusing on team-building, goal setting and developing their relationships and confidence.
St Paul's College - Auckland
Students travelled to China to connect with their sister school and perform at their international cultural festival.
Mana College - Porirua
Students travelled to Hamilton to compete in the National EVolocity Finals with their sustainable electric vehicle design.
Manurewa High School - Auckland
The 'Rewa Allstars' travelled to Phoenix, United States to perform at the World Hip-Hop Dance Championship.
Opunake High School - Opunake
Students involved in the school's Sustainability Academy flew to Fiji to teach English and advocate recycling systems at local schools.
Ross School - Ross
Rural students experienced 'big city life' for the first time on a trip to Wellington where they visited Te Papa and Wellington Zoo.
Runanga School - Runanga
Students affected by the Pike River Mine disaster explored outside their district and visited Te Papa in Wellington.
Longbeach School - Willowby
Students flew to Stewart Island to study native bird species and the factors contributing to their low survival.
Rere School - Gisborne
Flying, skiing, and gold panning for the first time, students took every opportunity on their trip to Queenstown to learn something new outside of the classroom.
Hukerenui Primary School - Hikurangi
Four students represented New Zealand at the 2018 International Problem Solving Competition in Wisconsin, United States. The students took out first place for their project to improve their school's agricultural ventures.
Motueka High School - Motueka
A group of students attended the World Dance Congress in Adelaide to showcase Māori and Pacific Island dance and to participate in intercultural dance exchanges.
Cannington School - Timaru
Students embraced New Zealand's history, experienced Māori culture and learnt about the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi in Waitangi and the surrounding areas of Russell.
Edgecumbe College - Bay of Plenty
The school's Mandarin language class flew to China to connect with their sister school as part of a cultural exchange, experiencing daily school life in China and living with local families.
Kuratau Primary School - Turangi
The entire school flew to Dunedin to study New Zealand's native animals, visiting the New Zealand Marine Centre, Orokonui Eco Sanctuary and Otago Museum.
Lincoln Primary School - Canterbury
The school's Concert Band students travelled to Wellington to perform on a national level at the Wellington Bands and Orchestras Festival, taking away a Gold Award as well as 'Spirit of the Festival' award.
Makarewa Primary School - Invercargill
Three students competed in the Technovation Challenge in San Francisco with their United Nations Environmental Award-winning environmental app centred around the role of the bee and their decreasing population worldwide.
Mount Maunganui College - Tauranga
The school's senior rugby team flew to Brisbane as part of an initiative to build leadership through travel and experiencing other cultures.
Omanaia School - Kaikohe
The entire school travelled to Hawaii to learn more about the history and ancestral home of Māori by visiting significant cultural sites and a Hawaiian language immersion school.
Ōtaki College - Kapiti Coast
Four students travelled to London and Scotland for the first time to learn more about maritime history and connect with their exchange school.
Pacific Advance Senior School - Auckland
A group of students travelled to Wellington to learn more about the city's history, and to visit Te Papa and the New Zealand Parliament Buildings.
Rotokawa School - Rotorua
Students boarded an airplane for the first time for their journey to Wellington, where they visited Te Papa, Weta Workshop and the New Zealand Parliament Buildings.
St Patricks Primary - Wellington
Senior students travelled to Rotorua to learn about Maori culture and its significance to New Zealand's history.
St Peter's College - Palmerston North
The school's Japanese language class travelled to Japan to connect with their sister school and immerse themselves in the local culture and visit historical sites.
Tangaroa College - Auckland
A group of students travelled to Wellington to expand their knowledge of New Zealand history and to visit the He Tohu Exhibition and Te Papa.
Taonga Teen Parent Unit - Auckland
A group of young student mothers had the opportunity to travel to Wellington outside the busyness of everyday life as a parent to explore the capital city and learn more about New Zealand.
Te Ranga School - Te Puke
The school travelled to Christchurch to learn more about the city, and to experience its innovative rebuild first hand.
Te Wharekura o TPKMIR - New Plymouth
Students travelled outside New Zealand for the first time to learn about maintaining cultural identity, values and language in a multicultural society, looking specifically at Aboriginal culture in the Gold Coast.
Wairere School - Matamata
A group of students travelled to Wellington to visit Te Papa, the New Zealand Parliament Buildings and to immerse themselves in the city's history.
Aorere College - Auckland
A group of Aorere College students were given the chance to reconnect with their Samoan heritage. The students experienced local schooling and culture, and undertook community service along Apia's shoreline.
Maraekakaho School - Hastings
Ten students competed at the 2016 FIRST LEGO League (FLL) national robotics competition in Auckland, winning a trophy for their mechanical design to help manage waste and recycling.
Carisbrook School - Dunedin
A group of students travelled to Singapore to visit their sister school as part of a cultural exchange, a trip that students had been fundraising towards for two years.
View Hill School - Canterbury
A group of students travelled to Wellington to attend the World of WearableArt (WOW) Awards for the first time. The students had entered their local wearable arts competition each year, and come away with many prizes.
Te Kura o Otangarei - Whangarei
Students travelled to the Cook Islands to connect with their tupuna waka, immersing themselves in local schooling, culture and traditional Cook Island activities.
Heathcote Valley School - Canterbury
Students travelled to Hokitika to monitor and compare new spawning habitats of whitebait as part of a new initiative, Whaka Inaka: Causing Whitebait, which was created through EOS Ecology, DOC and the University of Canterbury.
Waikite Valley School - Rotorua
The school took their student senior leadership council to Christchurch for a leadership retreat, visiting the Beehive, a local Member of Parliament's office, and attending National Young Leaders Day.
Virtual Learning Network (VLN) Primary School
VLN represents a group of eight virtual rural remote schools. Students enjoyed the company of a large group of peers, many of them meeting for the first time, for a project camp in Wellington.
Te Awa School - Napier
A group of teachers travelled to Europe to further develop their knowledge of the school's newly implemented KIVA anti-bullying programme that was established at Turku University, Finland.
Hutt International Boys' School - Upper Hutt
A group of students travelled to Fiji to assist with the building and painting of classrooms, installation of IT resources and water tanks, and to share culture and language with the community.
Tauranga Girls' College - Tauranga
Two Tauranga Girls' College students watched their film come to life at the Hollywood Theatre in Portland, Oregon, competing at the International Youth Silent Film Festival.
Kaniere School - Kaniere
A group of students visited their sister Enviro School in Christchurch to find out more about their whitebait research project with the aim of replicating it back home.
Maheno School - Maheno
The entire school visited Wellington's Te Papa museum to view the Maheno display at the Gallipoli exhibition and learn about the origin and significance of this relic.
Te Kura Kaupapa Maori a Rohe o Mangere - Auckland
A group of Auckland students flew to Gisborne to compete for first prize in the National Primary Schools Kapa Haka competition.
Otamarakau School - Otamarakau
A group of Otamarakau students travelled to Queenstown for a leadership camp with a focus on tourism and careers.
Te Kura Tuatahi o Paeroa - Paeroa
The senior class of a small, rural school visited Weta Workshops and Capital E in Wellington to see how their digital training could open future career pathways.
Riverton Primary School - Riverton
A group of rural Southland students broadened their horizons in the big city of Melbourne through an exchange with their sister school.
Rosehill School - Auckland
A group of Rosehill students attended the Special Olympics National Summer Games in Wellington and competed in athletics and basketball.
Waiharara School - Waiharara
The school experienced their first plane trip travelling to the South Island to see snow, hunt greenstone and experience the beautiful mountains and lakes.
Whangara School - Gisborne
Gisborne students travelled to Christchurch to understand the impact of earthquakes and learn about protecting natural resources and sea life.