Aoraki’s excellence will aid our economic recovery, new CE says

Aoraki Polytechnic will do its part in aiding the recovery of New Zealand by continuing to serve the South Canterbury community and the wider region with excellence in vocational education, new chief executive Kay Nelson says.

But the educational innovator who led a Wellington-based hospitality and tourism school to become New Zealand’s first Centre of Vocational Excellence says central to the ongoing success of the institution is identifying even more closely with local industry, the country’s universities and the international community.

In the job for just under a month, Ms Nelson says first and foremost though, before any changes to the institution’s direction can be recommended, she needs time to learn more about the culture of the polytechnic and how that dovetails into the community.

“This is a thriving community with a strong sense of social goodwill and achievement.

“As a tertiary provider we will be right behind items such as Timaru’s new aquatic centre.

“This will be a great opportunity for our students. I’ve already started conversations with one of my people about expanding our outdoor recreation programmes and we would be looking at sharing facilities.

“Now we certainly don’t want a pool on site, but we would be looking at being a partner and sharing the aquatic centre facility,” she said.

While she has no plans to position the polytechnic for degree courses, Ms Nelson clearly favours longer term, higher level vocational qualifications to allow people to have articulation agreements with universities.

“For example, we currently have a level 5 IT programme at Aoraki that actually allows the students the first year of CPIT’s [Christchurch Polytechnic’s] degree. So this means that students can stay in their home town and do a year of their degree before they have to leave town.

“I want to build more of that, whether that’s in tourism and hospitality, fashion and design or in journalism and media.

“I have yet to put the strategy together, but that’s one of the key things.”
She said she had three items of major focus.

“I would like to see longer courses with higher level of qualifications and university cross-crediting. I see a need to build stronger relationships with universities.

“And I believe we need to grow the international market.
“I would like to grow the possibility of more international students coming to Aoraki.”

There were more than financial reasons for that, she said.
“International students add a flavour to both the institute and the community and will benefit both the tutorial staff and the students.

“The third thing is that we need a much closer relationship with the local industries.

“We want to be able to help industries such as Fonterra and the DHB and the Holcim cement company.

“We need to work with industry to provide what they need for the future of this region. And in doing that I will also work very closely with iwi and others, to ensure that our young people at risk are provided with skills for work,” Ms Nelson said.
She also had words of support for her tutorial staff, who she said were of national and international calibre.

“I am looking forward to really getting to know them, and that’s our people in Dunedin, Oamaru, Ashburton and Christchurch as well as our people in Timaru.
“All of them have clearly been doing a fantastic job over the last seven or eight years, because the polytechnic is very healthy financially and in a position to be able to invest in the future.”

Ms Nelson said crucial to the success of tertiary education providers was the people doing the delivery.

“In any education, but I think particularly in vocational education, it’s all about the people who are doing the delivery.

“I think this comes from my hospitality background where I would always say to my staff, ‘the guests can see if you are unhappy. It translates on your face’.
“The same thing happens with your students. When you are passionate, innovative and happy, it doesn’t matter whether you are teaching engineering, business or hospitality or whether you are teaching fashion and design. Passion, innovation, satisfaction and happiness from the tutor or the mentor is the key thing to the success of your students,” Ms Nelson said.

ENDS

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