Achieving a Bachelors degree in Gisborne was a form of redemption for this year’s top-scoring EIT graduate Janeen Tata, who for various reasons never finished her schooling.

She went on to get married and raise four children.

When her oldest daughter reached high school  Janeen felt she wanted to give a better example education-wise.

“But I could not give something I did not have myself,” she said.

It was the loss of her sister Evelyn to cancer that jolted her into pursuing her dreams.

Learning the language of her parents and grandparents was one of the things on her “bucket list” of unrealised ambitions.

She started with night classes in te reo at EIT in 2012 and loved it.

The following year she competed the New Zealand Certificate in Te Reo Maori. By then the language had become her passion so she decided to carry on and study for her degree, proving herself an A-grade student.

She says that balancing her family’s needs with her studies was hard, especially coming in so fresh. She could not have done it without the support of friends, family and especially her husband who had “kept the home fires burning financially”.

This, and the caring staff of EIT’s Te Whatukura (School of Maori Studies), had given her wraparound support.

Te Whatukura had a real whanau atmosphere, which was particularly important for Maori students, she said.

“I really enjoyed my time there,” she said.

She had also been inspired by the teachings of Ngati Porou leader, the late Sir Apirana Ngata.

He provided a pathway for young New Zealanders to pursue their hopes and dreams.

It was this she wanted to pass on to her children, the oldest of whom is now embarking on her NCEA years.

“Achieving a Bachelor of Arts (Maori) has been a redemptive thing for me and being chosen as the valedictorian is an enormous honour.”

At present Janeen is working as a volunteer at Pukekohe North School’s iMoko health clinic, which helps children with health ailments, as well as doing some classroom training.

Her next mission is to do pastoral training for her church, and to study Maori language and indigenous studies part-time at Waikato University.  

Janeen Tata will be the valedictorian at this year’s graduation ceremony on Friday at 12.30, at the War Memorial Theatre.