Six Hawke’s Bay mana wāhine have received Annie Aranui Scholarships to help further their careers and study.
The scholarship was set up in 2021 in memory of Annie Aranui who was the Ministry of Social Development Regional Commissioner for Hawke’s Bay and Tairāwhiti. Ms Aranui served in the public sector for more than 36 years and her service was recognised with the New Zealand Public Service Medal in 2020.
The scholarship is administrated and funded by the Hawke’s Bay Youth Futures Trust, and aims to enable and support young mana wāhine into the public sector.
Recipient, Aiyleen Heather currently works at Pursuit, an organisation that supports people to prepare for employment, and said the funding would assist her to undertake personal and professional development to strengthen her leadership, communication and cultural capabilities.
“It will give me the opportunity to grow in areas like digital skills, mentoring, and reo Māori, which are directly connected to my current mahi at Pursuit and my aspirations to step into leadership within Te Ara Matihiko,” she said.
Tiana Edwards said her scholarship funding would go towards her studies to gain a Masters of Science in Environmental Management.
“I hope to use the scholarship to fund field work, engagements with community, and support myself while studying. I am also continuing extra full-time study of te reo at Te Wānanga o Aotearoa so the money will help me enable the time and resource to keep doing this.”
Hastings Mayor, Wendy Schollum said it was fantastic the Youth Futures Trust could provide this funding support for these six mana wāhine who had shown they were dedicated to furthering their studies and skills.
“This financial support will help these young women pursue their aspirations to build on their kaupapa to support and uplift Māori voices and empower mana wāhine.
“Our young people are our future leaders and it’s great to see these recipients stepping up and taking opportunities.”
The six scholarship recipients for 2025 were: Aiyleen Heather, Maia Matchitt, Tiana Edwards, Shannon Nohokau, Mereohia Wilson-Munday and Teina Kihirini.
For more information about the Annie Aranui Scholarship, visit www.hbyft.org.nz or contact info@hbyft.org.nz.
