This is the second time miniature horses have been brought onto the Ōtara campus for our students to get an understanding of Equine Therapy. Equine Therapy is a specialist form of therapy popular in the United States, using the Eagala system - a global standard in Equine-Assisted Psychotherapy, and has some established roots in New Zealand.

Charlize Wilson, an ākonga in our NZ Skills for Living for Supported Learners programme, featured on a recent episode of Down for Love (Season 2, episode 3). The show featured a clip of 18-year-old Charlize in class at our Ōtara campus with lecturer Cushla Wilson and her classmates.

From day one, MIT | Te Pūkenga cooking students are immersed in the fast-paced world of culinary, whether it’s food preparation, advanced cookery, or full chef training. Recently, one of New Zealand’s most internationally respected chefs, Graham Brown, ran a demonstration with the help of MIT cookery student Eunique Lakshman.

Florence Tamehana always wanted to work with youth. So, after spending many years in the military, she retrained as a social worker. Since then, she’s worked with some of New Zealand’s most at-risk young people. Today, she is a Student Engagement Advisor at MIT | Te Pūkenga in the School of Secondary-Tertiary Studies (SSTS), supporting students completing their NCEA qualifications and University Entrance. Recently, she won the Tangata-ō te whenua Practice Award at the Social Work Awards 2023.

The AI for the Environment Hackathon Festival is a chance for people from all walks of life to collaborate and build solutions to some of New Zealand’s most pressing environmental challenges. In 2023, 13 MIT | Te Pūkenga students and graduates attended the festival. Here’s what happened.

Culinary creations using cauliflower and chicken were on the menu at the National Secondary Schools Culinary Challenge held at MIT Te Pūkenga on 23 August 2023. The national cook-off was won by hospitality students from Wellington Trades Academy, the secondary-tertiary programme run by Whitireia and WelTec Te Pūkenga.

When Anusuthi arrived in New Zealand like many other international students chasing dreams of freedom and independence, she thought she’d be able to return to India to see friends and family within twelve months. However, the COVID pandemic meant the human resources and project management major found herself unable to go home for two and a half years.

When Micah Sili first came to MIT she had no aspirations to get into politics, only wanting to earn a Nursing degree to help serve the community and look after older people like her grandparents who she was raised by in Tonga. However, during the Pandemic the 30-year-old was thrust into the national spotlight becoming not only a spokesperson for our learners but an advocate for south Auckland as well.

Julia (Ngāti Maniapoto) had a long career in the fashion industry. Her time as a Brand Account Manager for a major Canadian line took her to work in Montreal, Australia and around Aotearoa. There were plenty of cool parties, launches and store openings to go to.

Students from thirty different countries were represented at the event where they were invited to share music, dance, food and traditions from their homelands.