New tumuaki at Wānanga

New tumuaki at Wānanga

Professor Meihana Durie as been appointed as the new tumuaki (chief executive) at Te Wānanga o Raukawa.

Meihana takes over from Mereana Selby, effective from February.

He is a distinguished graduate and former staff member of the Wānanga, and 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 lifestyle centre 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 has a wealth of academic and leadership experience. He holds a masters in te reo Māori from Te Wānanga o Raukawa is a doctor of philosophy (arts), and has 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 have included as 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 more than 20 years.

Meihana has led several responses to political issues affecting 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.

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 throughout Aotearoa.