Message from the Chief Executive – Appointment of Pou Māori

Ko Turiomurimutu te maunga 

Ko Tokiāhuru te awa 

Ko Ngā Mōkai te marae 

Ko Ngāti Rangi te iwi 

Ko Ngāti Tongāiti te hapū 

Ko au te awa ko te awa, ko au*

I am delighted to announce the appointment of Dr Craig Rofe as Pou Māori.    

This is a key role for the organisation.  Craig will join the Senior Leadership Team and lead the Hononga Māori team.  He will be based in the National Service Centre in Porirua. 

On Monday 10 February 2025 the Playcentre Aotearoa Board and Senior Leadership Team attended a mihi whakatau to welcome Craig. 

After a rigorous recruitment campaign, run by an independent recruitment company, Craig clearly demonstrated that he was the stand-out candidate for the role and I am excited for Craig to lead the organisation’s bi-cultural journey. 

Craig brings a wealth of knowledge in the arena of Māori education, from his previous roles as Senior Advisor (Māori Research) at Oranga Tamariki and Senior Advisor Māori for Education New Zealand.

Playcentre Aotearoa is committed to honouring the principles of Te Tiriti o Waitangi, and to working with Māori to improve engagement, participation and educational goals, as well as opportunities to increase understanding of te reo me ona tikanga Māori within the organisation.

Craig has stated that he is keen to listen to people throughout the organisation from centres, regional and national teams to hear what is working, and what isn’t and is committed to enabling the organisation’s Te Tiriti aspirations to carry us forward for our next generations’ moko.

Please join me in welcoming Craig to our organisation.

David Moger
Chief Executive
Playcentre Aotearoa

*Turiomurimutu is the mountain
Tokiāhuru is the river
Ngā Mōkai is the marae
Ngāti Rangi is the tribe
Ngāti Tongāiti is the sub-tribe
I am the river and the river is me (Common saying from the Whanganui River Region)