Growth from humble beginnings
Considering that only one person showed up to the first meeting, Te Kete Kōrero has come a long way.
Formed in late 2013, the publication was set up as a way for Māori and Pasifika Wintec students to have a place where they could share the stories that they wanted to tell.
Media arts Kaiāwhina, Kahurangi Waititi, say initial discussions surrounding the publication were about whether it was something that they wanted to do.
“It is something that they do on top of their workdays, families and other jobs, so we needed to gauge the interest and there was interest.”
So far, there have been three issues of Te Kete Kōrero released and from its early stages it has grown, “At that time, it was a newsletter and it since has progressed.”
It has now transformed into a 28 page magazine that is run by Wintec students from all aspects of media arts.
The stories are aimed at students across Wintec’s three campuses, and the writers try to research and write about things that are relevant to them and the writers themselves.
Through its history, Te Kete Kōrero has faced setbacks that have threatened the success of the publication.
The first meeting of Te Kete Kōrero saw only journalism student, Donna-Lee Biddle turn up.
“She (Waititi) mentioned that she wanted to start a newsletter, and because I love writing and being creative that it would be an interesting project to apart of.”
However, through spreading the word, Biddle was able to gather larger interest in the publication from her class while Waititi was able to contact the Māori and Pasifika students around Wintec.
The costs of the publication have been covered by funding from the Māori achievement office, until recently Wintec and Media arts jumped on board to help fund.
Te Kete Kōrero has also faced a lot problem when it came to time restraints when releasing the publication, with the deadline for each publication being pushed back by a couple of weeks.
“But we have always accomplished a publication, just not always to deadline, and it’s because were students and we are volunteering” Biddle Said.
As a number of students are graduating this year, the team at Te Kete Kōrero are looking for students to step up and take roles in the magazines production.
