Ko Rangitaiki te Awa
Ko Hikurangi te Maunga
Ko Tama ki Hikurangi te Marae
Ko Ngati Haka te Hapu
Ko Tuhoe te Iwi
Bob was born and raised in a very remote, small forestry village in the Urewera, went to Hato Petera College on the North Shore in Auckland and completed his formal education at the University of Waikato. After 17 years in the private sector, in 1990 Bob joined the Education and Training Support Agency which later became Skill New Zealand and then in 2003 the Tertiary Education Commission. During those 26 years Bob has been in both regional and national management roles working with all Tertiary Education sub sectors but for the most part he has managed the engagement with and Government investment in the Private Training Establishment and Community Education sub sector. He has been continually impressed by the commitment and ongoing focus of the sub sector to achieving improved outcomes for learners, particularly for those with little or no previous educational success.