He pānui atu tēnei nā Te Wānanga o Raukawa, i runga anō i te manawa reka, kua kopoua ko Ahorangi Meihana Durie hei Tumuaki hou. Hei te Pēpuere 2025 tīmata ai. E whakapono ana Te Mana Whakahaere, e ārahina nei e te Amokapua, e Robin Hapi CNZM, mā te ārahi pai me te titiro mārama a Meihana, ka whanake tonu te whare mātauranga nei me tōna titikaha ki te whāngai, ki te whakatupu i te mātauranga Māori.

He raukura taiea, he kaimahi hoki a Meihana nō Te Wānanga o Raukawa i roto i ngā tau; kua kaha uru ki ngā kawenga, ki te kunenga o Te Wānanga mai i te tau 2000. He tūranga tiketike ōna i a ia i konei – he Pūkenga Reo, he Pūkenga Matua, he Kaihautū, me tāna whai wāhi nui ki te whakatūnga o Ngā Purapura i te 2012. Me kōrero rā āna kohakoha ki te hanganga o ngā hōtaka ako auaha, tae atu ki Te Poutuarongo Kawa Oranga me Te Poupou Pakari Tinana, he koha auroa ēnei ki te tiritiringa o te mātauranga Māori i Te Wānanga o Raukawa.

E mauria mai ana e Meihana ōna wheako huhua nō roto i ngā mahi kura wānanga, hautū tāngata. He mea whakawhiwhi ia e Te Wānanga o Raukawa ki Te Tāhuhu Reo Māori, ā, kua whakawhiwhia hoki ki te Tohu Kairangi (Toi Tangata) me te Tohu Paetahi, Mātauranga e Te Kunenga ki Pūrehuroa. Kua tū nei ia hei Ihorua Māori mō Te Kunenga ki Pūrehuroa, i ārahi ai ia i te angitu o ngā ākonga Māori me ngā kaupapa rangahau, whakaako, ā, nāna i arataki te tahuri a Te Kunenga ki Pūrehuroa ki te whakamātāmua i Te Tiriti o Waitangi i roto i āna mahi. Nāna hoki i torokaha ake ai ngā taura i waenga i Te Kunenga ki Pūrehuroa me ngā Iwi Mana Whenua, inā koa a Ngāti Whātua, a Rangitāne me Te Ātiawa. Ko ia te Upoko o Te Pūtahi a Toi, kua tū hoki hei Paewai ki Tua o Kairangi i raro i te Kaunihera Rangahau Hauora, ā, i whiwhi anō i te Karahipi Kairangi o Tā Peter Snell, ko te Hauora Tūmatanui me te Pūtaiao Kori te kaupapa.

I te 2023, ko Meihana tētahi o ngā Pou Tikanga e whā i kopoua mō Tomokia ngā Tatau o Matangireia, ā, kua āwhina anō hoki ia i tana iwi, i a Ngāti Kauwhata, ki tā rātou tāpaenga ko “Te Pene Raupatu” te ingoa, i tāpaea ki te Tūhuratanga a Te Rōpū Whakamana i te Tiriti o Waitangi mō te rohe o Porirua ki Manawatū.

Mai i te 2016, ko ia te Heamana o Manukura, he Kura Tuarua Aronui ki ngā Keokeonga, he mea poipoi nā Ngāti Tahuriwakanui. Ā, kua 20 tau neke atu e mau ana te piringa ki te Kōhanga Reo me te Kura Kaupapa o Mana Tamariki.

Arā hoki ētahi take tōrangapū kua ngau ki ōna iwi, ki a Ngāti Kauwhata rāua ko Rangitāne, kua riro mā Meihana e hautū. I noho hoki ia ki te paewhiri i te Hui ā-Motu a te Kīngitanga i tū rā ki Tūrangawaewae i te tīmatanga o te tau. Ā, he wā anō kimihia ai ngā whakaaro o Meihana ki ngā take e pāpā nei ki te iwi Māori nui tonu.

Kua whakapuaki Te Amokapua, a Robin Hapi, i tāna tautoko i te kopounga o Meihana. “Ka nui te hari o konei e hoki mai ana a Meihana hei Tumuaki. Kua aua atu ōna hononga ki Te Wānanga o Raukawa; he tangata ārahi, he tangata kite mamao, kāore i tua atu i a ia hei arataki i te whare mātauranga nei i tēnei tūārere whanaketanga hou ōna.”

E ngākaunui ana a Meihana kia mau tonu Te Wānanga o Raukawa ki tōna ara kaupapa Māori, ā, kia tupu tonu ngā painga e puta ana i te whare mātauranga nei ki ngā hapori Māori. Kia tū nei ia ki te hoe urungi, ka toritori tonu Te Wānanga o Raukawa kia ekea ngā taumata mātauranga, kia kaha hoki te tū Māori a ngā ākonga, ā, ka whakapakari tonu i ōna hononga ki ngā iwi, ki ngā hāpu, ki ngā whānau, huri noa i Aotearoa.

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Te Wānanga o Raukawa is pleased to announce the appointment of Professor Meihana Durie as its new Tumuaki (Chief Executive), effective from February 2025. Te Mana Whakahaere Board, led by Chair Te Amokapua Robin Hapi CNZM, is confident that Meihana’s leadership and vision will continue to build on the institution’s strong foundation and commitment to Māori education.

A distinguished graduate and former staff member of Te Wānanga o Raukawa, Meihana has been deeply involved in the institution’s growth since 2000. He has held key roles such as Pūkenga Reo, Pūkenga Matua, and Kaihautū, and was instrumental in the establishment of Ngā Purapura in 2012. Meihana’s contributions to the development of innovative academic programmes, including Poutuarongo Kawa Oranga and Poupou Pakari Tinana, have had a lasting impact on Māori education at Te Wānanga o Raukawa.

Meihana brings with him a wealth of academic and leadership experience. He holds a Masters in Te Reo Māori from Te Wānanga o Raukawa, a Doctor of Philosophy (Arts), and a Bachelor of Education, from Massey University. He has served as Deputy Vice Chancellor Māori at Massey University, where he led Māori student success, research and teaching initiatives and ushered in Massey University’s Te Tiriti-led era, also strengthening the university’s Mana Whenua Iwi relationships with Ngāti Whātua, Rangitāne and Te Ātiawa. His previous roles include Head of School Te Pūtahi a Toi, Health Research Council of New Zealand Postdoctoral Fellow and Sir Peter Snell Doctoral Scholar in Public Health and Exercise Science.



He was appointed in 2023 as one of four Pou Tikanga for the Waitangi Tribunal Constitutional Inquiry and has assisted his iwi of Ngāti Kauwhata with the “Te Pene Raupatu” submission as part of the wider Porirua ki Manawatū District Inquiry.

Since 2016 he has been Chair of Manukura, a Tahuriwakanui-led High Performance Secondary School and has maintained close involvement with the Mana Tamariki Kōhanga Reo and Kura Kaupapa for over 20 years.

Meihana has led a number of responses to political issues affecting his iwi of Ngāti Kauwhata and Rangitāne and was a panelist at the Hui aa Motu hosted by the Kīngitanga at Tūrangawaewae Marae earlier this year. He is also a commentator on issues affecting Māori more broadly.

Te Amokapua Robin Hapi CNZM expressed his confidence in Meihana’s appointment. “We are delighted to welcome Meihana as Tumuaki. His deep-rooted connection to Te Wānanga o Raukawa, along with his visionary leadership, makes him the ideal person to lead the institution into its next phase of growth.”

As Tumuaki, Meihana is committed to continuing Te Wānanga o Raukawa’s kaupapa Māori approach and enhancing its impact on Māori communities. Under his leadership, Te Wānanga o Raukawa will continue to foster the academic success and cultural integrity of Māori students while strengthening its connections to Iwi, hapū, and whānau across Aotearoa.

ENDS

For more information contact:

Robin Hapi CNZM: 021 943 286

Professor Meihana Durie: 027 399 9094