30 August 2000 Media Statement

ERO Review Committee Announced

Education Minister Trevor Mallard today announced the membership of the Government's Ministerial Review of the Education Review Office.

The Review will be chaired by former Minister of Labour, State Services, SOEs and Immigration, Stan Rodger, who has extensive experience in state sector functions and structure, and will report back to the Government by the end of the year.

Other members will be Royal NZ Foundation for the Blind CEO, Jane Holden, educational consultant and former director of the New Zealand Council for Educational Research, Anne Meade, industrial and employment specialist, Alan Millar, and Academic Dean and Director of the School of Maori Performing Arts, Barry Smith.

The review team will begin their investigation next week into the role, functions and placement of the Education Review Office. The purpose of the review is to:

 Ensure there is an effective audit and support system for schools and early childhood centres;
 Investigate best practice benchmarking systems for school and centre evaluations;
 Investigate how best to ensure close liaison between ERO and the Ministry of Education so that appropriate follow up is provided to schools;
 Investigate whether there would be efficiency or effectiveness gains in amalgamating ERO and the Ministry of Education.

"The review committee faces a challenge, but I am confident that the team has the appropriate mix of skills to manage the task," Trevor Mallard said.

"The review committee will first consider its draft terms of reference, before moving to consider the ERO's review processes, the support processes within the Ministry of Education and within the schools themselves. Above all, we wish the review team to find out how the results of external evaluations are best used to help improve the education outcomes for New Zealand students," Trevor Mallard said.

Contact: Karen Jones (Acting Press Secretary) 04 471 9080 or 025 270 9194
Attached: Further details of taskforce members

Ministerial Review of the Education Review Office – membership

Hon Stan Rodger

Former Minister of Labour, State Services, SOEs and Immigration. Entered Parliament in 1978 as the MP for Dunedin North and retired in 1990. He is the Chair of the Researched Medicines Industry Association of New Zealand and was the Chair of the Southern Regional Health Authority until 1996 and the former President of the PSA.

Jane Holden

Current CEO of the Royal NZ Foundation for the Blind and a director of Auckland Healthcare. Jane Holden has 25 years' experience in health, first in nursing and then in managerial, policy and chief executive position, including the Chief Executive of Hutt Valley Health from 1996 – 1998.

Anne Meade

Anne Meade is an educational consultant who is a director of her own business. She was also a Fulbright Senior Scholar from 1999 – 2000, studying early childhood development in the United States. Anne has 25 years' experience in various roles in the education sector, from early childhood teacher, to lecturer and policy adviser.

Alan Millar

Alan Millar is a graduate in history from Massey University and has a Diploma in Business Studies. He has additional qualifications in employment law, health law, industrial relations and cross cultural communication. He has extensive experience in public service organisations and management, having held various roles at the NZPSA in the Central Districts region. Since 1996 he has been an industrial and employment consultant.

Barry Smith

BSc(Chem), Dip Tchg, Mphil(Hons) Sociology, akld, DPhil Sociology – Essex. The current Academic Dean and Director, School of Maori Performing Arts, Te Wananga o Aotearoa, Rotorua and part-time lecturer at the College of Education, Massey University. He has 30 years' experience in teaching and research roles.

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