TWK 2024 awardees

Announcement

Top NZ tertiary educators for 2024 announced

1 October 2024 Te Whatu Kairangi, Tertiary educator awards

We are proud to announce 11 winners in the 2024 Te Whatu Kairangi | Aotearoa Tertiary Educator Awards.

These awards recognise outstanding and sustained teaching excellence of tertiary educators and trainers.

The awards will be presented at a ceremony hosted by the Hon Penny Simmonds, Minister of Tertiary Education and Skills at Parliament on 4 November 2024.

This year, we were delighted with the response to our introduction of a new award - Te Tohu Reo Māori – that recognises the practice of kaiako who teach te reo Māori. We are honoured to present this award to Senior Lecturer at Eastern Institute of Technology, Hiria Tumoana. Hiria has been recognised for her commitment to teaching te reo Māori in an authentic way that is faithful to its roots, and to her community. We are excited to acknowledge Hiria as the first recipient of this prestigious award.

Deputy Director Māori, Dr Joe Te Rito was particularly impressed with Hiria’s skills in Te Reo Māori saying that she has “a gift for teaching it”. Dr Te Rito continued by saying “The proverb, ‘Te puna o te kī, te whītiki o te kī’ - (An authority on, and an activist for the language) best describes Hiria Tumoana. She has become an icon for her lifetime commitment to the revitalisation and teaching of the language (Te Reo Māori).”

Increasing the Awards diversity this year, Poppy Clapperton, General individual awardee, and Dr Phil Borell, Kaupapa Māori individual awardee, have also left the review panel inspired by their work. Poppy is the CEO of Industry Training Solutions and owner of the purpose-built All-Sorts Centre in Palmerston North. Her efforts to provide an inclusive and neurodivergent-affirming approach to education have been commendable. Poppy has been awarded the general award for achieving diversity and inclusion, for improving outcomes for Neurodiverse learners.

Senior Lecturer, Dr Phil has led the development of Te Ao Hākinakina - a new Māori sports major at UC and has successfully blended a Mātauranga Māori approach to his teaching practice, utilising pūrākau (oral traditions/storytelling) and centuries-old learning methods to enrich the student experience and reimagine the approach to sports and health education.

“A special congratulations to all the 2024 Te Whatu Kairangi awardees for their commitment to outstanding educational practice. It’s been pleasing to see the calibre of educators Aotearoa has and the mana they possess” says Selection Panel Chair, Derek McCormack. “I am particularly thrilled to acknowledge Hiria Tumoana as the first recipient of the Te Tohu Reo Māori award, and to thank the reviewers and the panel members for their dedication during the selection process.”

This year our selection panel received 23 portfolios from across the tertiary education sector, these portfolios were from a range of Universities, Polytechnics and Industry Training Organisation’s. Each portfolio went through a three-stage selection process and was reviewed by a group of 27 reviewers and multiple panels.

2024 Awardees:

General Awardees – Individual

  • Dr Joseph Aziz, Senior Lecturer, Healthcare, Unitec.
  • Poppy Clapperton, Chief Executive Officer | Tumuaki, Industry Training Solutions Ltd.
  • Kerry Davis, Principal Lecturer, Nursing, Otago Polytechnic.
  • Dr Claire Goode, Principal Lecturer, Learning & Teaching Development, Otago Polytechnic.
  • Dr Kim Hébert-Losier, Associate Professor, Health, Sport and Human Performance, University of Waikato.
  • John Murrie, Lecturer, School of Aviation, Massey University.

General Awardees – Group

Massey University Mental Health and Addiction Team

  • Dr Chrissy Severinsen, Associate Professor, Public Health, Massey University.
  • Dr Andy Towers, Associate Proffessor, School of Health Sciences, Massey University.
  • Hoani Moriarty, Tutor, School of Health Sciences, Massey University.
  • Philip Brookes, Senior Tutor, Mental Health and Addictions, Massey University.
  • Andrea Meni, Data Manager | Statistician (Research Officer), Massey University.
  • Luke Rowe, Senior Research Officer, Massey University.

Le Moana Mua

  • Jone Tawaketini, Senior Lecturer, Electrical and Applied Technology, Unitec.

Kaupapa Māori - individual

  • Dr Phil Borell, Senior Lecturer Above the Bar, University of Canterbury.
  • Kelli Te Maihāroa, Associate Professor, Kaihautū: Te Kāhui Whetū | Capable Māori, Otago Polytechnic.

Te Tohu Reo Māori

  • Hiria Tumoana, Senior Lecturer, Te Ūranga Waka, EIT, Eastern Institute of Technology.

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Congratulations to all the outstanding teachers who have received 2024 Te Whatu Kairangi – Aotearoa Tertiary Educator Awards, for their contribution to tertiary teaching and learning.

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About the Awards

Find out more about Te Whatu Kairangi | Aotearoa tertiary educator awards.

Prime Minister’s Educator of the Year Award 2023 Dr Ēnoka Murphy

Te Tohu Reo Māori Award

Te Tohu Reo Māori award is an important new addition to Te Whatu Kairangi that recognises the practice of kaiako who teach te reo Māori.