Western Institute of Technology at Taranaki

02/06/2026

Te Mana o te Hā – Smokefree science show (hosted by WITT and the Fresh Air Coalition)

Masked by sweet, fruity flavours so you don’t taste the chemicals also used in toilet cleaners and fly sprays - va**ng products are addictive and harmful for health 🔥

That’s the message of organisers of Te Mana o Te Hā (Honouring our Breath) – an interactive science show designed to inform and educate people about the impacts of smoking and va**ng 😳 It's been touring Aotearoa, seen by 1000s and now it is here in Taranaki!

The anti-smoking theme is not new. But va**ng (touted as a less harmful alternative for those wanting to quit ci******es) is on the rise among non-smokers.
Smoke free legislation was repealed in 2024 🤔

These colliding realities prompted Dunedin-based science communicator Dr Craig Grant to create the exhibits, including:
• Smoker’s Body - Explore how all parts of our anatomy are impacted by smoking.
• Gross Mouth — Get up close to oral health ailments from smoking and va**ng, annotated with images and information from the Dunedin Longitudinal Study.
• Smoker's Lungs — A set of inflatable pig lungs, one of which is treated with carbon microparticles to replicate the impact of heavy smoking, starkly demonstrate the difference between a healthy and compromised lung.
• Smokerface — A tablet-based app enables visitors to take selfies and then see how the premature aging smoking causes might affect them directly.

Check out this free show at WITT’s Te Piere space this week. All welcome.

On Wednesday and Thursday WITT’s first year nursing students are providing health checks such as blood pressure and vital signs, and guidance if a high blood pressure is recorded.

Te Mana o te Hā – at WITT campus: Te Piere

• 2-4 June: 9am-5pm
• 5 June: 9am – 12pm

Read more...
https://www.witt.ac.nz/news/health-impacts-highlighted-in-smokefree-roadshow

28/05/2026

Looking for inspiration this coming weekend? 🤩

WITT artists in the spotlight at TUKU Emerging Artists - Puke Ariki Museum…

Ged Guy – head of Art and Design at WITT – was super thrilled and proud to attend the blessing and opening at the Puke Ariki Museum on May 18. She was there for her two WITT former students Jodie Tipa and Dwayne Duthie who were welcomed into the space alongside artist and mentor Wharehoka Smith 🫶

Dwayne and Jodie will be at work adorning manaia (guardian figures), under the direction of senior artist-designer Wharehoka Smith.

“This is a career changing opportunity for both artists working in open studios, their work alongside Wharehoka’s large Manaia (2.4m high),” Ged notes.

The results will be on show during King Tuhetia’s Portrait Show in August.

TUKU – Open Studio: Emerging Māori Artists is open until 12 July 2026

Come down to Puke Ariki and watch fresh treasures being created before your eyes!

27/05/2026

Beauty therapy is about helping people to feel good – whether it’s massage or a make-up session 💄🤲☺️

That’s the message from our fab WITT beauty therapy students Kate and Melah, who joined their tutor Lisa at The MOST FM to share their passion for working in this sector (which AI can't replicate BTW!)

Listen to their kōrerō here:
https://soundcloud.com/themost-fm/witt-interviews-lisa-kate-and?

WITT Interviews - Lisa Kate and Meila 27-05-26 by The Most FM NZ

Do you know you can book in for professional-level treatments – from lash extensions to waxing and more – at WITT’s Industrie (hair and beauty) salon (A Block - Bell Street campus) every Tuesday from 3pm to 7pm? You are helping our talented students gain experience. And it’s Incredibly affordable too! 💅

Book by email [email protected], or phone 06 757 3282

And if you are interested in beauty therapy as a career, we have an introductory programme in Semester 2, starting 20 July. You can ENROL NOW! 🏃‍♀️‍➡️

More info here:
https://www.witt.ac.nz/study/hair-beauty-skincare-and-cosmetics/skin-care-and-cosmetics/new-zealand-certificate-in-skin-care-and-cosmetics-level-3

Caption: MOST FM Breakfast host Jack Irving with WITT beauty therapy students Kate Hawkins and Melah Jordan, and tutor Lisa Carruthers.

26/05/2026

Poet, novelist, scholar and cultural explorer Mikaela Nyman has far-flung roots. But as an islander of the Nordic region, she’s found deep connections with the South Pacific. She brings a wealth of creative talent and global experience to Foundation Studies at WITT 🌎✍️

We are SO lucky to have her as part of our amazing WITT teaching team! 🤩
Read more…

Mikaela Nyman brings with her not only a wealth of global experience but also her background as a celebrated poet, novelist and editor. At WITT, she is channelling all that knowledge into helping students find their footing and build confidence for what comes next.

15/05/2026

It’s officially Pink Shirt Day! 🩷

​While the rest of the country was pink today, we got a head start on Wednesday to celebrate our awesome community.

​We spent the lunch break crafting cards with kind messages for people in the neighborhood..all while fueling up on plenty of pink lamingtons!

​We’re proud to take a stand against bullying. While it’s a challenge every community faces, we are committed to providing strong support for our students and ensuring everyone feels safe and respected here at WITT.

​

13/05/2026

Celebrating the future of healthcare at WITT 💙🩺

We celebrated International Nurses Day 2026 with our very own Super Nurse competition🎉
From teamwork to quick thinking, our nursing students brought the energy, laughs, and skills.

Here’s to the people preparing to care for our communities every day 👏

11/05/2026

Pink – the colour of kindness! 🪷

May 13 is the day we are celebrating Pink Shirt Day at WITT 🫶

We stand together against bullying. Join us if you’re on campus and:

🩷 Wear something pink
🩷 Enter the draw to win a gift card
🩷 Leave a message for someone to take
🩷 Grab a raspberry lamington!

(*Friday May 15 is the official Pink Shirt Day in Aotearoa. We’re marking it on Wednesday 13 May when most students are on campus)

11/05/2026

Like the idea of eating food you’ve grown yourself? 😃WITT has 10 scholarships available…

Alex McDonald is turning microgreens into a lucrative organic business 🌱🌱🌱

Alex received a scholarship funded by the Bishop’s Action Foundation to do the New Zealand Certificate in Organic Primary Production (Level 4) and was awarded the Bashford-Nicholls Trust Award for Top Student (worth $500) for 2025. Now, she’s proving that organic food production can be good business ☀️💦🌱

She’s turning her knowledge from the Level 4 programme to develop a commercial venture around growing microgreens - young, nutrient-dense edible green shoots harvested two to three weeks after germination. Popular types include broccoli, kale, radish, rocket, coriander, and sunflower 🌻🥦

She decided to focus on understanding how to grow microgreens for her course work last year due to having limited space at home. “I wanted to do something different and learn something different – so I threw myself into microgreens.”

Her experimentation involved using different potting mixes, varieties and even electric blankets under plant containers to heat the soil for faster growth during colder winter months 🌦️

Now working at Taranaki's Coastal Market Garden, Alex is applying findings from her research at WITT. Working two days a week outdoors in the gardens and another two days on a business internship developing systems, compliance records for a commercial microgreen production, she is in her element 🌊🌤️🗻

She says the scholarship was a turning point in her life and her experience at WITT “couldn’t have been a smoother stepping stone into the real world." 🫶

If you’re interested in learning about organic methods, there are 10 scholarships available (worth $1500 each) for the July intake of the Level 4 programme. Applications close May 31.

Programme and scholarship info here: https://www.witt.ac.nz/study/primary-industries/food-and-fibre-production/new-zealand-certificate-in-organic-primary-production-level-4/

Read more:
https://www.witt.ac.nz/news/ten-scholarships-for-organic-food-growing-are-timely-for-taranakinew-news-article/

06/05/2026

06/05/2026

What the heck does gender have to do with being a tradie? 🤔

Technically – nothing! As you’ll see at the Women in Trades expo – May 7 at TET Stadium in Inglewood ⛑️🥾🔌🔧🔨🪚🏗️

Making, designing, fixing and building stuff. Using your hands and your brain. Team work 💪👷‍♀️👷

More women are discovering the satisfactions of working in a trade. Take Abby, a young school leaver learning carpentry at WITT. She and her classmates (including three other women) are building a three-bedroom house at the campus. A house that will be sold at the end of the year 🏠👏

“I just love being able to see where there was nothing and at the end of the year, there’s going to be a whole house that people can live in,” says Abby. “I want to be able to drive past and say ‘yeah - I built that.’ “ 🫶🌟

Women in Trades Committee Chair and trades education advocate Katrina Mayo says it’s an exciting time for women as the industry is increasingly recognising the contribution of women to a traditionally male-dominated sector.