Morena whanau,

Welcome to week two of our new normal.

As we start our second week of online learning I just wanted you all to pause and consider what you have been able to achieve in an very short time for our students and their learning.

Transferring to online learning in the space of a week while dealing with the stress of the impending lock down was an amazing achievement and should give everyone a huge sense of satisfaction.

Sure, there are still some outstanding issues that will have to be worked through, but considering what you have already achieved I am confident that we will be able to work through them as they arise.

Personally I would like to thank our Academic and Postgraduate Directors, Clare Wall and Sue McGlashan, and of course your respective HODs ( Laura Bennet, Maurice Curtis, Alan Davidson, Michael Findlay, Michael Hay, and Malcolm Tingle) for their leadership during this period.

But most importantly I want to give a huge vote of thanks to our “front line troops” the Professional Teaching Fellows who have initiated and implemented the teaching innovations that we are now using to deliver our content online.  Without this cohort of dedicated staff we would not have been able to transition as quickly and successfully to online teaching.

A final thank you to those professional and academic staff who are providing support for essential services during the lock down. These staff are not only ensuring our research infrastructure is maintained over this period, but also are leading the fight against COVID-19.

To all of you

Kia kaha

Paul