To book a programme in your school or to find out more about our school programmes please follow the link to our Manawa Kapa Haka website
Manawa Kapa Haka believes that by creating supported spaces in schools, in which Māori students are able to safely express themselves through their culture and its language, we are actively assisting to raise the achievement levels of Māori students, and promoting well-being in school communities and families.
Manawa Enterprises was founded and developed by Kopua Waititi and Ana Pene. In 2012 Kopua and Ana approached a small number of local primary schools to see if they were interested in kapa haka tutoring. From the three schools who requested support at that time, Manawa Enterprises developed into a viable business that supported a passion for creating pathways for our tamariki and their connection to their Māoritanga.
Kopua and Ana then embarked on a journey of building long-standing relationships with many local schools. They are currently delivering programmes in twelve schools in the Ōtepoti rohe.
There is great importance within the schools and their communities to develop strong, supported Māori learning spaces for their tamariki. With the support of the contributing schools and their commitment to continuing growth in these spaces, Manawa Enterprises then looked to expand to better cater to their needs.
TE HERETAURA TUTORS
Danya Kerr
Tūhoe, Te Arawa. Danya attends Te Whare Wānanga o Ōtago studing Māori and Psychology. Danya is currently tutoring at Kaikorai School, George St Normal School and Fairfield School. Danya is a strong female tutor who has been tutoring since 2019.
Che Arekateratera
Ngāti Raukawa, Waikato, Maniapoto. Che is currently in his last year at Kings High School and is tutoring at Balaclava School and at Port Chalmers School. Che has strong leadership skills and the tamariki respond well to his disciplined style of teaching.
Taumana Pene
Te Whakatōhea. Taumana attends Te Whare Wānanga o Ōtago and is currently studing Māori and Media Studies. Taumana tutors at Dunedin North Intermediate and Opoho School and assists many of the other tutors by playing the guitar at multiple practices.
Eli Ellison
Taranaki. Eli in in his last year of Otago Boys High School with dreams, goals and visions of pursuing a career in Rugby League. Eli has been tutoring at Opoho School and Dunedin North Intermediate and brings a big energy to his mahi. He has considerable leadership skills and is capable of teaching at a high standard.
Watene Edwards-Webb
Ngāti Porou, Ngā Puhi. Watene is currently in his last year of Kings High School. Watene has been tutoring at Fairfield School for the past few years and often partners up with other tutors to tautoko their practices. Watene has a grounding presence for the tamariki and is able to adapt his teaching style to different schools easily.
Keala Hancock
Ngāti Wai. Keala is in her last year of Otago Girls’ High School and has applied to follow a career in Nursing in 2021. Keala works alongside Che at Balaclava, but has also helped in a variety of other schools including Dunedin North Intermediate. Keala has many talents including vocals, song composition, te reo Māori, poi and movement.
Our most challenging project yet is the Te Heretaura project. This involves training capable and committed tuakana, who are keen to share the workload, in tutoring kapa haka in their communities. Throughout our journey in teaching kapa haka, we have learned many lessons, made many mistakes and achieved much more than we ever expected. With this insight we want to set up an easier pathway for our rangatahi to tutor, without as many obstacles, and somebody to guide them in their journey.
The programmes are written, planned and developed by the young tutors and their mentors throughout the year in a series of wānanga. These programmes are then implemented in the schools, with the supervision and guidance of their mentors.
Te Whare Rēhia Ki Ōtepoti 