Meet Our Tutors

Tēnā koutou katoa. Ko Brent Simpson tōku ingoa. I am a teacher at Waiheke High School and a passionate advocate for the use of te reo Māori in Aotearoa. I’m extremely excited and honoured to be able to help you begin your te reo Māori journey here at Waiheke Adult Learning.   

Charli Crocker is passionate about providing quality education and has been training Waiheke’s First Responders for over 10 years.

Charli has extensive experience facilitating Health and Safety, First Aid and professional development to many sectors including  industry organisations, health, schools and community groups

Charli’s teaching style caters to all learning styles and includes plenty of hands-on learning. She is an energetic, interactive teacher who makes learning fun!

She has a family connection to Waiheke and enjoys spending time on the island when she visits as a trainer.

Donna Kerridge (Ngāti Tahinga, Ngāti Mahuta) is the founder and director of Ora New Zealand. She is a rongoā Māori practitioner, trainer and advisor of 20+years to a number of NZ Universities, research, professional and private training organizations and has served on a number of health authority expert advisory groups representing the practice of rongoa. 

Donna enjoys inspiring others to learn and put into practice the simple yet profound healing wisdom of our ancestors in a way that is respectful, authentic and mindful of the needs of all peoples and the land itself.

Irina Lyanguzova holds her masters of accounting from AUT and is an associate member of CPA Australia. She is an experienced adult educator and has experience in teaching budgeting and accounting skills, taxation, economics, finance and data analysis.

Jamie Stone is a local musician and songwriter. He has played in bands most of his life and has taught private music lessons. He developed a love for ukulele whilst recording primary school students with the Jam Bus Mobile Recording Studio project and now writes his own songs on the instrument.

Chikaa is the moniker of Jodine Stodart. Since starting out as a Radio DJ for a world music show at Melbourne’s PBS FM in 2007, Chikaa has continued her love of world music and electronic fusion, following the emerging South American new wave scene of folktronica and ethnic downtempo music.

CHIKAA is one of NZ”s regular festival contributors, DJing at Splore, Shipwrecked, Luminate, NZ Spirit’s Resolution, and sometimes abroad in Bali’s Spirit Festival, and Burning Man.

Jenny Lee is a Waiheke based artist, specialising in botanical art but who is also interested in portrait
and landscape painting. She prefers working in watercolours (botanic) and oils (portraits and
landscapes).
Jenny is a Fellow of the Society of Botanical Art (London) graduating with distinction with an SBA
Distance Diploma, with the qualification of DipSBA (Dist). Jenny participates in local, national and international exhibitions and competitions, and has won numerous awards and has a number of collectors in New Zealand and overseas. Her paintings have been featured in several international publications – and the local Gulf News.
Jenny and her husband live at Onetangi, where she finds serenity and inspiration in her studio, amidst
bird song, flowers and music, cherishing the blessings of each day.

Roger Mason is a professional storyboard artist and graphic novelist, and has taught drawing for many years at universities both in the UK and Auckland. www.rogermason.co.nz

Jonathan Armistead is an IT professional with over twenty years experience, five of those years working as an IT Trainer and includes a stint as the trainer for a top NZ law firm. Originally from the North West of England, Jonathan has lived on Waiheke with his family for almost eight years. He has a communications degree from AUT where he was successful in mentoring other students.

Katie was born in New York in 1965. She graduated with honours from the University of the Arts in Philadelphia in 1988. While in University she was able to explore many mediums with a focus on painting. She has taught for many years at the Artists Association of Nantucket and enjoys encouraging anyone with creative energy. 

Currently her studio is in Surfdale on Waiheke. She exhibits her work in The USA and New Zealand. She is also part of the Oneroa Artists collective Space Gallery.

With a degree in agricultural sciences Kim went on to complete a post graduate qualification in adult education. He has had many years of experience involved in a wide variety of adult education initiatives all over the world. For over thirty years he worked in international aid and development particularly related to training in project management and monitoring and evaluation. He also holds qualifications in TESOL and NCALNE and has taught English as a second language.

Other ‘professional’ side tracks have also included sheep shearing, cellar door work and diamond prospecting. A Waiheke resident for over twenty years Kim has been involved  in various island charities including Jassy Dean, Waiheke Cinema and Whittakers Music Museum and has ‘trod the boards’ at Artworks Theatre in a wide range of productions.

Maria is a linguist passionate about sharing Spanish with our community. Originally from Barcelona, she has been on Waiheke for seven years.

Michelle is a qualified language teacher who has taught English and Italian on Waiheke for over 10 years. Her classes are highly interactive, with plenty of opportunities to practice your skills in different scenarios and parla italiano!

Pete Ibbertson is the Director of Beyond the Books…Accountants Ltd. Pete is a Chartered Accountant and holds a Public Practice Certificate. Pete’s experience ranges from time with Inland Revenue to the Big 4 CA firms before branching out with his own firm. Pete is a Waiheke local resident.

Pete is not your “typical” Chartered Accountant dressed in a suit. Pete prefers the more relaxed approach, putting clients at ease with a friendly, knowledgeable rapport.

Pete’s focus is on small to medium-sized businesses & investors. He enjoys working with business owners to help them achieve their personal & professional goals. A particular interest in “tradies”, Pete assists trade businesses on and off Waiheke Island and is abreast of the challenges and opportunities.

“Loving life…Beyond the Books” is our mantra!

Nō Ngāti Manu, Ngāpuhi, Te Mahurehure me Ngāti Pākehā ahau. He uri ahau i tōku tupuna Te Whareumu.

I tipu ake au i Manawatū, e noho ana au kei Waiheke.

He ringatoi ahau.

I am an artist who is very lucky to call Waiheke home. I am very excited to share my passion for te reo māori with you.

Kia ora koutou katoa,  ko Tania Anderson tōku ingoa..

Born and breed on the banks of the Whanganui River, I was raised by the village.  Working in the arts and crafts arena for over 30 years I have found that raranga is an art form that grounds me and puts me in my happy space.  Since moving to the island 5 years ago I have continued to weave and occasionally have a stall at the Ostend markets on a Saturday morning. 

My connections to my Iwi brings out the essence required to share what I have learnt 

Ngāti Whaatua, Ngāti Tuwharetoa, Te Ati Haunui a Paparangi me  Ngāti Kahungunu ki Wairarapa ngā are with me as we weave together.

Tracey Sullivan is a reader, a writer and a runner, a poet, a maker and an editor, a parent of grown children and a creative educator. She has a diploma in publishing, and a post graduate diploma in teaching. She has recently completed a creative and critical Masters thesis in poetry. Her work has appeared in digital and print form in journals and anthologies, and on the radio in the Netherlands. A chapbook of her poetry, a place on earth, was published in Singapore by Math Paper Press. After many years abroad, she returned to Aotearoa New Zealand in 2019.

Alan received his driving instructor licence recently from Waka Kotahi.
He has been on Waiheke since 2017. He used to teach art previously in Australia and after a long break, is now enjoying teaching people how to drive on Waiheke.