Who the cap fit
Adrienne Spratt may have just made a whole lot more work for herself.
The Papaioea kaiako surprised her Maunga Kura Toi – Raranga tauira at their recent graduation by capping them with hand woven trenchers, rather than the traditional academic cap.
Creating a woven trencher was something Adrienne had thought about for years but never got around to doing anything about.
“This year I was questioned by my tauira about whether they had to wear the gowns. They wanted to wear their own kākahu. That was something I’d thought about too. I’ve been through all these graduations over the years and a couple of years ago I thought about the process of being a Māori organisation and using this western regalia.”
She carried out some rangahau on capping and learned the gowns and hoods were not compulsory for graduation. She also questioned whether the trencher used at graduation had to be the traditional variety, with a four-sided flat top and tassel in the middle.
Adrienne had to create a prototype woven trencher and have it approved by Te Puna Mātauranga before it was allowed to be used in the recent Papaioea graduation.
Her tauira had no idea they would be capped in such a unique way and “they were all blown away,” she says.
Adrienne’s design for this trencher is quite unique, with nothing like it seen before.
“Whilst on annual leave over the Christmas break many ideas were circling in my head and my hands were itching to have a play with this idea. It took a bit of working out to create them but I came up with a plan and it all fell together. It takes me about six hours to make one. I made one for each of my students because they were such an awesome group of wāhine.”
She says the unique pōtae created quite a reaction at graduation and while she’s not sure if she’ll be making trenchers for her next class, she’d be happy if they became the standard for degree level graduations throughout Te Wānanga o Aotearoa.
“It was a point of difference and quite a cool way to acknowledge our tauira - particularly our raranga tauira.”
Pūrongo whakahirahira
Featured stories
From the classroom to the world stage for toi kaiako
From the classrooms of Te Wānanga o Aotearoa to the bright lights of New York City, toi kaiako Shawnee Tekii and Jordyn Daniels (Ngāi Tahu) took their creativity to the world stage earlier this year, showcasing their mahi toi across one of the world's most iconic cities.
From full-time māmā to future social worker
Like many māmā, Nickola Savage (Ngāti Rangitihi) has dedicated much of her time to her whānau, ensuring her 3 tamariki are cared for and supported. But alongside her role as a full-time māmā, Nickola felt ready to do something for herself.
Te Reo Kairangi – kia tika, kia rere, kia Māori, kia ora!
Ehara kē i te mea ko te angitu haeretanga o Te Reo Kairangi e mātāmua ana i ō Leon Blake whakaaro, engari ko ngā hua ka whakahokia e ngā tauira ki ō rātou iwi, ki ō rātou hapori, ki ngā uri whakaheke anō hoki.
Vote at Te Wānanga o Aotearoa in the 2026 General Election
Selected Te Wānanga o Aotearoa campuses will be open as voting places during the 2026 General Election, making it easier for tauira, kaimahi, whānau and our wider communities to have their say.
Te Wānanga o Aotearoa launches new reo Māori programmes to help te reo thrive for generations to come
For over four decades, Te Wānanga o Aotearoa has created pathways for generations of tauira to learn, speak, teach and live te reo Māori. That legacy has supported the return of te reo Māori to everyday life, from whānau learning their first kupu, to tauira carrying reo onto marae, and into workplaces, classrooms and homes.
Turning a passion for rongoā into community healing
Rongoā Māori has always been part of Patricia Tangira-Falwasser's life, but it was her studies at Te Wānanga o Aotearoa that deepened her knowledge and inspired her to start a business that now serves her wider community.
Te Wānanga o Aotearoa kaimahi claims gold at Waka Ama World Championship
Ken Henry (Te Whakatōhea, Waikato-Tainui) is a Tauira Support Advisor at Te Wānanga o Aotearoa Whakatāne campus who took home gold at the Waka Ama World Championships in Singapore in August.
A passion for taonga Māori takes Chanel to Oxford
What started as a desire to strengthen her reo Māori has taken Chanel Coromandel (Ngāti Raukawa, Ngāti Hine, Ngāti Apakura, Ngāti Whanaunga) on an unexpected path, leading to an opportunity to contribute to the care and preservation of taonga Māori at the Pitt Rivers Museum in Oxford, England.
Reconnecting to te ao Māori through raranga
Haylee Roussel (Ngāti Rārua, Rangitāne, Ngāti Maniapoto) was searching for a way to reconnect with te ao Māori when she enrolled in the Certificate in Māori and Indigenous Art, Raranga, at the Waiwhero campus of Te Wānanga o Aotearoa.
A journey shaped by whānau and a love of tamariki
Members of Tayla-Marie Takawe’s (Ngāti Awa, Ngāti Maniapoto) whānau were among the first tauira to graduate from the Bachelor of Education (Primary Teaching) at Te Wānanga o Aotearoa.
