Central Hub of Ako Aotearoa - Who We Are
The Central Hub office is hosted by Massey University and Universal College of Learning (UCOL) in Palmerston North. The office is based at UCOL and services the area stretching from Te Aroha in the east to Waitara in the west, taking in Taupo and extending south to Wellington and the Wairarapa.
My name is Ian Rowe and my role is Operations Manager. Gordon Suddaby, Associate Professor, Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (Massey University), is the Hub Coordinator.
Background on Central Hub Staff
Ian Rowe
I have been working for Ako Aotearoa in the Central Region since April 2007, but I began my career in the tertiary teaching sector as a trades tutor at the Central Institute of Technology at Petone in 1975. For the last three years I was there, I was also the institute’s safety officer.
In 1983, I was appointed to a lecturing position at the New Zealand Tutor Training Unit in Lower Hutt. During my five years there, I specialised in assessment and evaluation, teaching techniques, group facilitation, and educational psychology.
In 1988, I moved to the Manawatu Polytechnic in Palmerston North as Staff Development Manager, taking on an additional duty in 1995 as Academic Manager for the Bachelor of Applied Information Systems degree programme. I also represented tutorial staff on the polytechnic’s council for two years.
My next move was to Wanganui Polytechnic as Associate Director in 1996. The role encompassed responsibility for a range of degree and diploma courses as well as for the management of campus facilities.
Following that, I joined the New Zealand Educational Institute as a field officer for the Palmerston North region. This work involved employment law, dispute resolution, training and development, and employment contract negotiations.
Christina Crews
I have been working as the Administrator for the Central Hub since November 2008. Previously I was working for Massey University as Web Support for the Information Technology Services department in Palmerston North supplying web design/development assistance campus-wide to various departments and schools.