Tauranga's 'fearless advocate' honoured

Robert Anderson Memorial Award recipient Jan Tinetti with Tauranga Mayor Greg Brownless and Jean Anderson, widow of the late Robert Anderson. Supplied Photos.

A fearless advocate for children, the community and education is the latest recipient of a trophy created in honour of a tireless worker for social justice.

Merivale School principal and new Labour candidate Jan Tinetti is the latest recipient of the Robert Anderson Memorial Award, which was presented to her during a mayoral reception held at Tauranga City Council chambers recently.

Jan is the sixth recipient of the trophy – a wooden art piece crafted by Otumoetai College students in the form of an open book – which is awarded annually by Amnesty International Tauranga Moana and recognises outstanding contributions to human rights, peace and social justice.

Tauranga Mayor Greg Brownless presented the trophy to Jan during the function which was attended by Dr Robert Anderson's widow Jean, along with Jan's family and friends last Thursday.

'Dr Robert Anderson was a tireless worker for social justice. He gave many lectures, published numerous articles and wrote several books on a wide range of issues,” explains Amnesty International Tauranga Moana spokesman Gary Ware.

'In presenting the award to Jan, Mayor Greg Brownless recognised her work in the fields of human rights, peace and social justice, and stated she was most deserving of this very prestigious award.”

Jan is the principal of Tauranga's only decile 1 school and has long advocated on behalf of the community and children.

She has always been driven to stand up and fight to give a voice to people who often feel their own has been silenced, says Gary.

'This was witnessed in 2016 when the housing crisis really hit the Merivale community, with 10 per cent of the children from the school being homeless or living in temporary accommodation.

'Jan highlighted the issue in local and national media, and partnered with the Merivale Community Centre to organise and lead a community meeting to develop short, medium and long term solutions.”

Jan with Amnesty International Tauranga Moana member Marlene Ware and Amnesty International national activism support manager Margaret Taylor.

Tackling housing issues is part of a wider strategy to address poverty which Jan has implemented at Merivale, which includes the ‘Kick Start' break programme which provides breakfast to about half of Merivale's roll each day, and lunches provided to those who have none through the Loaves and Fishes project plus other members of the community.

'The school team have an unwavering passion to ensure everything is done for them to ensure they are in the right space for learning. Jan has ensured all community members know that there is no shame when there is no food in the house and the school will ensure children are fed.”

Jan also has a passion for assisting Maori and Pacific families to stay strong in their cultures and her approach towards curriculum implementation of this framework has been nationally recognised in this area, adds Gary.

In 2016, Jan completed a Master of Education with first class honours, with her research focussing on the Positive Behaviour for Learning Framework which she has led the implementation of at Merivale.

'I have fought tirelessly to ensure our children and community receive the best educational and life opportunities and that they as people are strongly valued by the wider Tauranga community,” says Jan.

Previous recipient of the Robert Anderson Memorial Award are the Amnesty Group at Tauranga Girls College, Graham Cameron of the Merivale Community Centre, Mona Hamilton, Terry Molloy and Chennoah Walford.

For more information about Amnesty International Tauranga Moana visit: www.amnesty.org.nz

The Robert Anderson Memorial Award is a wooden art piece in the form of an open book crafted by Otumoetai College students.

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