Sharing WITT's Vision

Over 100 business and community stakeholders gathered at WITT’s New Plymouth campus on Tuesday evening to hear about the vision ahead for Te Kura Matatini o Taranaki.

The Business Connections event was held in conjunction with Taranaki Chamber of Commerce, and also saw the launch of a document, ‘Sharing WITT’s Vision’, that highlights some of the projects and partnerships that feature in the long term plan.

Those that couldn’t attend the event can view or download a copy from WITT’s website.

“Taranaki is on the brink of transformational change and education is at the heart of that transformation,” WITT Chief Executive John Snook said.

“We are reaching forward with the principle of kaitiakitanga, to protect our environment and prepare our people to thrive within a low emission economy.

“This is the future of Te Kura Matatini o Taranaki, one that offers new opportunities and reshapes existing skills to enrich our people and our region.”

Stephen Town, Chief Executive of Aotearoa’s new national vocational education institute Te Pūkenga was at the event and expressed his support for WITT’s plans to grow.

“Te Pūkenga is preparing a Capital Asset Management Plan for the network across New Zealand. Early work highlights that WITT and NorthTec are in need of substantial capital investment in the next decade.

“To enable early action on the vision of Taranaki and WITT, we’ll need local and central Government funding support. Te Pūkenga looks forward to working with the region on the growth plan.”

WITT’s brand new food truck, Te Waka Kai, also made its debut appearance at the event, offering street-food style plates like fried chicken and sliders to very impressed guests.