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From reporter Hamish McNeilly:
The ‘’poor retention’’ of students was a key reason for a decline in domestic enrolments at the University of Otago.
“Student enrolment numbers for 2023 are now clear, and they are down on what we had budgeted for,’’ acting vice-chancellor Helen … View moreFrom reporter Hamish McNeilly:
The ‘’poor retention’’ of students was a key reason for a decline in domestic enrolments at the University of Otago.
“Student enrolment numbers for 2023 are now clear, and they are down on what we had budgeted for,’’ acting vice-chancellor Helen Nicholson told staff after announcing the tertiary institution faced a $60million deficit, and the possible loss of hundreds of jobs.
“Overall, our enrolments are down by 0.9% on last year, but we were forecasting growth of 4.9%.”
Emails released to Stuff under the Official Information Act about that shortfall, highlights one of the major reasons behind that drop: retention.
‘’Poor retention - which seems to have tripped-up pretty much the whole university sector in its forecasting is the crucial factor in the shortfall,’’ David Thomson, director – strategy, analytics and reporting office, wrote.
At the time of the announcement, Universities New Zealand noted there had been an overall drop in enrolments at the country’s eight universities of around 3%. Enrolments were up at just three – Waikato, Canterbury and Lincoln.
Thomson noted that Otago's poor retention of domestic enrolments accounted for 70% of ‘‘our domestic shortfall’’.
‘‘It appears to be driven in part by the cumulative impact of Covid-19 disruption and fatigue (manifested in various ways, including poorer pass rates). Retention is generally very stable year-to-year, and even in 2021 and 2022 retention held firmly at pre-Covid levels.’’
In the released emails, which were sent to senior university management, Thomson wrote: ‘’it’s worth noting that the Covid-19 pandemic has caused the biggest disruption to tertiary education (globally as well as nationally) since the Second World War’’.
‘‘This, along with a growing tendency over the time of the pandemic towards later/last-minute enrolment decision-making by students, and associated wider instabilities beyond tertiary education, means we are forecasting in a context of unprecedented uncertainty.’’
He stressed that the university’s methodologies, which had previous proved reliable, were being scrutinised.
Thomson also penned another email with the subject line: ‘Backgrounder for Local MPs’ eight days after the proposed cuts were announced to staff.
In that report Thomson noted the large intakes of 2021/2022, and had Otago had more accommodation, domestic enrolments would have been higher, and that Otago had increased its market share amongst other universities.
But the 2023 decline in enrolments was down to a ‘perfect storm’, with about a dozen factors involved, including poor retention, a drop in University Entrance achievement rates, strong job market, and the rising cost of living.
Thomson, in that report to MPs, noted that funding from the Government was not ‘’keeping pace with inflation’’.
‘’What was a relative narrow gap up to 2020 has opened into a chasm, as funding rate increases failed to adjust as the inflation rate rocketed.’’
The released emails come after Prime Minister Chris Hipkins visited the Dunedin campus on Friday, and where he told hundreds of concerned students that any decision about cuts was up to those institutions which had autonomy from the Government.
Sometimes educational institutions had to make difficult decisions, and they were best placed to make those calls, he said.
The Government had given the sector the biggest funding increase in two decades, but ‘’there will never be enough funding’’, he added.
Applications for voluntary redundancy at the university closed on Friday, and the tertiary institution was not in a position to make those numbers available, a spokeswoman said.
Even well-insulated homes can lose up to 45% of the room's heat without having adequate curtains. This is why Curtain Banks are in high demand at this time of year.
A petition is circulating to get curtains added as part of the Healthy Homes Standards in the hopes of helping renters avoid… View moreEven well-insulated homes can lose up to 45% of the room's heat without having adequate curtains. This is why Curtain Banks are in high demand at this time of year.
A petition is circulating to get curtains added as part of the Healthy Homes Standards in the hopes of helping renters avoid living in cold, damp conditions. Do you think curtains should be mandatory for New Zealand homes?
Type 'Not For Print' if you wish your comments to be excluded from the We Say You Say column of your local paper.
From reporter Olivia Caldwell:
The irony is, Mike Casey owes his world first fossil free and all electric farming title to a tiny worn old diesel engine Iseki tractor.
The Wellingtonian entrepreneur isn’t a farmer by trade, he is a software engineer who got sick of the city life in Sydney, … View moreFrom reporter Olivia Caldwell:
The irony is, Mike Casey owes his world first fossil free and all electric farming title to a tiny worn old diesel engine Iseki tractor.
The Wellingtonian entrepreneur isn’t a farmer by trade, he is a software engineer who got sick of the city life in Sydney, moved to Central Otago and bought 9300 cherry trees.
“This was definitely an over compensation from living in the concrete jungle of Sydney for a long time, to moving to rural New Zealand. I think I can almost hold a conversation with a farmer now,” he says.
His final step to becoming all electric was introducing New Zealand’s only electric tractor to the orchard, but he couldn't wait for the flash, shiny $165,000 import from California due to arrive.
A combination of Casey’s entrepreneurial climate driven brain, and some plain old “Kiwi ingenuity under an engine hood” had this 39-year-old become a world leader.
As far as he knows, this convert is New Zealand’s first electric tractor, and he’s been using the Iseki 318 for a year on his orchard while he sought out a more modern flavour. It did the job, he says.
Arriving this month is a Monarch commercial electric tractor, which is 30 horsepower equivalent and is fully automated, and cost around $165,000.
He received a grant from the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority, which also helped with electric frost fighting fans from South Africa.
The Monarch is only the 66th off the shelves in the US and the first ever exported, so Casey is hoping to start a trend in New Zealand.
“My goal is when farmers come to see this electric tractor they are blown away by its capabilities.
“Power in New Zealand can be really cheap and much cheaper than diesel.
“On orchard we would use our tractor for probably 300 hours a year depending on the season. But if it is free or autonomous, what’s stopping us using these tractors for more things. Maybe we could use it for 1000 hours and become better farmers and have more yield.”
Casey will use the new tractor for just about everything on his small orchard. Spraying, mowing, weeding and even gathering data on his trees into an app call Fruit Minder, so he can constantly use power wisely and better his emissions.
When he and wife Rebecca arrived, the orchard ticked up an annual energy bill of $60,000. By ditching the fossil fuelled engines and going electric they brought the bill down to $21,000. Then after adding solar power and battery energy their total now sits around $3000.
“We were never intending to go fossil fuel free, but low and behold, every purchasing decision we went down we found we could find an electric option around the world, or we could build some of that technology ourselves.”
“So now here are standing here on I think the first zero fossil fuel farm in the world.”
They didn’t really plan on the farm thing either, but Casey takes life in its stride, and he was too ignorant to cave to Wānaka’s climbing and often out of reach land value.
“We were looking for places in the region, and we found this farm that was 9 hectares of land and had the ideal house for the same price as a four-bedroom house in Wānaka.”
“All of a sudden I had all this land. Then I thought what better way to address the climate than to plant 9300 trees, so I planted 9300 cherry trees.”
The switch from fuels to electric has saved the farm about 60 tonnes of emissions per year. They now do 2.5 tonnes using fertiliser and nitrates. His trees sequester about 3.8 tonnes a year.
Casey has also written software that, by calculating the price of power on the wholesale spot price market, would decide if the fans would be run from the grid or from batteries.
The orchard is close to having a net-zero energy bill, including line charges.
He aims to fully remove herbicides and eventually move towards organic, which is hard to do with cherries, he says.
“We are going to start making steps in that direction.”
Casey doesn't believe in a system which rewards farmers for “good behaviour” such as the government’s “carbon credits”.
“With carbon-neutral certification there the ability to pay to sweep your bad behaviour under a rug, so I don’t promote that.
“I more talk about how we have eliminated the fossil fuels entirely because the only way we are going to solve the climate crisis is getting off fossil fuels.”
The skies might be grey but there's colour in our communities - and we want to see it!
Resene and Neighbourly have teamed up this winter to bring you Bright Spots - a celebration of the brightest and most colourful spaces in our neighbourhoods. We want you to snap and share all those spots… View moreThe skies might be grey but there's colour in our communities - and we want to see it!
Resene and Neighbourly have teamed up this winter to bring you Bright Spots - a celebration of the brightest and most colourful spaces in our neighbourhoods. We want you to snap and share all those spots in your neighbourhood that bring a smile to your face and add a little colour to your day.
There are 10 prizes of $250 Resene ColorShop vouchers and $250 Prezzy® cards up for grabs so you can create your own Bright Spot!
Enter your local bright spots pics today and be in to *WIN*.
When you move to a Ryman village, the last thing you need to think about are unexpected costs. We offer financial security with rates, home insurance, exterior maintenance and gardening all covered under one fixed base weekly fee*, meaning once you’ve moved in you can focus on the things you … View moreWhen you move to a Ryman village, the last thing you need to think about are unexpected costs. We offer financial security with rates, home insurance, exterior maintenance and gardening all covered under one fixed base weekly fee*, meaning once you’ve moved in you can focus on the things you enjoy.
Find out more about our living options today and get ready for a new lifestyle.
*some conditions apply
The team are taking a well-earned day off to celebrate the Kings Birthday. See you Tuesday.
Celebrate the local hospitality people and places that bring life and personality to your community. Is your most-loved barista, front of house person or team, roadside stall, bartender, food truck or takeaway, or new business the best in the region - or even the country? Go to … View moreCelebrate the local hospitality people and places that bring life and personality to your community. Is your most-loved barista, front of house person or team, roadside stall, bartender, food truck or takeaway, or new business the best in the region - or even the country? Go to stuff.co.nz/loveyourlocal to vote for your favourites and show them you appreciate what they do!
Extend the boundaries of the garden season by making your own cloche protected in Resene paints.
Find out how to create your own with these easy step by step instructions.
Anti-poverty campaigners are criticizing a campaign rolled out by the government. The campaign shares tips for New Zealanders to save energy while the energy companies continue to make huge profits at this time.
These tips include reassessing your power plan, switching off unused appliances, … View moreAnti-poverty campaigners are criticizing a campaign rolled out by the government. The campaign shares tips for New Zealanders to save energy while the energy companies continue to make huge profits at this time.
These tips include reassessing your power plan, switching off unused appliances, having heat pumps set to lower than 21°C, cold laundry washes and having showers of less than five minutes.
Vote in our poll and share what you think of these energy-saving tips below.
Type 'Not For Print' if you wish your comments to be excluded from the We Say You Say column of your local paper.
We have your chance to win an Antipodes Skin-Hydrating set worth over $110.
Simply grab a copy of the June issue of NZ Gardener and find the link in the magazine to enter. There are 100 prizes to be won – each winner will receive Anoint H2O De-Puffing Eye Gel (RRP $59) and … View moreWe have your chance to win an Antipodes Skin-Hydrating set worth over $110.
Simply grab a copy of the June issue of NZ Gardener and find the link in the magazine to enter. There are 100 prizes to be won – each winner will receive Anoint H2O De-Puffing Eye Gel (RRP $59) and Baptise H2O Ultra-Hydrating Water Gel (RRP $52), the perfect combo to use on your skin after a good day out in the garden.
For only $15 a ticket, you could win this brand new, fully furnished home in stunning Taupō.
Worth over $1 million and built to perfection by Jennian homes, this brand new home features three bedrooms, two bathrooms and boasts a stylish open-plan kitchen, living and dining area for year-round … View moreFor only $15 a ticket, you could win this brand new, fully furnished home in stunning Taupō.
Worth over $1 million and built to perfection by Jennian homes, this brand new home features three bedrooms, two bathrooms and boasts a stylish open-plan kitchen, living and dining area for year-round entertainment and comfort.
Situated a short three-minute drive from the shores of Lake Taupō, make this property your permanent residence, a holiday home, rent it or even sell it – it could be all yours for only $15! Be in to win by purchasing your tickets today.
Use some Resene paint and a little imagination to revamp your outdoor room.
Follow this handy advice to get started.
In 2018, a NZ company trialled the four-day week and claimed a 20% increase in productivity, encouraging them to make the change permanent. A four-day work week means employees are paid for 40 hours but only work 32 of those. Should this be rolled out across the country where possible? Give us your… View moreIn 2018, a NZ company trialled the four-day week and claimed a 20% increase in productivity, encouraging them to make the change permanent. A four-day work week means employees are paid for 40 hours but only work 32 of those. Should this be rolled out across the country where possible? Give us your vote and share any thoughts below.
Type 'Not For Print' if you wish your comments to be excluded from the We Say You Say column of your local paper.
Now’s a great time to dress up your walls with 25% off the huge range of the latest Resene Wallpaper styles. Come in and see us today at your local Resene ColorShop!
Kitten season is still going strong, and we have lots of furry companions, young and old looking for homes!
Our animals come desexed, microchipped, vaccinated, and health checked. They are fully prepared for their life as loving pets by our dedicated staff and foster families.
Take a look … View moreKitten season is still going strong, and we have lots of furry companions, young and old looking for homes!
Our animals come desexed, microchipped, vaccinated, and health checked. They are fully prepared for their life as loving pets by our dedicated staff and foster families.
Take a look at our unbeatable adoption fees from 27 May - 2 June only:
Kittens - $100
Puppies - $150
Cats - $62.50
Dogs - $125
Rabbits - $30
Help us clear our shelters! Apply online or contact your nearest SPCA Center to change a life!
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