October 02, 2020
Wananga opens Ngāmotu campus
The opening of Te Wānanga o Aotearoa’s new Ngāmotu campus in New Plymouth was an opportunity for chief executive Te Ururoa Flavell to revisit his past.
Mr Flavell was part of the team at the former Rangiātea campus which drove the revival of te reo and tikanga in the rohe.
He says many of his former students and colleagues turned up for the lifting of the mauri at the old campus and recalled those like the late Dr Huirangi Waikerepuru and Te Kauhoe Wano who contributed so much.
"There's been many and Huirangi was at the heart of much of the development of te reo Māori here. In fact the first Te Reo o Taranaki hui was held at Rangiātea. Huirangi was involved in the polytech with many of us and his contribution to te reo Māori speaks for itself," Mr Flavell says.
Rangiātea had become run down, and the new facility with its five classrooms opening today will cater for the 400 plus students and allow the wānanga to offer a wider range of courses.
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