Te Waiu o Aotearoa Trust Scholarships Announced

Meet the four Māori tertiary business uni students (pictured) who have each received a grant.

Four Māori tertiary business uni students have each received a grant to support their study and accommodation costs.

Te Waiu o Aotearoa Trust, administered by Westpac NZ, has announced the recipients of its 2022 tertiary study scholarships.

The scholarship was established to promote, develop and provide for the education and advancement of Māori, within the banking and finance industry, and general business.

The Trustees of Te Waiu o Aotearoa Trust, Karen Silk, Steve Atkinson and Fonteyn Moses-Te Kani, said they felt privileged to award these scholarships because of the impact they can have on the students’ wellbeing.

The Trustees have also been impressed with the influence former scholarship recipients have continued to have within their communities, Iwi and working life.

The recipients are:

Karlos Croft, Ngāpuhi

Karlos is in his second year of a Double Bachelor of Business and Communications, majoring in Management and Journalism at AUT.

“This scholarship is going to help me see through my goal of getting the degree and using that degree to attain the goals that I’ve set for myself.

“It has helped me out a lot financially because I come from quite a poor background and the money side of university was a big obstacle for me. This has made that less of a challenge,” he said.

Karlos wants to help with the economic growth of Northland when he finishes his studies, by helping to build businesses with a Māori approach.

He would like to inspire others from his background to seek support.

“No matter what background you’re from or how much money you have, you can get support through scholarships like this one and they really do help.

“There are ways for Māori students to achieve the goals.”

Karlos is in his second year of a Double Bachelor of Business and Communications.

Metiria-Hinekorangi Doyle, Te Āti Haunui-a-pāpārangi, Te Āti Awa, Ngāti Raukawa ki te tonga, Ngā Rauru, Ngāti Ruanui, Ngāti Rangi

Metiria is in her second year of a conjoint Bachelor of Law and Commerce, majoring in Finance and minoring in Economics at Victoria University.

“Personally, it was very difficult going into my second year while also working part time because the university workload increases. This scholarship means that I can now actually focus on my papers instead of working.

“When I finish studying, I want to go overseas to experience different legal frameworks across the world for a few years and then come back and help my iwi expand with the things I’ve learned,” she said.

Metiria shares her university experience through social media to encourage her Māori friends and family to also study. Some of her young former classmates have also decided to study law after seeing her do it.

Metiria is in her second year of a conjoint Bachelor of Law and Commerce.

Manaia Lewis-Wano, Te Arawa, Ngāti Awa, Ngai Tuhoe and Ngāti Kahungunu

Manaia is in her second year of a Bachelor of Business, majoring in Marketing, with a minor in Māori and Indigenous Studies at the University of Waikato.

“This scholarship will definitely assist in my course fees. It’s one less stress on my mind to help me get through my studies,” she said.

In 2019 Manaia was part of a group that travelled to Japan to share Māori performing arts and culture to the country.

When she finishes university, she would like to create a business or marketing platform opportunity to continue to share Māori culture to the world.

“We see a lot of Māori students studying teaching or indigenous studies but not a lot studying business. I would say to people, you need to be the change in these areas where there’s not a lot of Māori presence.”

 

Manaia is in her second year of a Bachelor of Business.

Brigham Riwai-Couch, Ngai Tahu, Ngāti Kuia, Ngāti Kahungunu, Rangitāne o Wairau, Ngāti Apa

Brigham is in his second year studying a Bachelor of Communications at the University of Canterbury.

“This scholarship will definitely make it a lot easier to pay for my university fees and will take the pressure off having to work as hard with part time jobs.”

Brigham would like to work with his iwi in the future and either be a sports commentator or host a game show in New Zealand.

“I think communications is so cool because there are so many pathways and work opportunities, like working for your iwi or a bank like Westpac. Every business needs communications experts,” he said.

Brigham is in his second year studying a Bachelor of Communications.