Whitireia Council

The Council is the governing body of the Polytechnic

The dates for meetings in 2010 are:

27 January
24 February
31 March
28 April
26 May
30 June (6pm, Vivian St Campus)
4 August
29 September (1pm, Auckland Campus)
27 October
1 December

The role and functions of Council include:

Strategy and future direction planning and monitoring strategy implementation
Measuring and monitoring "business" performance
Chief Executive selection, performance monitoring and succession planning
Stewardship systems to safeguard resources and reputation
Understanding and managing significant business risks
Maintaining the culture and values
Accountability to stakeholders
Compliance with legislation and regulations.

The Council has a membership of 8, including:

Four ministerial appointees
Four community appointees

Current members of Council are:

ROGER SOWRY (Chair)

Roger Sowry was a member of Parliament from 1990 to 2005, firstly representing the Kapiti electorate, then as a National list MP. Mr Sowry retired from Parliament in 2005 moving to become chief executive of Arthritis New Zealand. He is a member of the Electricity Commission and a member Paraparaumu College Board of Trustees.

DR ALAN BARKER (Deputy Chair)

Dr Alan Barker is a Senior Consultant with MartinJenkins. He has extensive experience in public sector reform, strategic planning, organisation review and financial management. Dr Barker has worked for a number of education related institutions such as the TEC, MOE, NZQA, and Tairawhiti Polytechnic, as well as a number of other public sector entities.

Dennis Sharman

Dennis Sharman owns and operates Sharman Consulting Ltd, a consultancy company that delivers comprehensive technology services to small and medium sized businesses. Mr Sharman is also on the board of NZITP and ITPNZ. He is an elected member of the Tawa Community Board and also on the board of Mana Tiaki.

Aka Arthur

Aka Arthur, of Ngati Toa, has been a resident of Porirua for over 60 years. He is a kaumatua for the Royal New Zealand Police College (since 2000), a member of the Conservation Board and of the Aratahi (the Maori Regional Representative Group of the Wellington Regional Council) and on the Kaiwhaka Manua for the Department of Courts.

"Hutia te rito o te harakeke kei hea te komako e ko, ki mai ki au, hea te mea nui o te ao, maku e ki atu: He tangata, he tangata, he tangata."

"If you should ask me what is the greatest thing in this world, I will tell you, It is people, it is people, it is people."

suzanne snively

Suzanne Snively is a partner at PricewaterhouseCoopers in Wellington. Ms Snively is a member of the Institute of Directors and the New Zealand Association of Economists. She was awarded the Fulbright and Reserve Bank scholarships, was honoured by the Queen along with 100 women with a Women's Suffrage medal and is a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit.

Gregory Fortuin

Gregory Fortuin (Porirua) is a company director and Families Commissioner. He is a former Race Relations Conciliator and previously served as a director of New Zealand Post, Kiwi Bank, ACC (Investment Committee Chair), Catalyst Injury Management (Chair) and Industry New Zealand. Gregory came to NZ in 1991 as the Managing Director of National Mutual Corporate Super Services Ltd and was also a Crown-Trustee and the meeting chair of the Crown Forest Rental Trust. He was the Founding Chairman of the Youth Suicide Awareness Trust and served on the Boards of Prison Fellowship New Zealand and Youth for Christ. He is presently the Chair of Streets Ahead 237 in Porirua.

DR KABINI SANGA

Associate Professor Kabini Sanga is currently the Acting Head, School of Te Kura Maori, Faculty of Education at Victoria University of Wellington, as well as Co-Director of He Parekereke The Institute for Research and Development For Maori and Pacific Education, at Victoria University.

Associate Professor Sanga gained his doctorate from the University of Saskatchewan, Canada in 1996. He has been the Director of the Institute of Education at the University of the South Pacific, Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Solomon Islands College of Education, and Chief Education Officer, Solomon Islands Ministry of Education as well as undertaking significant governance and consultancy roles that progressed Pacific leadership and achievement.

Ron Wilkinson

Ron Wilkinson (Kapiti) is the director of Management Answers, consultants in media and marketing. He is a recent Chairperson of The Steam Radio Company Ltd. which owns and operates Kapiti's Beach FM. In 2008 he was presented with a Civic Award by the Kapiti Coast District Council. In addition, he was awarded a 1990 Medal for services to broadcasting by the Queen, in recognition of his previous work with Radio New Zealand. He is a former New Zealand radio broadcaster of the year. A former board member, fellow and graduate of the New Zealand College of Management, he has designed and led workshops in management and media topics for principals, senior staff and board members of schools and colleges in New Zealand and worked extensively in Vietnam, Malaysia, the United States of America, Australia and various countries in the South Pacific.