Former Chancellor to receive honorary doctorate

Wellington businessman and long-serving University Chancellor Nigel Gould is to receive an honorary doctorate of commerce in recognition of his outstanding service to the University, to tertiary education and to the Wellington commercial sector.

Mr Gould, a chartered accountant, represented the Wellington Polytechnic Council, of which he was deputy chairman, in the negotiations that led to the merger with Massey in 1999 and became Pro Chancellor (deputy chairman) of the University Council from the end of that year. He was Chancellor from 2002-08 and was recently appointed chairman of the Massey University Foundation, a registered charity responsible for fundraising.

Mr Gould has had extensive involvement with the information technology, primary production and processing sectors. He held management roles in Broadlands Dominion Group, Fletcher Challenge and Andas Group in the 1970s and 1980s and established Comtex Group Ltd, an information technology and consulting group, in 1986. He was a member of the Wellington Harbour Board from 1980, chairman from 1986 and, following ports restructuring, chairman of CentrePort Ltd from 1988-2008.

He is a fellow of the Institute of Directors, the Institute of Chartered Accountants and the Institute of Management. He was chairman of the Wellington Regional Chamber of Commerce from 1995-98 and was president of the New Zealand Chambers of Commerce. In 1996 he received the Wellington Civic Award for services to business.

The doctorate will be conferred at a graduation ceremony in Palmerston North on the afternoon of May 10.