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Te Akatea

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TE AKATEA ORIGINS

In 1990 Punohu McCausland and I were liaison officers for the newly established Ministry of Education regional office in Rotorua. Na Pem Bird

I had just arrived from a four-year stint at Rakaumanga beginning in 1986 which was part of a national network of kura reo e rua. Kura Kaupapa Maori had not been legislated at that time. Tomorrow’s Schools and Kura Kaupapa Maori in 1989 ushered in a new era - Kura Kaupapa Maori and other forms of Maori medium education were growing quickly. Punohu and I thought that we ought to create an opportuni

ty for a group of reo Maori kura from Waiariki and Waikato to get together to talk about the kaupapa of a national body of tumuaki. In late 1989-1990 some of the original kura reo e rua had or were looking to transition into Kura Kaupapa Maori. Te Aho Matua legislation wasn’t around then. Kura reo e rua had been around since 1978 (Ruatoki) and by 1989 numbered about 10. The 1989 Kura Kaupapa Maori legislation spelt the end of kura reo e rua. The whakaaro for the establishment of a kaupapa Maori tumuaki national body came from two hui held in the basement of my home in Maketu in 1990 - 1991. Punohu and I secured some Ministry of Education funding to help cover costs. The whakaaro came from a strong desire to whakawhanaunga and whakakotahi tumuaki in kura who were using te reo Maori as the medium of instruction. By coming together as a national body for the express purpose of growing cultural and professional leadership capability, it was thought we could advance the cause of Kaupapa Maori education. Present at the hui were myself and Punohu McCausland (MOE), Pererika Twist (Huiarau), Barna Heremia and Alex Hope (Rakaumanga), Jimmy Schuster (Whangamarino), Huria Tawa (Rotoiti) and Irimena Heke (Otepou). The decisions taken over the course of the two hui were:

That a body as envisaged and for the purpose stipulated would be established;

That Pererika Twist would take responsibility for growing support in Waiariki, and Barna Heremia in Waikato;

That the group would be called Te Akatea, following a suggestion from Jimmy Schuster who related the story of his tipuna Rangitihi who suffered a grievous wound to the head in a particular battle, had the wound bound with akatea vine to stem the flow of blood and enable him to continue to fight and eventually carry the day. Thus Te Akatea - a metaphor for contemporary Maori leadership in kura battling to keep alive te reo Maori with brave, stoic and relentless determination! Following the hui my and Punohu’s roles ended. The Ministry of Education closed in Rotorua. [Nonetheless,] Te Akatea grew into what it is today.