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From the Board of Trustees

Andrew Corkill —

A quick update from some items on the board agenda that’s worthy of note to you all from our November meeting:

  1. We warmly welcomed back Ihipera Sweet to the Board. Ihipera was a member of the Establishment Board of Trustees as the Ngāti Wairere, mana whenua (Māori iwi who were original users of the land) representative and has been given approval by her iwi to reprise this important role. Ihipera was welcomed by the new board through shared whanaungatanga (process of establishing relationships) and the practice of our individual pepeha – part of our own te ao Māori journey led by staff trustee, Hone Waudby.

  2. We adopted our first draft budget which represents the 2020 year! This was an important milestone for the new board, led ably by our Treasurer, Sara and Tony as Principal. Watch this space but we are in the process of planning the development of a Pou (Māori carving) at our school entrance to reflect our school name and relationship with Ngāti Wairere.

  3. We heard from one of our wonderful Deputy Principals – Anna Pratt – about her role overseeing the learning support that she coordinates for the school. Anna outlined the bespoke learning needs of some of our learners and how our funding is sourced and utilised to ensure that these students get the appropriate support to help them thrive in our school environment.

Please continue to support our cause for Movember following the Facebook links available. Whilst there are a few dubious attempts out there we are trying our best and great to see some of the parents and teachers getting involved too – especially with the ‘Move-ember’ push too.

- Andrew Corkill

Andrew Corkill


Ihipera is a researcher for the Waikato-Tainui College for Research and Development (College). Ihipera is from Hukanui Marae, Gordonton and is a mother to a 1 year old boy.
Ihipera has been involved at a governance level as a representative on Te Whakakitenga o Waikato, and has experience in indigenous research and policy while overseeing a number of water restoration projects at the College.
Ihipera holds a Bachelor of Laws with a second major in Te Reo Maaori from Waikato University and is currently studying towards a Masters in Environment and Society.

“I am honoured and privileged to be part of the team, and look forward to the exciting opportunities that Te Ao Mārama School has to offer the community”
Ihipera Sweet