September 19th, 2024
Southern Institute of Technology’s Business Division, Te Pūkenga, has launched a new construction trades scholarship program for Māori and Pasifika students, according to a media release today.
The Ngā Puna Wai Programme, developed in partnership with Awarua Rūnaka, aims to provide a pathway for students to learn contemporary trades and construction skills while connecting with Māori cultural values, architecture, and art.
As part of the programme, students will help build a transportable whare, which will be used as an education centre at the Awarua Rūnaka Waituna Lagoon property. The whare will allow local schools to visit for environmental and cultural learning. The students will be taught Murihiku history, tikaka, and mātauraka Māori concepts, Māori architecture, and traditional Māori art by local Rūnaka representatives.
The scholarship provides each student with high-quality hand and power tools for use on the course and during their industry work experience, a loan laptop for the duration of the course, and funding through He Toki Construction Scholarships and the SIT Zero Fees Scheme.
The ten-month programme started in March, with students spending up to four days each week on the Ngā Puna Wai Programme at SIT and one day each week working in the industry. The whare is expected to be transported to Waituna Lagoon by April 2024.
Russell Finlay, Trades and Technology Head of Faculty at SIT, said the students would learn a broad range of knowledge, practical trade and work-ready skills while building the education centre, helping to give them a head start for successful entry into a building apprenticeship.
SIT Executive Director, Daryl Haggerty, said that the students’ work on the project would be directly beneficial to the community and would be used by future generations for years to come.
The Ngā Puna Wai Programme is a great initiative to promote Māori and Pasifika engagement in contemporary trades and construction skills while preserving cultural values, architecture, and art.