Agreement deems North sport and rec course fit for the future

Jaimee Lewin. NorthTec Sports and Recreation students. 2 November 2017 Northern Advocate photograph by Michael Cunningham.

NorthTec's sport and recreation course has been further locked in following a firm handshake between the polytechnic and Sport Northland.

The two organisations have signed a Statement of Shared Objectives (SOSO), which translates to developing opportunities in Northland that both build on and feed into NorthTec's sport and recreation, and health and wellbeing curriculums.

That could include forming relationships and other related courses with prospective providers, and sharing resources. The sport and recreation course is based at the fitness centre at the ASB Stadium in Kensington and already runs in close conjunction with Sport Northland.

Sport Northland chief executive Brent Eastwood said the agreement sent a strong signal about the sector's employment potential and value for the region.

That employment ranged from personal training, health and fitness facilitation, school based education, outdoor education, recreational tourism, sports administration and professional sports, he said.

''Certainly from our point of view, as the regional sports trust, we want to grow opportunities for people to work in sport and recreation,'' Eastwood said.

''The course is already based here at the stadium. It's a really good fit, so we need to put our heads together and say, hey, let's see what we can do to continue to prove it's worth.''

The stand comes less than a year after students taking the course, which has been available at NorthTec since 1995, were pleading for its continuation.

In November 2017, the diploma and/or degree level course — with most student taking the Auckland University of Technology's Bachelor of Sport and Recreation delivered by NorthTec — had an axe hanging over it.

Students spent a miserable few weeks after finishing the year's work before learning in December that the course was safe.

One of them, Jaimee Lewin, told the Advocate yesterday the situation had been a NorthTec governance issue rather than a reflection on the quality of the course.

But Lewin said she welcomed the further certainty the shared objective statement brings.
The course had exceeded her expectations and she felt confident about future employment because of it, she said.

''My hopes and ideas for the future change as I learn more. We've worked with so many people and places, I didn't even realise the many ways you could apply the sport and recreation learning.

''I think the title should be changed to health science. I can see so many areas where it can be applied.''

NorthTec director of development, Phil Alexander-Crawford was unavailable for comment.

In a written statement about the agreement, he said both parties were stakeholders in developing Northland and helping people achieve better lives.