New TEI Council members appointed

  • Steven Joyce
Tertiary Education, Skills and Employment

Tertiary Education, Skills and Employment Minister Steven Joyce today announced appointments to four tertiary education institution councils, including two new council members and three reappointments.

“I am pleased to welcome these high-calibre new council appointees into their roles.  I also welcome the reappointment of three council members in recognition of their high quality contribution,” Mr Joyce says.

“I also wish to thank outgoing council members for the valuable service they have provided.”

The new appointments are:

  • University of Waikato: appointment of Simon Graafhuis as a member
  • WelTec Whitireia combined council: appointment of Josie Adlam as a member.

The reappointments are:

  • University of Otago: reappointment of Chancellor John Ward as a member
  • Te Wānanga o Raukawa: reappointment of Eddie Ellison as a member
  • WelTec Whitireia combined council: reappointment of Vaughan Renner as a member and Deputy Chair.

University of Waikato
Simon Graafhuis has been the Chief Financial Officer of Gallagher since 2008 and has experience in finance roles, system implementation and organisational change for large New Zealand companies and offshore subsidiaries. Mr Graafhuis is an alumni of the University of Waikato.

WelTec Whitireia combined council
Josie Adlam is an independent director with her own company.  Formerly with Kiwibank, Lucent Technologies (Alcatel-Lucent) and Telecom New Zealand, her strengths are in business strategy, ICT and marketing development, and leadership development. Ms Adlam’s governance portfolio includes Brava Ltd, Palmerston North Airport, The Sustainability Trust, Rosa Foods and Tautoko Services.

University of Otago
John Ward, an accountant and company director, chairs SBS Bank, H&J Smith Holding Limited and the A.J. Hackett Bungy Group. He is also Chair of the University of Otago Foundation Trust, Otago Innovation Limited, the University Council and a number of University committees.

Te Wānanga o Raukawa
Eddie Ellison is a financial adviser who operates his own financial services company.  He has previously held senior positions within the public and private sectors, including as finance manager for the Kohanga Reo National Trust and as Deputy Director of Finance at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

WelTec Whitireia combined council
Vaughan Renner has an executive leadership and management career spanning more than 20 years.  He is a director and council member of several organisations, including Business Central, Business New Zealand, Standards New Zealand and Westlake Governance Limited.  He is also Deputy Chair of the Open Polytechnic council and a member of the Institute of Directors.