Hei te mutunga o Noema te toro whakakitenga whakamutunga ki MIT me UNITEC, ā, kua tata mutu i tā Te Pūkenga Heamana, Murray Strong me te Kaiwhakahaere Mātāmua, Stephen Town ā rāua toronga mō tēnei tau ki ngā āpitihanga.
“Ka hoki mai anō māua ā te tau hou,” koira te kupu taurangi a Murray rāua ko Stephen hei whakautu mā rāua i te pātai mō ngā toro whakakitenga e whai ake ana.
Nā Murray Strong, Te Pūkenga Heamana rāua ko Stephen Town Kaiwhakahaere Mātāmua i whakarite ēnei toronga i te marama o Hūrae. Nā ngā pānga mai o te COVID-19, arā te rāhui nui me ngā tikanga hauora, haumaru hoki, ka whakaotia te wātaka i roto i te rima marama.
“Āe, kua roa atu te wā i tā māua i manako ai, heoi he mea tino whaihua te kaupapa toro, ā, e ngākaunui ana māua kia tae atu ki ngā tōpito o te motu, ki te toro i ngā kaimahi me ngā ākonga i ngā 2021,” te kī a Stephen.
I te Mane 9 Noema i tae atu a Murray rāua ko Stephen ki NorthTec i Whangārei, ko te tikanga ia koira te wāhi tuatahi e tae atu ai rāua.
Ka pōwhiritia te tīma o Te Pūkenga ki te Te Puna o Te Mātauranga marae i te kura o Ruamanga. I whai wāhi hoki rātou ki te karakia mō te rūma whānau mō ngā ākonga ratonga pāpori me ō rātou whānau. Nā ngā ākonga manaakitanga rātou i whāngai, kātahi ka toro i ngā ākonga o te kura o Future Trades. Ka noho tahi hoki rātou me te Poari NorthTec me tētahi hui Q & A me ngā kaimahi.
“E mōhio tonu ana mātou he tino whaitake te mātauranga ahumahinga me te whakangungu ki ngā tāngata o Te Tai Tokerau. He mea nui hoki kia tae mai mātou ki te whakamārama i te whakaumutanga o te pūnaha me tōna tautoko i ō rātou wawata,” hei tā Stephen.
He maha ngā pātai a ngā kaimahi o NorthTec ki a Stephen rāua ko Murray. Mātua i whakapuaki a Stephen i ōna whakaaro mō ngā momo whakautu tērā tonu ka ea nga hiahia o ngā kaimahi:
Hei āwhea kitea ai e au ētahi panoni?
“I tēnei wā he nui ngā mahi takatū kei te kawea i muri mō te tukanga hoahoa ngātahi, tukanga whakawhiti kōrero hoki. Hei te wāhanga tuatahi o 2021 ka huitahi me te whānuitanga o ngā hoa, ngā kaiwhaipānga hoki hei āwhina i a mātou i runga i tēnei tukanga. Taka rawa ki waenganui tau, me whakaū e mātou te tauira whakahaere mō ngā rā ki tua. Kātahi ka timata mātou ki te whakarite i ngā panoni e tika ana hei whakaumu i te pūnaha. Nā, atu i taua wā, kātahi anō ka kite koutou i ngā panoni e kawea ana puta noa i te rāngai. Heoi tāria te wā kia hoahoa ngātahi, kia whānui te whakawhiti kōrero mō te hanga me te āhua o te tauira whakahaere, tē taea e au te whakatau i te āhua o ngā panoni.”
He pēhea te āhua o te whakawhitinga o ngā ITO?
Ko tōna 140,000 tauira me ngā kaitukumahi e 35,000 kei te pūnaha ITO. Ko tā mātou arotahi tuatahi he mātua whakarite tikanga e ngāwari ai te whakawhiti i aua ākonga, kaitukumahi hoki tētahi pūnahi kotahi. Ko te mātāpono “kaua e whakararu!” E mahitahi ana mātou me ngā ITO whakawhitinga ki te kimi i tētahi ara whai kiko e āhei ai te whakawhiti i ā rātou tikanga whakarite whakangungu ki Te Pūkenga. Mā te mahi ngātahi me ngā ITO Whakawhitinga me tā TEC whakaaetanga mai, kua whakaritea e mātou ngā kōwhiringa e rua – he kawa whakahoatanga, he reta whakapuaki me te whakamaunga atu/whakawhiti hua rānei. Kei te matapaki mātou i ngā kōwhiringa e rua me ngā ITO Whakawhitinga, ā, ko te tūmanako e toru ngā ITO ka whakawhiti tonu atu ki Te Pūkenga ā 2021. Tērā tonu pea ka pērā anō ētahi ITO Whakawhitinga kia whakawhiti ā ngā marama tuatahi o 2021. Ko te tino āhuatanga e tūhono ai ngā ITO āpitihanga me ngā āpitihanga ko te kohara kia rawe te mahi, kia nui te whiwhi mō ngā ākonga. E tino whakapono ana au ka ngāwari noa te whakawhiti o ngā ākonga, ngā kaitukumahi, ngā kaimahi, ngā hua rānei mai i te ITO Whakawhitinga nātemea kei te noho tahi mātou runga i te aronga kotahi.
Ka ahatia ā mātou hua rawa?
E 90 pea ā tātou kura me ngā wāhi ako puta noa i te kōtuinga āpitihanga. He tapuwae nui tonu tērā. I tēnei wā kei te whakaritea he rautaki whakahaere hua – nā reira kei te mārama tonu mātou ki ngā hua kei a tātou, kei hea hoki aua hua, ā, ki tō rātou āhua hoki. Ka hono ngā whakatau e pā ana ki ngā hua ki tā mātou tauira whakahaere, kia whakarite mātou kia tōtika ngā hua o nāianei, me ērā ka hiahiatia hei te āpōpō. Me whakaoti ērā whakatau e te tari matua, i runga i te mōhio ka tutuki tonu i ērā ngā hiahia o ngā rohe. Nātemea kua toro atu i te nuinga o ngā āpitihanga, kua kite au ko ētahi o aua hua he pai ake i ō ētahi atu. Kāore e kore me whakatika, me whakahou rānei i ētahi.
Ka pēhea e whakatutuki ai e Te Pūkenga ngā hua mō ngā ākonga Māori?
“Ko tā mātou e arotahi nei ki te whakatutuki ōritetanga mō ā tātou ākonga Māori, ā, ki taku titiro he wawata tonu tērā atu i te whakapai noa iho i ngā putanga. Kei tētahi haerenga tātou me taku mōhio he tauira o te hiranga puta noa i te kōtuinga, ā, ko tāku he whai kia mārama ō tātou tāngata katoa he mea nui whakahirahira tā mātou whāinga ōritetanga, me te take i pērā ai. Kei a tātou ināianei ki te whakatika i tō tātou hononga ki te iwi Māori i a tātou ka pōhewa anō i te mātauranga ahumahinga. Me tika te mahi, ka tika!”
Me pēhea e whai wāhi ai ngā kaimahi ki te whakawhitinga?
“He mahi nui whakahirahira te hoahoa i te tauira whakahaere mō ngā rā ki tua, nā e tika ana kia mahi ngātahi tātou. Ka whakaritea he huarahi kia whai wāhi mai ngā kaimahi, ngā ākonga, ngā hoa, ngā ITO Whakawhitinga me ngā kaiwhaipānga ki te mahi hoahoa. Kia ū tōnu tātou te wātaka ā-ture, ka mahia te nuinga o te tukanga hoahoa ngātahi ā ngā marama mātāmua o 2021, ā, ka kawea e mātou he tukanga whakawhiti kōrero i te motu whānui hei tautoko hoki i a mātou ki te whakatau i tēnei kaupapa.”
Ka ngaro pea te tuakiri ā-rohe?
“Mōhio tonu au kua whakapau kaha ia āpitihanga ki te waihanga i āna ake takahanga ā-rohe, tōna ingoa pai me tōna tuakiri, waihoki kua mārō kē te taura here ki ōna hapori. Me whaiwhakaaro hoki mātou ki te ingoa pai o ngā ITO Whakawhitinga. E mahi ngātahi ana mātou i tētahi tukanga waihanga tohu. Koia tētahi mea hei tuku mā mātou kia wānangatia e te kōtuinga. Hei ngā tau e rua kei te tū mai, ka tautoko tonu Te Pūkenga i ngā āpitihanga e hiahia ana ki te hanga tohu kē hei tuakiri hou mō rātou. Ā tōna wā mā te tauira whakahaere hou e whakautu ā tātou pātai e pā ana ki te tuakiri. Mā tātou anō me tā tātou hanga hei kōtuinga kōtahi e whai tikanga tonu ki te whakatau i tā tātou tuakiri ā-motu.”
I taea e māua te whakautu i te whānuitanga atu o ngā pātai a ngā kaimahi, i harikoa tonu ki te whai wā ki te tuku ā rātou pātai.
“Ka nui te pai ki te whai wā kia hui kanohi-ki-te-kanohi ki ngā kaimahi me ngā ākonga i ngā marama kua hipa. Ahakoa ngā taumahatanga o tēnei tau, he rawe kia rongo, kia kite hoki i te kaha o te hiringa me te ngākau whakapuke. Kei te anga atu au ki 2021 i runga i te ngākau pai. E whakapono ana au ka taea te whakaoreore i a tātou anō huri noa te motu kia kotahi mai tātou ki te pohewa anō i te pūnaha kia tino rerekē mō tēnei whakatipuranga,” te kī a Stephen.
Kei te kaha haere ngā mahi e pā ana ki te tauira whakahaere, ā, ka kitea ngā panoni tuatahi ā waenganui tau o 2021. Kei te mōhio tonu a Stephen rāua ko Murray he mea whakahirahira kia piri tata rāua ki ngā kaimahi me ngā ākonga.
He mea tino whaitake ēnei toro mōku kia mārama pū ki te āhua ake o ia rohe, ki ngā hiahia me ngā tūmanako, ki ō rātou hiahia hoki mō Te Pūkenga. Ko te tūmanako i pai hoki ki a rātou ngā kaimahi me ngā ākonga i tūtaki ai mātou, ā, i whai wā ki te kōrero tahi me mātou i runga i te mōhio i rangona hoki ā rātou kōrero.” hei tā Stephen.
“Ka hoki mai anō māua!”
Ehara taku toa i te toa takitahi, te toa taki tini.
My strength is not mine alone, but that of the collective.