NZ Engine

Source: Eastern Institute of Technology

1 day ago

A daily bus service connecting Wairoa students to EIT’s Tairāwhiti campus is carrying record numbers this semester.

Wairoa Regional Learning Centre Co-ordinator Maraea Wesche says 22 learners are making the free trip to Gisborne – the most since the service began.

“It’s been a really productive first semester, both on campus and the ones that are travelling through to Tairāwhiti.”

The service has been in place for several years, but Maraea says it has taken time to build momentum.

“I can’t stress enough how valuable it is. It’s a big commitment for our whānau, but it means they can study and still come home every day.”

Students travelling this year are enrolled across a wide range of programmes, including construction, engineering, automotive, services pathway and teacher education.

Maraea says strong pathways between Wairoa-based programmes and those in Tairāwhiti are helping students progress.

“We’ve had students move from our NZ Certificate in Building, Construction and Allied Trades Skills Level 2 and 3 into the NZ Certificate in Construction Trade Skills (Carpentry) (Level 3) and they’re doing really well.”

Maraea says the ability to study while staying connected to home is key to student success.

“It makes it easier for our whānau to commit to study, because they don’t have to leave Wairoa to do it.”

Alongside those travelling to Tairāwhiti, enrolments in Wairoa-based programmes are also growing, with courses including building, sport and recreation, te reo Māori, tikanga and intro to welding running throughout the year.

A new NZ Certificate in Study and Employment Pathways (Level 3) programme will also launch in semester two, the first time it has been offered in Wairoa.
She says the increased uptake reflects a wider shift in the community.

“Being able to offer people in Wairoa the opportunity to further their education through study at EIT is great. They see education as a pathway to a better future, not just for themselves but for their whānau as well.”

She says the momentum is building.

“It’s a real buzz in Wairoa at the moment. I’m really excited about where things are heading.”

Source: Eastern Institute of Technology

1 day ago

EIT health and sport science students helped more than 3,000 Hawke’s Bay tamariki tackle the Mitre 10 Tough Kid Challenge last week.

Held over two days at Mitre 10 Park Hawke’s Bay, the annual event saw tamariki from across the region take on an obstacle course focused on participation, teamwork, and fun.

About 80 EIT students were involved across the two days, working across the course to guide and support participants.

Students came from across the Bachelor of Sport and Exercise Science, NZ Certificate in Exercise (Level 4), and Services Pathway programmes.

Dr Sue Scott-Chapman, a Principal Academic Staff Member in the School of Health and Sport Science, says the event plays an important role in connecting students with the community.

“We work closely with Pip George and Tegan McGhie from Mitre 10, who lead the team delivering the event, along with the team at Sport Hawke’s Bay, and between us we’re able to deliver it each year.”

She says the event has grown significantly since EIT first became involved.

“When we started, we had a couple of students completing placements. Now we are supporting more than 3,000 participants over two days.”
Sue says the event provides a valuable opportunity for students to apply their learning in a real-world environment.

“They are out here motivating, supporting, and adapting to the needs of each child. These are skills you cannot replicate in a classroom.”
Students were responsible for overseeing obstacles, demonstrating activities, and ensuring participants moved safely through the course.

The event also places a strong emphasis on inclusion, with a dedicated session for students with disabilities and a focus on participation rather than competition.

“This is not about winning. It is about making sure every child finishes and feels successful.”
Sue says the event aligns closely with what EIT students are learning in class, particularly around health, physical activity, and community engagement.

“It connects directly to what we teach. It is about getting our students into the community and giving them the opportunity to put those skills into practice,” she says.

For many EIT students, the experience also comes full circle, with some having taken part in the event themselves as children.
“We now have students who did this event when they were younger coming back and supporting the next generation.”

Source: New Zealand Police

Police are asking for the public’s help finding Rui Lian, 74, who has been reported missing from Balmoral.

Rui Lian, who was last seen on Balmoral Road at 11.57am, is wearing a long-sleeved top that is grey with pink dots, a short puffer vest and black pants.

Police and Rui Lian’s family have concerns for her welfare and would like to find her as soon as possible.

If you have seen Rui Lian or have any information that might help us locate her, please call 105, quoting file number 260401/4543.

ENDS.

Amanda Wieneke/NZ Police

Source: New Zealand Police

Police is sending a strong warning to anyone who may be in possession of a hazardous substance stolen during a burglary.

Anyone opening up the bagged item puts themselves at serious risk of exposing themselves to asbestos.

Police is asking for the bagged item to be returned given the health risk.

The Glen Innes Tactical Crime Unit is investigating a burglary at a Panmure business this week.

Acting Detective Senior Sergeant Amanda Reed says the work premises on Jellicoe Road was entered overnight between Monday and Tuesday.

“Amongst some items stolen is double-bagged asbestos that had been placed in a box.

“Asbestos is extremely toxic, and if this bag is opened it puts that person and others in proximity to them at risk of becoming unwell.”

Police believe the box has been taken as the bagged item may give the resemblance of pounamu.

“Police have carried out a number of enquiries late yesterday including searching at some addresses in Point England, which have so far been unsuccessful,” acting Detective Senior Sergeant Reed says.

Police is concerned those committing the burglary or anyone who might have been given the bag afterwards do not know what they are holding.

“If you have information on where the bagged item is, we need to hear from you to ensure it is safely retrieved.”

Please contact Police on 105 using the reference number 260330/5474.

Information can also be provided anonymously via Crime Stoppers on 0800 555 111.

ENDS.

Jarred Williamson/NZ Police

Media please note Police does not currently have an image of the bagged item available.

Source: Eastern Institute of Technology

1 day ago

Laureen Kelly (Ngāti Porou, Ngāti Kahungunu) enrolled at EIT to keep her son from quitting his Māori studies and to learn the language she wasn’t able to learn growing up.

Six years later, the 55-year-old has just graduated with a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) Māori from EIT’s Tairāwhiti Campus.

The journey began in 2019 when her son Joshua, then in Year 12 at Gisborne Boys’ High School, told her he wanted to quit his Māori studies.

“I said, if I go back to school and learn, we could support each other, and that gave him the incentive to carry on,” she says.

At the time, Laureen was also grieving the loss of her husband, while her brother had recently begun learning te reo Māori.

With her daughter urging her to get out of the house and do something, enrolling at EIT felt like the right step for the mother of six.

“I thought I needed to pick myself up and help my children. I couldn’t keep wallowing. I had to come out of it, or else my children would have suffered more,” she says.

While Joshua, now 23, went on to complete his studies through to Year 13, Laureen continued her own journey after completing the NZ Certificate in Te Reo Māori (Level 3).

“I haven’t stopped.”

Growing up in Tairāwhiti, Laureen did not speak te reo Māori. Her mother was fluent but, like many of her generation, had been punished for speaking Māori at school and did not pass the language on to her children.

“When I first started at EIT, I knew Monday, Tuesday in Māori and how to count to 10, but that was about it,” she says.

Through her studies, Laureen developed a deeper understanding of the suppression and colonisation her tīpuna had experienced and began to untangle the shame she had carried for years.

“From knowing nothing about being Māori to what I know today, I knew nothing, but now I know just enough to understand being Māori and not being ashamed of being Māori,” she says.

Laureen credits the support of EIT’s Tairāwhiti Campus and the tutors at Te Whatukura with helping her through her journey.

“The tutors were fantastic. Not just Te Whatukura, but the whole campus.”

Having completed her honours degree, Laureen is now looking ahead to postgraduate study and, in time, plans to write a series of whakapapa books to help others reconnect with their ancestry.

“Hopefully anybody who cannot find their whakapapa can actually look in the book and say, ‘oh, here’s my line’,” she says.

Her message to others who feel disconnected from their language or culture is simple: “You’re never too old to learn”.

“You’re never too old to go back to school. It may awaken what you have been missing.”
Angela Tibble, Programme Co-ordinator and Lecturer, Te Uranga Waka, says Laureen’s journey embodies resilience, whānau commitment, and the power of lifelong learning.

“We are immensely proud of her perseverance through grief, study, and growth. Her success honours her tīpuna, inspires our tauira, and shows that reclaiming te reo Māori is transformative at any stage of life. Tuwhitia te hopo! Feel the fear and do it anyway. Ka mutu pea Laureen!”