Alice Tate is a Senior Lecturer for the Bachelor of Teaching (ECE) programme at UCOL | Te Pūkenga in Manawatu. Her teaching and research interests include student and teacher diversity, and the relationship between theory and practice in teacher education. 

Chelsea Bracefield has a varied scope of experience within the early childhood sector including pedagogy, curriculum, and leadership. Since joining New Zealand Tertiary College, Chelsea has applied her knowledge and experience to support students and Associate Teachers and is currently in the role of Academic People and Partnerships Manager, responsible for liaising with the sector. Chelsea’s research interests are cultural and linguistic inclusion with a focus on teacher leadership and mentoring.

Chelsea Freeman came to Aotearoa New Zealand from Australia 19 years ago and has 10 years experience within early childhood education sector. Gaining a Masters in Education (ECE) with distinction from Te Rito Maioha she is currently a lecturer for New Zealand Tertiary College. Her teaching and resesarch interests include inclusive education, critical disability theory, bicultural teaching and learning practices, and discourse analysis. These interests contibute to Chelsea’s mentoring style as she encourages kaiako to view themselves as not only educators, but advocators. 

Derek Hartley has been in early childhood education for over 30 years and an Academic Staff Member at Open Polytechnic |Te Pūkenga since 2006. He began his career as a teacher and leader in a range of early childhood services before moving into Initial Teacher Education. His teaching and research interests include men in ECE, professional practice, and culture and diversity.

Dr Devika Rathore is a lecturer at the New Zealand Tertiary College. She has worked in the area of tertiary education and early childhood education in Aotearoa New Zealand since 2019. Prior to joining NZTC, she was a Teaching Fellow at The University of Waikato, where she recently completed her doctoral studies. Her PhD research explored the culturally-oriented environmental identity transitions of migrant Indian teachers in Aotearoa New Zealand Early Childhood Education. Her research interests include environmental/sustainability/nature-based education, environmental identity, teacher identity, cultural identity, picture books and children’s identity, and visual dissemination of research.

Donna Williamson-Garner, PhD is an Academic Staff Member in Early Childhood Education at Open Polytechnic | Te Pūkenga. She has worked in various roles teaching and advocating for young children and their families, internationally and in New Zealand including an infant specialist of the blind/visually impaired, programme specialist, and family and child counsellor. Her teaching and research interests include inclusive practice, teacher identity, working with children and families experiencing adversity, and infant and toddler pedagogy. 

Elizabeth Polley is a senior academic staff member in early childhood education at Open Polytechnic / Te Pūkenga. She completed her Masters in 2021 with her thesis titled ‘Mentoring and power relations within student lecturer relationships in Aotearoa New Zealand’. Elizabeth has research interests in mentoring, student teacher relationships with mentors, and authentic connections for student teachers in Initial Teacher Education.

Erin Hall is a Senior Academic Staff Member at Open Polytechnic |Te Pūkenga, working in the early childhood education programmes. Prior to this her experience and background were in kindergarten teaching and in leadership roles. Erin has particular interests in the areas of inclusion and diversity, professional practicum experiences, and mentoring, with all of these areas underpinned by the importance of relationships and seeking ongoing understanding about teaching and learning. 

Fiona Woodgate has over 18 years’ experience in the early childhood education context. Fiona has applied her experience of early childhood education within the role of Professional Experience Manager for New Zealand Tertiary College, and is particularly interested in relationship dynamics with a focus on how these affect the ability to lead and mentor others. Recent research and Master studies have focused on the role of critical reflection in understanding the why of practice, and how this leads to quality within early childhood teaching and environments.

Fleur Hohaia-Rollinson is a Senior Lecturer in Early Childhood Teacher Education at Te Rito Maioha Early Childhood New Zealand. Fleur has worked in the early childhood sector for over 20 years and began her career as a teacher in a range of early childhood services, before moving into Initial Teacher Education. Her teaching and research interests include Te Tiriti o Waitangi and Tiriti-based practice, Te Whāriki as a bicultural curriculum framework, practicum and professional and responsive teaching practice and more recently Teacher Diversity in ECE. 

Galina Stebletsova is a Lecturer at Unitec | Te Pūkenga, with extensive experience in both ECE and academic teaching and curriculum writing. She has a keen interest in children’s wellbeing and how curriculum supports it, aspects of play, child’s mental health, and the role holistic curriculum plays in supporting children and families today.

Helen Stewart-MacKenzie is a Senior Academic Lecturer at EIT Hawkes Bay with a background as an early childhood teacher and a lecturer on early childhood education undergraduate programmes. Her research interests mostly focus on the experience infants and toddlers in non-parental care, including neuroscience, love and relationships and rights. She has also been involved in team projects examining the use of boundary objects in tertiary ECE education and animals in ECE settings.

Jackie Solomon is a Senior Academic Staff Member at Open Polytechnic |Te Pūkenga. She has worked in early childhood education for over 30 years in a variety of roles – Playcentre, kindergarten kaiako, professional development facilitator and for the past 10 years, in initial teacher education with Open Polytechnic | Te Pūkenga. She has a wide range of interests, and has taught on a wide range of courses, more recently on practicum, however, her overarching focus is around equity, diversity and inclusion. She completed her Masters of Education in 2021 with a strong emphasis on supporting Pacific ākonga to succeed in tertiary education.

Janice Pennells is an early childhood teacher with 23 years involvement in the ECE sector. Janice began her journey in early childhood education with the Playcentre movement. For the past 18 years Janice has been employed in a community preschool in a rural South Island township. Janice has studied with New Zealand Tertiary College (NZTC) completing a Batchelor of Education and Master of Education (Early Childhood Education). Janice is passionate about valuing parents in their child’s education and using the contextual knowledge that families hold to improve the learning outcomes for children. Janice’s ongoing areas of interest include formative assessment, meaningful partnerships, and funds of knowledge. 

Jenny Malcolm is a Senior Academic Staff Member in the early childhood education programmes at Open Polytechnic | Te Pūkenga. Before this Jenny was a kindergarten teacher with an interest in working with children with diverse needs. Her research interests are in equity, diversity and inclusion with a focus on the experiences of diverse kaiako working in early childhood. 

Joy McLelland has 15 years’ experience in the early childhood sector, starting off as a kaiako, entering leadership positions and has now been with New Zealand Tertiary College for over five years. She is passionate about encouraging teachers to find their unique identities within their own professional values and beliefs. Joy has a dual role at NZTC, where she is a lecturer and is also part of the Pastoral Support Team. Her Pastoral Support role includes supporting students with any issues that arise during their studies, supporting their overall wellbeing. Her belief is that as a college, NZTC provides wraparound support for its students as they navigate the vital, yet sometimes challenging roles they are pursuing.

Kerrin Hearfield is a lecturer at the New Zealand Tertiary College. Kerrin’s journey to ECE came from a background in English literature and a love of reading. Raising her two children defined her passion for working in the early education field. Kerrin has been teaching in early childhood for 12 years, working with all age groups, and ITE. She has held various leadership and management roles, including curriculum leader. Kerrin’s Master’s studies have a focus on curriculum, assessment, leadership, and pedagogy. She is passionate about supporting teachers to become confident and capable in understanding, delivering, and supporting quality education for ngā tamariki.

Kelly Boucher (acknowledged by Dr Lynley Tulloch) is an Australian Independent Scholar and Education Consultant. She supports organisations across the education sector to activate critical dialogue and ‘think otherwise’ with the world. Facilitating robust exchanges to connect theory and practice, Kelly nurtures research culture within education settings. She works with courageous leaders to create pedagogical legacy in service to children.

Kerry Purdue is an Academic Staff Member in the early childhood education programmes at Open Polytechnic |Te Pūkenga. Kerry is a kaiako/researcher who is interested in a wide range of issues related to early childhood education policy and practice including, disability, quality, curriculum, rights, equity and inclusion, and ITE. She is currently working with some colleagues on a research project on teacher diversity in early childhood education. The aim of this project is to continue the kōrero on what needs to be done to ensure early learning services are safe, fair and equitable places for all. 

Krystal Taiapa (Ngāti Porou, Rongowhakaata) has a background in teaching Te Reo Māori in Secondary schools and creating digital reo Māori teaching and learning resources. Prior to her role at NZTC, Krystal facilitated online Reo Māori PLD courses for teachers and support staff throughout the country. Krystal’s role as Kaiārahi at NZ Tertiary College involves undertaking the Reo Māori Exit and Entry assessments, student support and the development of the teaching and learning of te reo Māori within the college. With a strong focus on meaningful integration of te ao Māori in ECE, she also facilitates online reo Māori lessons for Academic staff within the college as well as Associate Teachers.

Dr Lynley Tulloch is a lecturer in Early Childhood Education at the School of Education, Auckland University of Technology (AUT). Her research interests include eco-pedagogy and sustainability education in ECE contexts. Lynley also employs critical discourse analysis (CDA) in relation to policy contexts.

Maddie Hendrie has been a Lecturer at New Zealand Tertiary College since 2019 and is currently Associate Teacher Support. She has a background in Playcentre, home based care and early childhood centres having been an assistant manager, operational manager and head teacher. Maddie also has considerable experience working with adults, including being an Associate Teacher, leading workshops and mentoring learners for teacher registration. This interest in educational leadership has developed into a passion for Maddie, which she uses to help bring out the best in others and is an area that she would like to research further in the future.

Marjolein Whyte came to New Zealand from the Netherlands over 30 years ago as a social worker, working for Barnardos foster care. She retrained as a primary school teacher and early childhood teacher through the University of Auckland. Marjolein has worked in the early childhood sector as a head teacher for over ten years and has been a lecturer with New Zealand Tertiary College since 2011. She has completed postgraduate papers with the University of Auckland in the areas of leadership, early development, literacy and research, followed by her master’s thesis on parent involvement in assessment for learning in early childhood education. Marjolein is currently studying for her PhD at the University of Auckland.

Pearl D'Silva has worked at New Zealand Tertiary College since 2007 as a lecturer and was previously Academic Manager at their office in Mumbai prior to coming to New Zealand. She has a Master’s in Human Development from the University of Mumbai. Prior to this, she worked as a lecturer and primary years programme teacher in Mumbai. She has also served as Executive Committee Member for the Association for Early Childhood Education and Development (AECED) in India. Her research interests include children’s literature, creative thinking and play in early childhood contexts.

Dr Sandy Radford is an academic staff member in early childhood initial teacher education programmes at the Open Polytechnic Kuratini Tuwhera o Aotearoa. Her experiences in early childhood, including as teacher, parent, grandparent, teacher educator, professional development facilitator, professional leader, and education advisor, led to her interest in the links between organisational culture and children’s learning, which became the topic of her PhD. She has ongoing research interests in the lived experiences of adults and children in centre contexts. 

Dr Sean Dolan is the Academic Dean of New Zealand Tertiary College and one of the editors of He Kupu (The Word). Sean has been involved in education as a teacher and leader for over two decades. His professional interests and passions lie in the professional development of student teachers, which was also the focus of the thesis for his PhD.

Veronica Griffiths has worked in various roles in early childhood education in New Zealand before becoming an Academic Staff Member at Open Polytechnic |Te Pūkenga in 2019. Veronica developed a strong interest in leadership and mentoring working in leadership roles in a number of early childhood settings which contributed her desire to support student kaiako. Her current research interests are kaiako diversity and she is currently working with other colleagues on a research project related to this.