Ō mātou kōrero

1983

• Boy Rokopa Te Iwi Kohuru Mangu and Dr Rongo Wetere initiate the O-Tāwhao Marae project at Te Awamutu College

1984

• Waipā Kōkiri Arts Centre opens its doors in Te Awamutu to provide training in toi Māori, te reo Māori and trade

1985

• Minister of Arts, Culture and Heritage, Peter Tapsell opens O-Tāwhao Marae on 27 April

1988

• Maniapoto campus opens in Te Kūiti

1989

• Waipā Kōkiri Arts Centre becomes the first private training establishment to be registered in Aotearoa New Zealand

• Raroera campus opens in Te Rapa, Hamilton

• Manukau campus opens in Māngere, Auckland

• Waipā Kōkiri Arts Centre changes its name to Aotearoa Institute

1993

• The Government recognises Aotearoa Institute as a wānanga, giving the organisation tertiary status and placing it alongside universities, polytechnics and teachers’ training colleges as a tertiary institution

• Te Arawa campus opens in Rotorua

1994

• Aotearoa Institute changes its name to Te Wānanga o Aotearoa in recognition of its new tertiary status

1997

• Porirua campus opens in Wellington

1998

• WAI718 Tribunal Application (11 May)

• Tauira and kaimahi march on Parliament to demonstrate against the Government’s decision to eliminate capital funding (14 May)

• WAI718 hearing held in Otaki

1999

• Dr Rongo Wetere lodges Waitangi Tribunal claim WAI718 on behalf of Te Tauihu o Ngā Wānanga for equity of capital funding

• Tokoroa campus opens

2000

• Te Wānanga o Aotearoa forms partnerships with private training establishments (wānanga-ā-rohe) throughout the country to make programmes available to tauira in remote areas and, simultaneously, create employment for tutors

• Mahi Ora enrols its first tauira

• Whirikoka campus opens in Gisborne

• Papaiōea campus opens in Palmerston North

• Rāhui Pōkeka campus opens in Huntly

2001

• Apakura campus (in Te Awamutu) hosts the Government at the signing of the capital funding settlement

• MO1 Limited becomes a fully owned subsidiary of Te Wānanga o Aotearoa (November 2001)

2003

• Whirikoka campus opens in Childers Road, Gisborne

• Early learning centres open at Apakura (Te Awamutu) and Raroera (Hamilton)

• Te Wānanga o Aotearoa establishes a relationship with Southern Institute of Technology

2004

• Te Wānanga o Aotearoa becomes the largest tertiary education institution in Aotearoa, with nearly 38,000 Māori enrolments and 25,000 non-Māori enrolments

• Manukau campus moves to Canning Crescent in Māngere

• The Crown appoints a Crown observer and a team of Crown managers to oversee the operations of Te Wānanga o Aotearoa

• The first intake of Te Panekiretanga o Te Reo Māori

2005

• Aotearoa Institute lodges Waitangi Tribunal claim, WAI1298 on behalf of Te Wānanga o Aotearoa about what the organisation can teach and to whom

• Kaumātua Tui Adams and Marie Panapa formalise ngā uara (our values) as te aroha, whakapono, ngā ture and kotahitanga

• Te Wānanga o Aotearoa hosts the World Indigenous People’s Conference on Education (WIPCE), celebrating the theme of Te Toi Roa (indigenous excellence)

• Papaiōea hosts our inaugural organisational kapa haka competition – Te Mata Wānanga

• Dr Rongo Wetere retires from his position as Te Tumuaki o Te Wānanga o Aotearoa

• WAI718 protest demonstration in Wellington

• Manukau campus re-opens in Māngere, Auckland

2006

• Bentham Ohia is officially appointed Te Pouhere (Chief Executive) of Te Wānanga o Aotearoa (the title ‘Te Tumuaki’ is retired to honour Dr Wetere and his outstanding contribution to our organisation)

• Kaimahi and tauira attend WAI1298 hearing in Wellington

• The organisational structure of Te Wānanga o Aotearoa is transformed under Te Anga Whakamua to meet the future challenges of a rapidly changing tertiary environment

• Tertiary Education Commission Chief Executive Janice Shiner leads a delegation of Government and Te Wānanga o Aotearoa representatives on a fact-finding trip to Leicester, England

2007

• Te Wānanga o Aotearoa returns its first surplus since 2003, and the Crown returns full financial delegations to the council, management and kaimahi of the organisation

• The Tertiary Education Commission grants Quality Reinvestment Programme funding to implement tertiary sector reforms

• Significant restructuring and refinement of Te Wānanga o Aotearoa over the previous 3 years bring stability to the organisation

2008

• Kaimahi celebrate 25 years since of the opening of Waipā Kōkiri Arts Centre

• WAI718 settlement signing

• The original Waipā Kōkiri Arts Centre building is refurbished and re-opened with a ceremony

2009

• Kaimahi implement Kaupapa Wānanga – a framework that encourages kaimahi to engage with Te Kaupapa o Te Wānanga o Aotearoa

• MO1 Limited is rebranded as Open Wānanga Limited

• Manaaki Tangata (our human resources department) introduces Tau Ora – our organisation-wide wellness programme

2010

• Kaimahi celebrate 25 years since the opening of O-Tāwhao Marae (the spiritual home of our organisation)

• Kāpuia (our graduate community) launches to connect our many graduates

• Aotearoa Scholarship Trust awards its first round of scholarships

• The Ministry of Education approves to establish Tai Wānanga, a Te Wānanga o Aotearoa designated character secondary school

• After major renovations, Mangakōtukutuku campus opens in Glenview, Hamilton

• Open Wānanga enrols its 100,000th tauira

2011

• Founder and Tumuaki Dr Rongo Wetere visits Te Wānanga o Aotearoa from Canada for the first time since retiring as Tumuaki in 2005

• NorthTec welcomes Te Wānanga o Aotearoa onto its Ngā Mahinga site in Whangārei where the two organisations share a campus

• Te Wānanga o Aotearoa fulfils the requirements of its suspensory loan bringing the Waitangi Tribunal claim WAI718 to a conclusion after 10 years

2012

• Ako Wānanga is launched to help kaimahi apply the philosophy, theory and education practices of Te Wānanga o Aotearoa

• The organisation successfully bids for funding from the Level 1 and 2 Contestable Fund

• Te Mana Whakahaere releases Te Rautakinga (our strategic plan) containing ten strategic attributes that will describe the nature of our organisation in 2030

2013

• Our master’s degree, He Waka Hiringa – Master of Applied Indigenous Knowledge, is delivered for the first time

• Te Pouhere Bentham Ohia completes his term as Chief Executive of Te Wānanga o Aotearoa

2014

• Dr Jim Mather takes up the role of Te Taiurungi (Chief Executive)

2015

• Te Mana Whakahaere reconstituted under new legislation, with nine members including Richard Batley (Chair), Vanessa Epairama (Deputy Chair), Katie Bhreatnach, Robert Gabel, Bryan Hemi, Dr Kathie Irwin, Josh Wharehinga, Rea Wikaira and Dr Jim Mather

• Te Wānanga o Aotearoa celebrates 30-year anniversary

• Tūkarere site opens in Tauranga

2016

• Richard Batley retires after a decade of service as Chair of Te Mana Whakahaere

• Vanessa Epairama is appointed Chair of Te Mana Whakahaere and Bryan Hemi is appointed Deputy Chair

• Te Pae Tawhiti sets the long-term strategic direction

• Kaikohe site opens

• Te Ngira site opens in Lower Hutt

• Founding member, Marie ‘Aunty Ma’ Panapa is farewelled by hundreds from all over the country

2017

• Taringa bilingual podcast is launched

• The kaimahi language initiative Mahuru Māori extends outside the organisation, with 500 participants signing up to speak as much reo Māori as possible during September

2018

• Te Taiurungi Dr Jim Mather completes his tenure as Chief Executive

• The Hon. Te Ururoa Flavell commences as Te Taiurungi (Chief Executive)

• Te Mouri site opens in Ōtautahi

2019

• Bryan Hemi is appointed Chair and Vanessa Epairama takes up Deputy Chair

• Te Ara Reo Māori launches as the first programme on the Akorau blended learning platform

• Ahikōmako, the first centre of Māori innovation and entrepreneurship is established in partnership with MBIE

• Final class of Te Panekiretanga o Te Reo Māori

2020

• Ngāmotu Wharekura opens in New Plymouth

• Kaikohe site opens

2021

• Te Taiurungi, the Hon. Te Ururoa Flavell completes his term as Chief Executive

• Te Ata Hāpara is implemented as pastoral care for tauira who need extra support

• Te Tohu Paerua o Te Reo Kairangi, a 2-year reo Māori master's programme starts

2022

• Nepia Winiata becomes Te Kaiwhakatere (Chief Executive)

2023

• Te Manawahoukura Centre of Rangahau is established to champion Indigenous-led interdisciplinary Rangahau

• The first cohort of Te Tohu Paerua o Te Reo Kairangi graduate

• The Wānanga Enabling Framework within the Education and Training Act 2020 passes, enhancing the relationship between the Crown and the Wānanga sector

• Te Wānanga o Aotearoa hosts second annual Tūwhitia Symposium at Mangakōtukutuku Campus with the theme ‘Tūwhitia! Tauira Success’

2024

• New Ōpōtiki campus, Pākihikura opens

• New Wellington campus, Kīwai opens

2025

• Te Kaiwhakatere, Nepia Winiata completes his term as chief executive

• The first wahine, Evie O’Brien, becomes Chief Executive of Te Wānanga o Aotearoa

• Evie O’Brien receives the official title of Te Kura Toroa which serves as the permanent title for the Chief Executive role at Te Wānanga o Aotearoa

• Te Wānanga o Aotearoa celebrates 40-year anniversary

• Te Pae Tawhiti 2030 sets out how Te Wānanga o Aotearoa will evolve to support tauira, kaimahi, iwi, and communities in the rapidly changing education landscape

• As part of Te Pae Tawhiti, new programmes are introduced to align with tauira aspirations and growing needs of iwi, industry and communities

• New Porirua campus, Te Ao Mārama opens