Last summer, the 2024 recipient of the scholarship, Sariah Pihema, spent a two-week period at our Morningside premises where the second-year architecture student who as a young girl drew pictures of the Auckland skyline, translated this creative leaning into crafting 3D visuals with our rendering software.
Sariah, who is Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei, was inspired to enrol at university by her mother, who attended night school as a mature student to study for a business degree, while working full time and looking after a young family. Her dream is to one day be in a leadership position where she brings the Ōrākei Masterplan to life – a self-sustaining papakāinga on land where she has always lived.
Architecture that contributes to community and the betterment of people is a linking thread between all five of the students we have supported over the years including Corban Richter, who was the 2020 scholarship recipient. Upon graduating, Gisborne-born Corban (Te Whānau-ā-Apanui and Taranaki) took up a role at RTA Studio, a job opportunity that, he says, gives him an invaluable chance to apply what he has learned in his studies to real-world scenarios. His grandfather, who was a carpenter, harboured hopes of becoming an architect, which came to nothing so, in a way, Corban feels as though he is fulfilling a dream of his whānau. He says, “I want to develop my expertise in design, rendering, Māori practices, technical documentation, and continue growing toward my long-term goal of becoming a fully registered architect.”
That will certainly be a milestone to celebrate for, as Sariah points out, “Māori are underrepresented in architecture; in my peer group of 300 students, only three of us are Māori.”
Māori may be uncommon in the classroom, but they are working together for the common good.