Marian College: Fostering student & staff wellbeing with Komodo
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Marian College: Fostering student and staff wellbeing with Komodo
For this case study, the Komodo team spoke with Anna Perry, "School Kahui Ako for Wellbeing" (Wellbeing Leader) at Marian College.
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Introduction
Marian College is a Catholic integrated school for girls. Teaching years 9-13 in Christchurch, New Zealand. Founded in 1982 through the merging of two Catholic secondary schools, the college prides itself on its intimate learning environment with just 420 students. This smaller size enables deeper relationships between families, students, and teachers, creating a community where everyone knows each other well. The college's mission centres on empowering young women to become confident, committed, faith-filled learners who contribute positively to society.
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In August 2025, Komodo Wellbeing had the privilege of hosting a School Wellbeing Success Workshop at Marian College, where educators from across Christchurch came together. During the session, Anna Perry shared Marian’s goal of building on their strong community, gathering comprehensive data, implementing effective strategies, and gaining a holistic view of both student and staff wellbeing.
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The challenge
For several years, wellbeing has been an increasing focus at Marian College. The school had already taken progressive steps, including implementing a student leader of wellbeing to provide an authentic student perspective on school life. However, the senior leadership team recognised they needed to go further to fulfil their commitment to knowing each student exceptionally well.
The school had several goals in mind:
- To build their strong sense of community by investing in a platform that would provide an additional layer of support and offer students a different place to take their concerns and challenges.
- They needed more comprehensive data to track wellbeing trends across their student population
- They required a solution that would help them not only identify issues but also support students with effective strategies once concerns were detected
- They wanted flexibility to customise assessments based on different year levels and changing priorities
- They wanted flexibility to customise assessments based on different year levels and changing priorities
- They sought a platform that could map the school-wide wellbeing journey of both students and staff.
As the college's wellbeing focus expanded, they began searching for a platform that would allow them to monitor wellbeing systematically while maintaining their personal, relationship-centred approach.
"That's the flexibility of surveys. So at times being able to run separate ones, change the questions and at the end of the year, when we've just got juniors. Komodo has definitely allowed us to do that," says Anna.
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The process
Marian College originally began its Komodo journey with a pilot across a term to make sure the platform fit their requirements. Following which, Marian College integrated Komodo seamlessly into their existing "whanau" group time (the equivalent of homeroom or form time), making wellbeing check-ins part of students' everyday routine. Students quickly embraced the platform, with many taking initiative to monitor their own wellbeing data without prompting.
"Seeing them actually start, even without being prompted to check their data and looking at their trends, talking with their neighbour about it is pretty cool."
Marian College has since expanded its implementation to include the Komodo staff wellbeing add-on, creating separate assessments for teaching and support staff to gain more complex insights into workplace wellbeing.
The results
Giving voice to the unheard
One of the most significant impacts has been providing an alternative communication channel for students who might otherwise struggle to seek help.
"Komodo has been a place for some students who originally wouldn't go and talk to someone, but they're quite happy to type straight into the platform and say, I need help, and that's been invaluable." This has been particularly effective during high-stress periods throughout the academic year, ensuring that quieter students still receive the support they need.
Data-driven wellbeing initiatives
The platform has enabled targeted interventions based on real needs rather than assumptions. When sleep quality emerged as a concern, the school's response helped students develop healthier habits. Using Komodo’s sleep tracking sheets and other educational resources empowered students to take ownership of their digital wellbeing and its relationship to quality sleep.
Enhanced staff support
Before Komodo, Marian College had limited visibility into staff wellbeing beyond annual surveys. The platform has transformed their approach:
"The value in the staff one is, we've got a support staff survey versus teachers. It's good to know, otherwise just not knowing where we sat with their wellbeing or getting a snapshot once a year."
This continuous monitoring has allowed the Senior Leadership Team to identify pressure points and provide timely support to teachers experiencing stress.
"A couple of times, a staff member has written that they are feeling stressed, and this is going on… The next step has been acknowledging, having a conversation with the Senior Leadership Team and then just supporting that staff member to say. What can we do? How can we take some load off you? That's where the value comes in for the staff."
Culture of appreciation
An unexpected benefit has been the platform's role in fostering a culture of acknowledgment and gratitude among staff members.
Anna mentions that staff have been “taking a moment to thank their department or someone for doing something. I think there's real value that comes from that, it’s opened up communication." These moments of recognition have strengthened relationships and contributed to a more positive school culture.
Conclusion
Marian College's implementation of Komodo demonstrates how continuous wellbeing monitoring can enhance a school's existing values and commitments. By integrating the platform into their daily routines, they've created a comprehensive support system that aligns perfectly with their mission to know each student exceptionally well.
The platform has proven particularly valuable in three key areas:
- Inclusive communication - giving voice to students who might otherwise remain silent
- Data-informed interventions - enabling targeted wellbeing initiatives based on real needs
- Comprehensive monitoring - extending wellbeing support to staff as well as students.
For Marian College, Komodo hasn't just been a data collection tool, it's become an integral part of their wellbeing strategy, strengthening their ability to support both students and staff throughout their educational journey.
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