Meet Our Tutors

Caroline Lark is a fiction writer, poet and playwright, published in UK, France, NZ and Australia. Caroline is a mentor for the New Zealand Society of Authors (Pen NZ Inc) Mentor Programme 2020.

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.

Joe McCracken attended his first festival when he was seventeen and was so inspired by the experience he proceeded to travel around the world getting involved in events and festivals in every size and shape for the next decade.

Joe has worked on events including the Edinburgh Fringe, Woodford Folk Festival, New Zealand Festival of the Arts, Abu Dhabi Science Festival and Avignon Off. He has also run events on Waiheke such as the Waiheke Arts and Innovation Festival.

“I’m passionate about empowering people to create the events that they want to see in the world, events that connect and inspire people the same way my first experience inspired me.”

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.

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.

Johnny Fleury has taught music for over 30 years (MAINZ Tutor) and has played with some of the best NZ musicians, Sir Dave Dobbyn, Jordan Luck (Exponents) Greg Johnson, Dave McArtney (Hello Sailor) and played on about 30 albums & TV ads & themes , also has produced recorded solo artists & bands, can also teach various other stringed instrument eg. Ukulele, banjo, If you can hum it…he can play it!

Ko Te Uri Karaka te hapū. Ko Ngāti Paoa te iwi. Ko Ngāti Pikiao te hapu Ko Te Arawa te iwi. Ko Te Rarawa me Taranaki hoki ōku iwi. He kaiako ahau o Te Reo Tūpuna ki nga tamariki me nga pakeke. Kua roa ahau e whakaako ana, e ako ana i Aotearoa me tāwāhi. Waimarie ahau ki te noho ki konei i Te Motu Arairoa tōku ūkaipō.

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.

Mark Mak practises functional movement, a free-form approach to improving balance, whole-body mobility and coordination, and most importantly, stress management.

Mark recently returned to New Zealand after a decade as a PSIA-certified ski instructor in the US, where he specialised in coaching fearful adults.

Mark’s been active in sports since his youth – hiking, hunting, running, weight training and martial arts. He’s had a lifelong interest in physiology and biomechanics, and was an adjunct professor at Adams State University’s Human Performance and Physical Education department in Colorado, teaching health and exercise classes. He also taught mental and physical health and fitness courses at Colorado Mountain College.

A calm, curious and sensitive coach, Mel Burdett guides people and teams toward self-awareness and self-empowerment with a mind-body practice. She has been described as a rudder in the river – even-keeled and calm – guiding with a gentle but uplifting hand towards new endeavours ahead. Mel is an experienced and certified Mindset Coach (ACC ICF), Hatha Yoga Teacher and Hormone Yoga Therapist (IYTA), International Laughter Leader (CLYL), and Mindfulness Practitioner. Mel expertly weaves the findings of neuroscience, evolutionary biology, yoga, and mindfulness into her teachings.

Originally from the North of Aotearoa, Oliver left his home country at age 16 and travelled extensively for 12 years before settling on Waiheke island.  His ongoing body of work focuses on notions of history as a creative construct. Titled “Make History”,  he researches characters, objects and legends that shape cultural heritage. He produces sculptural ‘artifacts‘ that are based on a branch of museum collecting called ‘mirabilia’- the most obscure of unclassifiable cultural fragments. This body of work is a synthesis of previous ideas and represents a new phase of the project along the imaginary lines of ‘Future histories’. In 2019 Oliver completed a postgraduate diploma in teaching, specialising in art and design.  He also has completed a Diploma in Art and Design (Claremont, Perth) and a Master of Fine Arts (University of Auckland).

Paula Richa is a sustainable textile artist born in the central coast of Chile who moved to New Zealand 20 years ago. Waiheke Island has been her home for the last 11 years.

She studied Textile Design at Valparaiso University in Chile and worked for a number of years in the fashion industry. It was on Waiheke Island that she discovered her passion, a particular abstract fusion between textiles and art.

Paula’s distinctive work is an on-going process of experimental layering of colours, textures and transparency. She takes great satisfaction in creating her unique pieces due the nature of her pre-loved materials like fabric, canvas, furniture, photo frames and others which she repurposes to create one-off pieces.

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!

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.