About Us - Te Wānanga Ihorangi

Ko Wai Mātou?

Ko Wai Mātou?

I whakatūhia Te Wānanga Ihorangi - ko Oati tōna ingoa i mua - i te tau 2018 hei rōpū ohaoha rēhita. He kaupapa tēnei e manawanui nei ki te taumanu, ki te tiaki, me te whakarauora i te reo Māori ki Aotearoa nei. Ki a mātou, he piringa tō te toiora o te reo me ngā tikanga Māori ki te taha wairua, ki te taha kikokiko me te taha whānau o ō tātou hapori. Ka arotahi ā mātou hōtaka, rauemi marau me ngā kaupapa pāpāho hoki ki tēnei whāinga.

Ko tētahi āhuatanga motuhake o Te Wānanga Ihorangi, ko tō mātou hiahia kia noho pūmau te reo Māori hei kauwaka matua e taea ai ngā whakaaro o ō tātou hapori whakapono (arā ko ngā Hāhi) te whakairo ki te kōrero. E whai mana ai te whakataukī o tō mātou wāhi mahi:

Ko te reo te kauwaka o taku whakapono

(Te reo Māori is the sacred vessel of my faith)

Huihui katoa mai ana ngā pononga a te Hāhi Ringatū, te Hāhi Mihinare, te Hāhi Iriiri me te Hāhi Pakipaki; he tuatahitanga tēnei momo kura reo, kura whakapono ki Aotearoa nei.

Ngā Mātāpono

WHAKAPAPA

He āpiti hono, he tātai hono tō ngā mea katoa. Ki te mārama koe ki tēnei, tēnā nei koe ka mārama pū ko wai, ā, nō hea hoki koe.

TE AO MĀRAMA

Ko tēnei mea te whai i te mātauranga, he whāinga mō te katoa. Ahakoa tīmata mai koe i hea, kei a tātou katoa te kaha kia tipu ai, kia rea ai, kia puāwai.

MĀHAKI

Ko te ngākau hūmārie, ko te ngākau whakarato me te ngākau atawhai hoki te arataki nei ā tātou mahi.

WHAKAPONO

He mea whakaohooho Te Wānanga Ihorangi nā ngā kōrero mō Te Rongopai, ā, ko tō mātou whakapono Karaitiana te iho matua e whakaihiihi nei i a tātou me ngā mahi.

WHĀNAUNGATANGA

E mārama ana he whānau kotahi tēnei e ngākaunui nei ki te hanga me te whakapūmau i ngā tūhononga kei waenganui i a tātou, kia tānekaha ai. Ki te tomokia e koe te tatau o tēnei whare, ko tō whānau hoki tēnei e hau mai nā. Ko te whāinga, kia whakaritea tēnei hei wāhi ako kia whirinaki mai hoki te hunga tata rawa ki tō ngākau.

Rapua he hōtaka

Kua rite rānei koe ki te eke ki taumata kē? Tirohia ngā kōrero hei whakatinana i ō wawata kōrero i te reo Māori.

TIROHIA NGĀ HŌTAKA

Ngā Kaimahi

Anameka Paenga

Tumuaki | Co-Principal

(Te Whānau-a-Apanui, Te Whakatōhea, Ngāi Tai)

Language exponent, academic, education specialist, and renowned kapa haka composer and performer, Anameka is a recognised leader within all of her chosen fields of work. As a longtime performer and leader within Ōpōtiki-mai-Tawhiti and Te Kapa Haka o Te Whānau-a-Apanui, her passion for teaching led her to develop and lead undergraduate and postgraduate performing arts programmes at Te Whare Wānanga o Awanuiarangi. A graduate of Te Panekiretanga o Te Reo, she continues to teach and advocate for Te Reo Māori at the highest levels. In more recent years she has transitioned into educational leadership roles with NZQA and Te Wānanga o Aotearoa, ensuring the educational outcomes for Māori students and programmes are of the highest quality. A proponent of Māori philosophy and teaching pedagogy, she received First Class Honours for her Master of Arts thesis titled ‘Karangaranga te muri.’

Rev’d Te Karere Scarborough

Tumuaki | Co-Principal

(Ngāpuhi, Ngāti Hauā)

Poet, community educator, and whānau advocate, Te Karere Scarborough has spent the last 15 years working in the community-wellbeing and arts sector. During this time, he was largely based at Parenting Place. He held a variety of roles there that included leading the Attitude Programme for Schools, National Young Leaders’ Day, Toolbox, Building Awesome Whānau and Space programmes. An appointed trustee of his hapū board, Whatitiri Māori Reserves Trust, he has also held governance positions at Maxim Institute, the Mihinare social service provider Te Whare Ruruhau o Meri, and the youth development organisation Zeal. Te Karere holds qualifications from Te Wānanga Takiura, Te Wānanga o Aotearoa, Unitec, and is concurrently completing his Masters in Chaplaincy through the University of Otago. He was the founding CEO of Te Wānanga Ihorangi and feels privileged to lead alongside Anameka.

Hamuera Tamihana

Kaiwhakahaere Marau

(Te Ātiawa, Ngāti Mutunga, Kai Tangata)

Hamuera has a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Canterbury and a Postgraduate Diploma in Teaching from the University of Waikato. Straight out of tertiary education, he became an Assistant Housemaster and teacher at St Paul’s Collegiate School. He then shifted to Tauranga and became the HOD of Māori Studies at Bethlehem College. With over a decade of experience teaching and developing curricula, Te Wānanga Ihorangi is excited to have Hamuera onboard full-time with us. Together with his wife Aroha (of Maimoa Creative), they have 3 tamariki: Te Rauriki Māia (5), Manahau Ākina (3), and Atamai Ewai.

Ritāne Wallace

Kaiako – Te Reo Maruata

(Tūwharetoa, Ngāti Hekeawai, Ngāti Hauā, Ngāti Kahungunu)

Ritāne is an academic and cultural consultant who has spent the last decade researching and teaching across a wide range of community contexts. Most recently he worked as the Pane o Te Tari Reo Maaori at St Paul’s Collegiate School in Hamilton, overseeing te reo Māori programmes there. Rītane has a Bachelor of Arts Degree and a Master of Arts from the University of Waikato, where he specialised in Māori and Pacific development. Rītane is an avid advocate for the role good research can play in supporting the aspirations of Māori communities, and while employed as a Researcher at Te Waha a Tuara, he supported Ngaati Apakura in reconciling with the Crown. Rītane and his wife Tequila have twin boys, Kingston and Journey, and a younger son, Tohu. They all fellowship at Te Rautini in Hamilton.

Waiora Te Moni

Kaiako – Te Reo Ihirangi

(Ngāti Haka (Tūhoe), Waitaha, Tapuika (Te Arawa), Ngāti Hine)

Born and raised in Aotearoa’s kiwifruit capital, Te Puke – Waiora is deeply committed to whānau, whakapapa, and whakapono. Passionate about the place of Māori in God’s story for humanity, Waiora has recently left studying theology at St John’s Theological College to teach at Te Wānanga Ihorangi. Holding a Bachelor of Communication Studies from AUT, she has also formally studied te reo Māori at the University of Waikato and Te Wānanga o Aotearoa. Waiora is ordained under Te Pīhopatanga o Te Tai Tokerau and serves at Te Ana Tapu | Tātai Hono in Auckland City.

Tuiti Savage

Kaiāwhina – Te Reo Ihirangi

(Ngāti Kahungunu ki Heretaunga)

Brought up in Northland, Tuiti came to Tāmaki Makaurau for University and has made a kāinga rua here with us. Whilst completing his Bachelor of Arts at The University of Auckland, he worked as a Resident Assistant for Eden Christian Hostel. He’s studied te reo Māori through Te Wānanga o Aotearoa and Te Wānanga Takiura, and can be found leading student tutorials or running the reception desk here at work. Tuiti has strong artistic inclinations, and his flair for the creative is a welcome addition to the team.

Leah Te Kahu

Te Kaiwhakahaere o Te Hāpai Ō | Operations Lead

(Ngāti Ranginui, Ngāi te Rangi)

With a rare blend of operational, pastoral and strategic strengths, Leah has a background in Māori development and cultural consultancy work. Before stepping in as the Operational Lead of Te Hāpai Ō (operations/student support/pastoral oversight), she’d worked for Rape Prevention Education, Maurea and Auckland Womens Centre. She has a Bachelor of Māori Development from AUT, and has studied te reo Māori through Te Wānanga o Aotearoa and Te Wānanga Takiura. Married to Manaakinui, they can both be found leading a range of church and community development initiatives throughout the motu.

Piripi Baker

Kaiako/Kairangahau

(Te Whakatōhea)

Piripi is an experienced youth worker, programme developer, writer, public speaker, and educator. Most recently he was working for the Parenting Place, as the national manager for Building Awesome Whānau (a parenting programme that supports Māori communities). He has completed qualifications in both te reo Māori and theology, receiving his Bachelor of Theology from Laidlaw College and Te Tohu Paetahi Diploma from the University of Waikato. Piripi is a passionate advocate for Māori theology and has just begun postgraduate studies at the University of Otago.

Rev’d Te Hira Paenga

Adjunct Lecturer

(Ngāti Porou, Ngāpuhi, Ngāti Kahungunu)

Te Hira is a Raukura alumnus of the Kura Kaupapa Māori schooling system. After schooling, he earned tertiary and postgraduate degrees from the University of Auckland, University of Waikato, Auckland College of Education, Te Panekiretanga o Te Reo, St John’s Theological College, Te Whare Wānanga o Awanuiārangi, and he is currently completing his Ph.D. in Theology through the University of Otago with a focus on theology and kapa haka (Māori performing arts). Te Hira comes from a teaching background and has held roles as HoD Māori, Assistant Principal, and Deputy Principal at Te Wharekura Māori o Hoani Waititi, Hato Pētera, Te Aute College, and most recently Ōpōtiki College.

Te Poari

Rev’d Neihana Reihana

CHAIRPERSON

(Ngāti Raukawa, Ngāti Ranginui)

After completing his Bachelor of Business Degree at AUT, Neihana went on to finish a Post Graduate Diploma in Teaching and spent the next five years teaching te reo Māori and business studies. He then served as the Academic Director at the InZone Academic Foundation, supporting 72 Māori and Pasifika students as they lived within a kāinga (hostel) environment in central Auckland. He spends most of his time now working through his Ph.D. in Māori theology through the University of Otago. Married to Elena, and father to Whakaaria and Mākoha, he is often travelling back home to support te reo regeneration hui at his marae, Mangakāretu.

Te Waka McLeod

Trustee

(Ngāti Mutunga, Te Atiawa, Te Ātihaunui a Papārangi)

Te Waka is most at home when she’s with her whānau and engaging with people around the motu to activate transformation in iwi spaces and champion kaupapa Māori. She has spent her life being called into leadership contexts to faithfully accomplish the work which has included roles at Parenting Place, The New Zealand Leaders Trust, Link NZ and Sport Taranaki.

In recent years she has held the role of CEO for Te Wānanga Ihorangi before being called home to Waitara in Taranaki to advocate for her people. She is the current Kai Arataki with Ka Uruora, an Iwi-led organisation that provides a pathway to housing and financial independence for whānau Māori.

She is the Director of Puna Hau Ltd and since 2022 has been a member of the New Plymouth District Council as the inaugural Te Purutanga Mauri Pūmanawa Māori, Māori ward councillor.

Ashley Pīhema

Trustee

(Ngāti Kahu, Ngāti Whātua, Ngāpuhi, Kai Tahu and Ngāti Pākeha)

Entrepreneur, business owner, and educationist, Ashley is on maternity leave from her role as the Head of Faculty for Te Whare Huia, Māori Studies at Diocesan School for Girls. Spearheading the integration of Māori values, knowledge, and language into all spheres of the school; her unique set of skills and experience has made her a highly valuable asset to any educational context throughout Aotearoa. As the Cluster Leader for Ako Panuku, she also took on a leadership role supporting all te reo Māori teachers within the greater central Auckland area. An active member within a variety of community settings, she continues to serve in Karuwhā Trust.

Greg Fleming

Trustee

Greg has a longstanding resume as an innovative social entrepreneur. Greg co-founded and was CEO of the Maxim Institute for 12 years, a public policy think tank that has researched a range of issues including taxation, education, justice, and welfare. From there he became the CEO of the Venn Foundation which he co-founded to provide unique educational opportunities for young adults keen to be involved in social innovation. He is also the founding Chair of Te Whakaora Tangata, an organisation restoring hundreds of families in poverty through relationship mentoring and practical support. More recently, he was CEO of Parenting Place for five years before he transitioned into an independent contractor.

Dr. Alistair Reese

Trustee

Alistair is an adjunct Fellow at the University of Otago and his research and speaking interests include postcolonialism, reconciliation, and prohetism. He has postgraduate degrees in Theology, History, and Tikanga Māori. His Ph.D. in theology from the University of Auckland focused on reconciliation and Pākehā identity. Alistair is involved in local and national efforts to promote reconciliation between Māori and Pākehā and exploring understandings of what an indigenous form of Christianity might look like.