Wananga accused of calling itself university

Whakatane's Te Whare Wananga o Awanuiarangi is being accused of breaking the law and deceiving its students by calling itself an indigenous university.

David Rankin, who describes himself as a Nga Puhi leader, has raised concerns over the wananga using the words "indigenous university" when it wasn't a university.

On Te Whare Wananga o Awanuiarangi's website as its mihi it says "Welcome to Te Whare Wananga o Awanuiarangi indigenous-university". The term is also used on other pages of the website.

However, a wananga official said they recognised themselves as a wananga, not a university, and they were not using the term "indigenous university" as a noun or naming word, rather a descriptive word.

Mr Rankin wrote a letter to Tertiary Education Minister Steven Joyce expressing his concern.

Mr Rankin informed Mr Joyce of what he believed was a breach of the Education Act, on May 11. He said for an educational institution to call itself a university when it was not recognised as such was a breach of the Education Act.

"I am not so concerned about this technicality. What really bothers me is that those Maori students graduating from Awanuiarangi are being told they are graduating from a university and this is a lie.

"Awanuiarangi is selling a product claiming it has the stamp of a university on it when it doesn't," Mr Rankin said.

Speaking to The Daily Post from Australia, Te Whare Wananga o Awanuiarangi chief executive Professor Graham Smith said the term was used as a describing word and not a noun.

He said that legally they could not name themselves a university.

"It's not in the name itself," Dr Smith said. "You're not allowed to use it as a noun."

He said Te Whare Wananga o Awanuiarangi was a wananga and that was what they wanted to be.

They did not want to be a university, he said.