Our tutors are the heart of Toi Ohomai | Te Pūkenga and whānaungatanga is part of everything we do here. As students of Toi Ohomai | Te Pūkenga, you’ll feel a sense of family, of welcome.

Our friendly learning spaces and smaller class sizes will give you confidence as you gain new skills that will lead you into the future, and our tutors will be there for you every step of the way.

Your success is what we’re all about!

  • Nicol Sanders-O’Shea

    Nicol Sanders-O’Shea

    Faculty of Business, Design and Service Industries


    Nicole is the Academic Leader of Arts in the Business, Design and Service Industries faculty at Toi Ohomai.

    She's been a practising artist and master printmaker specialising in fine arts screen printing for the past 25 years and has taught tertiary art and design for over 20 years.

    "I love the way my career enables me to be… Read full profile

  • Donna Dinsdale

    Donna Dinsdale

    Faculty of Business, Design and Service Industries


    Donna teaches the Fashion Design major within the Bachelor of Creative Industries at Toi Ohomai.

    She holds a Bachelor of Design from Otago University and a Master of Design from Auckland University of Technology.

    "I love learning about cultural influences in art and design and sharing my knowledge with students and… Read full profile

  • Darcell Apelu

    Darcell Apelu

    Faculty of Business, Design and Service Industries


    Darcell teaches visual arts, moving images, collaborative projects and cultural theory at Toi Ohomai.

    She has a keen interest in exploring identity in relation to legacy and storytelling, and ideas around how the body operates in social and cultural contexts.

    Apart from being a creative and teaching, Darcell is passionate about… Read full profile

  • Anne-Marie Simon

    Anne-Marie Simon

    Faculty of Business, Design and Service Industries


    Anne-Marie is a tutor for the Bachelor of Creative Industries and the Certificate in Art and Design courses at Toi Ohomai.

    After graduating with a Diploma in Clothing and Textiles from Wellington Polytechnic and a Bachelor of Art and Design (Fashion) from Otago Polytechnic, Anne-Marie knew she'd wanted to share her … Read full profile

  • Adrian Maidment

    Adrian Maidment

    Faculty of Business, Design and Service Industries


    Adrian teaches media arts and communication at Toi Ohomai.

    His experience spans from advertising and video marketing, to search engine optimisation and podcasting. He holds a Bachelor of Social Sciences from the University of Waikato and a Master of Art (Design) from Wintec.

    Other than teaching, Adrian is also a … Read full profile

  • Kelcy Taratoa

    Kelcy Taratoa

    Faculty of Business, Design and Service Industries


    Ngai Te Rangi , Ngati Ranginui , Ngati Raukawa

    Kelcy teaches visual arts and creative entrepreneurship within the Bachelor of Creative Industries at Toi Ohomai.

    He's a practicing artist and educator based in Tauranga and holds a Master of Arts in Māori visual arts from Massey University.

    Read full profile

  • Debashis Dutta

    Debashis Dutta

    Faculty of Health, Education and Environment


    Debashis is an environmental management tutor at Toi Ohomai, teaching Botany and Vertebrate Biology (Level 5) and Biological Statistics, Biosecurity and Ecological Restoration (Level 6), as well as supervising students who are completing their research projects.

    "I love the applied nature of the courses that we offer and especially… Read full profile

  • Aquaculture and Lab Technician, Kevin Green

    Kevin Green

    Faculty of Health, Education and Environment


    Kevin joined Toi Ohomai in 2013 as an Aquaculture and Lab Technician. Before arriving in the Bay he built up a varied body of work over 15 years, primarily in aquaculture.

    His previous experience ranged from producing and wholesaling ornamental fish and saltwater prawns on the sub-tropical east coast of South Africa, to farming and… Read full profile

  • Marine and Environmental Tutor, Dave Guccione

    Dave Guccione

    Faculty of Health, Education and Environment


    Dave joined Toi Ohomai in 2007 and teaches papers on marine invertebrates, fisheries management, and statistics.

    "I’m passionate about teaching and sharing my experiences and critical thinking skills with our amazing students," Dave says.

    He's always been passionate about outdoor pursuits and put some direction into those pursuits… Read full profile

  • Erin Kennedy

    Erin Kennedy

    Faculty of Health, Education and Environment


    Erin joined the marine and environmental teaching team at Toi Ohomai in 2017. She teaches across all three years of the diploma/degree course, mainly in the areas of geology, terrestrial ecology, waste management and the regulatory environment. 

    Prior to coming to Toi Ohomai, she was teaching biology courses at the… Read full profile