Chief Review Officer Dr Graham Stoop has announced changes to the regional and management structure of the Education Review Office (ERO) that have taken place during July.
“We have created a direct link from our review services in the field to the top tier of management. This will give us more flexibility and increase our ability to respond quickly to local issues,” says Dr Stoop.
Three new regions have been created (Northern, Central and Southern), with the new role of National Manager Review Services responsible for each. ERO’s offices in Auckland and Hamilton form the Northern Region; Napier, Wanganui, Wellington and Nelson become the Central Region; and Christchurch and Dunedin the Southern Region. ERO’s Rotorua office will close later this year. There will be no change to the number of review officers as a result of these changes, and reviews of early childhood services and schools throughout the country will continue as scheduled. The three new National Managers Review Services and the existing position of National Manager Māori will all report directly to the Chief Review Officer.
“Our service to schools and early childhood services will not change from a structural point of view.” says Dr Stoop. “Schools and services will still deal with their local ERO office, and will be able to talk to review officers and senior review officers about their reviews just as they have done for the past 20 years. The changes have been made to create a new and flexible way of working where local matters can be taken straight to the level of management that needs to deal with them.”
Education Review Office National Managers
Makere Smith is ERO’s National Manager Review Services Māori. Makere has been with ERO since October 1989, before which she was a school principal and inspector. She worked as a review officer in Wellington before her appointment as Senior Review Office in Te Uepū-ā-Motu (Māori Review Services) in 1996. She has been managing the work of Te Uepū-ā-Motu since 2001, and has played an important part in implementing a revised process and evaluation criteria for the review of kura kaupapa Māori and ngā kōhanga reo.
Richard Thornton has been appointed as National Manager Review Services Northern, and will be based in Auckland. Richard is currently the principal of Manurewa High School and was previously the principal of Penrose High School. In addition to his teaching career, Richard has also spent time in the business sector. Richard welcomes the opportunity to contribute to education at a national level, and will take up his new position at ERO towards the end of August.
Kathleen Atkins is the National Manager Review Services Central, based in Wellington. Kathleen is responsible for the reviews of early childhood education and schools in the centre of the country and will manage the work of review officers in ERO’s Nelson, Wellington, Napier and Wanganui offices. Kathleen left her role as a principal to join ERO as a review officer in 2000, and was appointed Senior Review Officer in ERO’s Area 2 in 2007 and Area Manager in 2008. She is looking forward to her new role and working at a national level. “My work in ERO allows me to continue my lifelong commitment to education,” she says, “I strongly support the need for ERO to work closely with our school and early childhood sectors to continually improve the quality of educational outcomes for our young new Zealanders.”
Graham Randell moves to the South Island to become the National Manager Review Services Southern, based in Christchurch. Graham has worked in education for 34 years and has been a teacher, deputy principal and principal in rural and city primary schools in South Canterbury, Wairarapa and Manawatu. After a period as a review officer in ERO’s Wanganui office, he was appointed Senior Review Officer in 2004, and Area Manager in 2007. Graham says, “I am driven by ERO’s whakatauki: Ko te tamaiti te pūtake o te kaupapa - The child, the heart of the matter. We want all young New Zealanders to have the best possible education.”
National Managers based in ERO’s corporate office in Wellington are:
Di Anderson, National Manager Evaluation Services
Mark Canning, National Manager Ministerial and Legal Services
Jenny Clark, National Manager Public Affairs
Jeremy France, National Manager Corporate Services