University community receive Queen's Birthday honours

Dr Collin Tukuitonga, Knight Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit: For services to Pacific and public health.

Dr Tukuitonga, inaugural Associate Dean (Pacific) in the Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, has made a significant contribution to the health and welfare of Pacific people.

Between 2014 and 2020, he was the Director-General of the Secretariat of the Pacific Community, a regional intergovernmental organisation based in Noumea that works with several parties in the Pacific region. He was chief executive of the Ministry of Pacific Island Affairs between 2007 and 2012 and a founder of the first Pacific community-owned health clinic, The Fono. 

From 2003 to 2006, he worked for the World Health Organisation in Geneva, developing international policies for the control of non-communicable diseases such as heart disease and diabetes. He was the New Zealand Director of Public Health between 2001 and 2003, leading the national response to the threat of SARS.

In the 1990s, he was key in the establishment of the Department of Māori and Pacific Health at the University and in 2006 and 2007 was Associate Professor of Public Health and Head of International, initiating the International Health programme.

Dr Tukuitonga has also been a key contributor to the national Covid-19 response, especially in relation to Pacific communities, disseminating information and ensuring high vaccination rates.

Dr Patrick (Patu) Hohepa, Knight Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit: For services to Māori culture and education.

A retired Professor of Māori Language, Dr Hohepa is a kaumātua whose leadership and advocacy for Māori cultural recognition and development has raised the profile of Māori culture in New Zealand.

He is a renowned teacher and scholar of te reo Māori and other Pacific languages. A leader in the ‘Māori renaissance’, he was the first to advocate for a marae at the University.

In the 1980s he wrote a report for the government on the establishment of the Waitangi Tribunal, and repeal of the Māori Affairs Act. From 1997 to 2007, he served as the Commissioner of the Māori Language Commission, heavily promoting Te Reo Māori and developing proficiency testing.

He served as a member of Te Waka Toi, the Māori Board of Creative New Zealand from 2004 and 2008. He has been a kaumātua for a large number of organisations, including as a member of Haerewa, the Māori Cultural Advisory Group of Auckland Art Gallery. As part of this role, he led the New Zealand delegation accompanying an exhibition of 50 portraits of Māori by pre-eminent painter Gottfried Lindauer to Europe in late 2014.

Dr Hohepa continues to teach te reo Māori and has received awards for his contributions to strengthening Te Reo Rangatira.

Emeritus Professor Alastair MacCormick, Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit: For services to tertiary education and the community

Emeritus Professor MacCormick held a range of roles between 1973 and 2002, including as Head of the Department of Management Studies and the School of Business and Economics, as well as Dean, Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic) and council member.

He led the School of Business and Economics through a period of rapid growth and helped develop its strong international reputation. He was involved with tertiary education internationally through the New Zealand Committee for Pacific Economic Cooperation and APEC in the 1990s.

Since retirement in 2002 he has contributed to a broad range of education and technology focused initiatives. For more than 10 years, he has been a member of the New Zealand Government Innovation Board and the Callaghan Innovation Grants Committee.

He is a Commissioner of the Tertiary Education Commission (TEC) and represents TEC on the Programme Board for the Reform of Vocational Education. Within his community, he was a board member since 1983 and chair since 2016 of the Elizabeth Knox Home and Hospital, leading major redevelopment and extensions of the facilities.

He has chaired the Matarangi Ratepayers Association and helped found and chair the Matarangi Community Trust. Dr MacCormick has also been a trustee of the Liggins Institute Trust and the Winston Churchill Memorial Trust.

The University congratulates these and all other members of our community, including former staff and alumni, whose significant contributions have been recognised and celebrated with these honours.