New student video highlights why students recommend studying with Te Rito Maioha

2 December 2025

Video: Watch video here

At a special event acknowledging suppliers and supporters, Te Rito Maioha Chief Executive Kathy Wolfe unveiled the organisation’s new marketing video – a campaign grounded in authenticity, warmth, and the lived experiences of its students.

“The first time I watched the video, I knew immediately that our team had captured our story,” said Mrs Wolfe. “There’s a depth of manaakitanga within Te Rito Maioha that you don’t find everywhere. Our students often tell us they feel supported, welcomed, and valued.”

With over 98% of Te Rito Maioha students recommending studying with us, the new video puts those voices front and centre. It features four students in their early learning centres and primary schools, sharing why they chose Te Rito Maioha and how it shaped their journey into teaching.

“I was stoked to be asked to promote Te Rito Maioha. They are the whānau that you never knew you needed or never knew you wanted,” says Sulata Foal Amiatu, a Bachelor of Teaching (ECE) student.

For Anahere Tutengaehe, who studied a Bachelor of Teaching (Primary), the sense of connection was immediate. “Te Rito Maioha felt welcoming in the sense that I felt happy, I felt safe, and I felt it was an environment where I could be myself. The staff were very open and honest about how they could support me to complete my degree.”

Graduate Penelope Bierhoff valued the flexibility of Te Rito Maioha’s blended online and face-to-face learning approach. “I could directly apply what I was learning into my daily practice. Being able to access everything online and within my own time really helped me as a mum. It was nice to learn at my own pace and go back to the work whenever I needed.”

Mrs Wolfe says the new material also reinforces an important public message: “Quality ECE relies on qualified teachers, on meaningful interactions with children, and on strong, supportive structures around those interactions.”

Te Rito Maioha’s programmes blend real-world experience with academic learning, ensuring students can work in centres or schools while studying, and offering a deeply authentic bicultural experience and being more than ready to teach once they graduate.

“We’re proud of our students, their stories, and the passion they bring to teaching,” says Ms Wolfe. “This new video is a celebration of who we are, who they are – and who they’re becoming.”

Media Contact

Rob McCann - Lead Communications Advisor | Kaitohutohu Whakapā Matua
022 411 4560
rob.mccann@ecnz.ac.nz