Journey of innovation spans decades for NZTC Fellowship of Honour recipient
A triple-shot venti latte between New Zealand Tertiary College Chief Executive Selena Fox and recent Fellowship of Honour recipient Dr Chip Donohue kindled a relationship that has spanned 17 years, navigated more than 600,000km and sparked shared US-NZ innovations.
Awarded the NZTC Fellowship of Honour at the April ECE graduations, Donohue sits alongside significant people in the life and history of the college. Other fellows include former Prime Minister, the Hon Sir John Key, Professor Colin Gibbs, Ms Swati Popat Vats, Associate Professor Te Tuhi Robust and Professor Claire McLachlan.
Acknowledgement for Donohue focused on the integral role he has played in building and implementing the college’s online learning platform - NZTC Online. The platform supports over 1000 students each year to complete their early childhood and health and wellbeing studies.
“It is hard to quantify the enormity and significance of Chip’s impact over the years to NZTC, our teams, their educational support, the enabling of students, and our teaching and learning endeavours,” Fox said.
“NZTC is who it is today – offering flexible opportunities of learning that every student engages in, because of the gift of his contribution.”
The leading voice on innovative online teaching and learning and appropriate use of technology with young children, Donohue has also contributed to research projects, professional development workshops, symposiums, articles, books and the relaunching of New Zealand eLearning guidelines.
Donohue’s commitment is illustrated with 26 trips between New Zealand and the US to support the work of NZTC.
“My work with NZTC has been a progression. Starting with this absolute ‘Aha’ moment Selena and I had over this shared vision of an online learning platform, and Selena's ability to say ‘we don't have that here, so let's build it’ which was a very unique and great opportunity,” said Donohue.
“Then the luxury of time. I have watched NZTC grow overtime. It has been very dynamic, it hasn't been static at all. That’s been really rewarding.”