NZSL team wins national award
A commitment to empowering the Deaf community through allyship has earned AUT’s New Zealand Sign Language (NZSL) Team national recognition at the prestigious Te Whatu Kairangi Aotearoa Tertiary Educator Awards.
The team has been awarded the 2025 Te Whatu Kairangi General Group Award in the category of progressing educational partnerships and collaboration at a ceremony in Wellington hosted by the Minister for Vocational Education, Penny Simmonds.
The Te Whatu Kairangi Awards is the most recognised and respected awards programme for tertiary education and training in Aotearoa New Zealand. Administered annually by Ako Aotearoa, the awards celebrate outstanding tertiary educators who are making a difference to learners, their whānau and communities.
The AUT NZSL Team – comprising of Rebekah Guy, Rachel Coppage, Dr Agnes Terraschke, Dr George Major, Melissa Simchowitz, Susie Ovens and Pascal Marceau – share a clear mission: “to create a resilient community, support a healthy and vibrant language, and to graduate students who embody and actively practise allyship.”
“This award helps to make our AUT programme more visible,” says Pascal. “There is not just one Deaf community but many, for example the Māori Deaf community and Pacific Deaf communities. There are also many different groups and Deaf organisations.
“To us, allyship is about our students having the skills to work with a diverse community, and it’s also about the community having trust in AUT graduates. This helps create a more resilient future for the Deaf community with capable new interpreters and professionals equipped to work in partnership.”
The award citation commends the NZSL Team for its commitment to allyship, inclusivity, whanaungatanga and partnership: “These are all words that are used in today’s educational spaces, but the portfolio from the AUT New Zealand Sign Language Team exemplifies them.”
“In our NZSL programmes at AUT we try to always model true Deaf–hearing partnership. For example, we co-teach practical interpreting courses and Deaf staff contribute to all interpreting assessments. Our teaching is grounded in allyship, inclusivity, and whanaungatanga because these values prepare students to serve the Deaf community with respect and care,” says Susie.
“This award honours the Deaf community who have stood alongside us. It shows our AUT NZSL students that their language, culture, and future as allies and interpreters really matter.”
Since being established in 1992, the programme has dedicated itself to the inclusion of Deaf people and NZSL users at the University, to increase awareness and understanding of NZSL and the Deaf community and to ensuring that Deaf students have equal opportunities to thrive academically. AUT also remains the only place in Aotearoa where students can qualify as an NZSL-English interpreters.
In congratulating the team, Vice-Chancellor Professor Damon Salesa said the award was a testament to the dedication, innovation, and the transformative impact they have had on their students and AUT’s academic community.
“This is an outstanding achievement, and I want to acknowledge the significance of this moment: you are the first AUT staff in a number of years to be recognised at this level,” says Professor Salesa.
“These awards are not just personal milestones—they are a reflection of the excellence that lives within AUT. Your success shines a light on the quality of teaching and learning we champion here, and it will inspire others across the university.”