University appoints new Māori and Pasifika leader
Wednesday 11 July 2012, 1:49PM
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Massey University Vice-Chancellor Steve Maharey has announced the appointment of Dr Selwyn Katene as the University's Assistant Vice-Chancellor (Māori and Pasifika).
"Dr Katene has a strong public policy and strategic planning background, primarily in the field of Māori development, including research interests in Mäori health, history and academic leadership," Mr Maharey says.
Dr Katene (Ngāti Toa, Ngāti Tūwharetoa, Ngāruahine, Ngāti Tama) was, until recently, director of the Massey-led inter-university Māori academy MANU AO (Māori Academic Network across Universities in Aotearoa), which was set up to advance Māori leadership and scholarship and strengthen links between academics and professionals.
He was Mental Health Commission general manager from 2006-08 and prior to that adviser to the Minister of Health and a senior manager in the Ministry of Health and Public Health Commission.
Previously he held marketing management positions in the pharmaceutical industry.
He has a PhD in Māori Studies from Massey (2006), a Bachelor of Arts (Hons), Master of Arts and Master of Public Management from Victoria University of Wellington, and he has completed international management training programmes at Cambridge and New South Wales Universities.
Dr Katene says he wants to concentrate in particular on building leadership capability within Massey's Māori and Pasifika academic community and is committed to quality research, scholarship, teaching and learning that advances Māori and Pasifika development goals.
"Much of my initial focus will be to strengthen college capacity to respond to Māori, Pasifika and also migrant communities, ensure ongoing community engagement, and to support a distributed Māori and Pasifika leadership network across the campuses in Albany, Manawatū and Wellington.
"Leading the Māori and Pasifika community as facilitator, advocate and champion for Māori and Pasifika academic success will be a humbling, yet rewarding, experience. It's an honour to carry on the work of Mason Durie, who set such high standards of leadership for all of us, not just here at Massey but for Māori everywhere. I see myself following in Mason's footsteps rather than trying to fill his shoes. It's a challenging opportunity but one that I am tremendously excited about."
Dr Katene commences in the role on August 6.