Life membership for Dawn

Congratulations to WITT Te Pūkenga Learning Advisor Dawn Marsh (pictured left with manager Bridget) on receiving an ATLAANZ Life Membership award. ATLAANZ is an association of professionals working in academic advisory roles in tertiary institutions in Aotearoa.

WITT Te Pūkenga Lead Bridget Knuckey says: “It is an amazing achievement and is a testament to Dawn’s dedication to ākonga and commitment to her profession.”

In 1999, when ATLAANZ was in its infancy, Dawn realised her calling to become an Academic Learning Advisor. Working as a contract tutor at the University of Waikato, Dawn was facilitating the Bridging for Women and New Start programmes, when a class visit from Andrea Haines, outlining her work supporting students, led to the realisation ‘that’s what I want to be’.

After a circuitous career in academic administration, local government, journalism and librarianship, Dawn realised her aspirations in 2012, returning to Waikato University to join Andrea and the diverse Student Learning team.

With the encouragement and support of past-presidents Jan Stewart and Deborah Laurs, Dawn joined the ATLAANZ Executive Committee in 2018 and served as Secretary from 2020-2022. A highlight of her time on the Exec was representing Aotearoa New Zealand on the ICALLD Steering Group, contributing to symposia and professional development opportunities worldwide.

In 2021, Dawn joined the Western Institute of Technology at Taranaki (now WITT Te Pūkenga) with the encouragement and support of the late Barbara Morris. Throughout her career, she has engaged in research related to the profession, publishing in the ATLAANZ and AALL Journals, and contributing regularly to Regional Hui and ATLAANZ Conferences on topics including academic integrity, Māori and Pacific achievement in science, open educational practice (OEP), and the innovative applications of new technologies.

In accepting the Life Membership award, Dawn hopes to continue to give back to the ATLAANZ community the support, coaching and mentoring that she has received from friends and colleagues over many years.

“To receive this endorsement from peers and role models reminds us that ATLAANZ is more than a professional association, it is a community and a whānau,” says Dawn.

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