MEDIA RELEASE

24 November 2009

Attention: Education and Political Reporters

For immediate release

Student voices to be silenced

Students at the Nelson-Marlborough Institute of Technology are dismayed at the Government’s move to silence their voices at the Council table of their Polytechnic.

“It’s well accepted that New Zealand students are granted the opportunity to have speaking and voting rights at the Governing bodies of education institutes,” said Rachel Boyack, President of the Student Association of Nelson-Marlborough Institute of Technology Inc (SANITI).

“Universities have Student Representatives on their Councils, as do High School Boards of Trustees, and Private Training Establishment Boards.  We cannot understand why Polytechnic students have been singled out in this way.” 

The Education (Polytechnics) Amendment Bill report back from the Education and Science Select Committee on Friday proposes to scrap students’ rights to a guaranteed representative at the Council table.  The original Bill included a guaranteed position for a Student Representative.

“Students are key stakeholders in Polytechnics and contribute a lot to their Councils  From my meetings with Government members and other student leaders, my understanding was that Government agreed with this view and was committed to Student Representation at a Governance level,” said Boyack. 

“Students are completely confused about why this assurance from the Government has now turned into a hollow and meaningless promise,” Boyack concluded.

ENDS

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