In preparation for O’week The Pā, we were met with another disappointing email thread detailing the new opening date, letting us down… again. But instead of rolling into a ball and crying ourselves to sleep, Jak went to the grand dame himself, Vice Chancellor Neil Quigley in an effort to get to know him and what’s going on at Te Whare Wananga o Waikato.
Jak: Preparing for this interview, I went back over all your old chats with nexus, and it is fair to say there was a reasonable amount of speculation about what the campus would look like by now. Going over it again makes you look a little like a divorced dad making promises. How happy are you with where we are now?
Neil: It’s obviously challenging. One of the things that’s helpful is having the chance to talk to other Vice Chancellors at the other unis and having a reasonable amount of contact. All of the universities have found that post pandemic, the world has changed a bit and people haven’t gotten used to studying at home.
Jak: Is the University better equipped to meet modern educational challenges than it was when you arrived here?
Neil: When the pandemic first hit us, we had been working for some years on the idea that we should have the capacity to deliver online/distance learning. At least for some of our first year papers as there was demand for that flexibility. But of course having to crash into that system within 48 hours, well one week, I think we all admit that a lot of what happened was emergency mode teaching. But actually we managed.
Jak: You recently signed on for another term. In blanket macro terms, what does success look like, what is the legacy you are wanting here.
Neil: I signed up for another term, partly because I had some things I wanted to achieve and because the pandemic pulled the rug out from under me–I felt a bit cheated I think. We were on a really strong path there and it was a bit of being thrown under the bus. Success looks like growing our student number because the University is as small as a comprehensive university can be. And a big part is more student accommodation on campus.
Jak: So you don’t want Tauira sleeping in their cars by B Block? Why not?
Neil: Well the plan is, with the age and earthquake standards as they are, to pull down B Block as it’s almost served its purpose but there’s no fixing–or rather it’s not able to be fixed.
Jak: A campus-wide focus on recruitment. How can we help? Because it seems that people keep missing the fact that students actually care about the experience. When I decided to come here, it’s sort of an ongoing joke, but it was because Māori’s don’t like the cold. Otago is cool though. When I looks at the things happening here, clubs rōpū, O’Week and Nexus are cool, and we are getting more people at the Don every day, but other campuses have movie theatres, nightclubs, sports stadiums and all we have is a fucking best-in-class student magazine. How can we work on more WSU / Uni partnerships to make the Pā the start of student recruitment rather than the entire strategy?
Neil: Well one thing you can help with, as universities are notoriously not good at it as they tend to be run by people like me. When actually the people who consume what’s on the campus are people like you. So ideas from people like you…
Jak: Meaning… Māoris?
Neil: Well students. Like you. Your opinion is as valued, if not more, as mine. The more ways we can get students involved by asking “what can we do?” or “what would help?”. And making connections from the school they came from. Speaking to students 2/3 years below them and encouraging them to come to Waikato, and reflect on their quality of experience here. Word of mouth among year 12 and 13 students is really important as you’ll remember.
Jak: Adopting Māori and Pacific principles of sustainability to be carbon neutral by 2030 immediately made me think Stacy and Kahurangi were building a hangi pit and replacing Pita Pit with boil ups but what are we actually doing?
Neil: (laughter) Good stuff, let’s circle back.
Jak: The WSU has been working on O’Week for a month now, but the joke is that the last four James has planned have all been cancelled. O’Week on Campus is about as believable as a Pā opening date, but if this actually happens, is there a concern that students just don’t show up?
Neil: The indication from semester 2 from last year was that we’re starting to get people back on campus. I think people are going to show up, but the more pointed question is if they show up for orientation will they keep coming to campus after that? Now I have to confess that I’m really unhappy that The Pā hasn’t met its deadline because I had always envisioned that part of our strategy of having students back on campus was through the experience in The Pā. That the experience would be better there than in their flat. But due to supply chain issues, labour shortage has just meant that they’re nowhere near having it ready for Orientation. Very very disappointing.
Jak: If you could have done your degree at home, would you have? And on that, have we made it too easy for students to sit at home in their boxers and do exams, and is education and the nature of the activated campus consigned like Chris Luxon’s equality policies, just the product of a bygone era?
Neil: Personally, my first year of uni was a big transition as I’d been working on things carried over from the latter part of High School. I was very involved in music and sport. So I’d had a whole life separate from University. I tended to go to campus simply for lectures, and it wasn’t till second or third year when I found a social life on campus. Could I have done it online? Perhaps, but my home environment wasn’t conducive with at home study.
Different things for different people as some would find it suits better. Whether it works with childcare responsibilities or work juggling, it may just mean working from home might be better. But your average 18 year old is not that good at sitting at the kitchen table and self-directing their learning. That’s why we want them on campus with that positive reinforcement of speaking with their peers and gaining that experience.
Jak: Just as a curiosity, you are part of what many people consider a detached shadowy organisation with a strange leadership structure that meets and pulls invisible levers that dramatically alter people’s quality of life as though it was Olympus…. And you are also Chairman of the Reserve Bank of Governors which gets you more hate mail? And how much of both is from the Faculty of Education?
Neil: (laughter) How much of my hate mail is from the Faculty of Education? Actually a bit. You know the reserve bank is a way to keep the economist part of my brain ticking over. And I do think it does the University some good as well. When you’re the Vice Chancellor, everything else you do you’re promoting the university as well. The two work well together.
Jak: The economy is a dumpster fire that is bringing into question students Hauora. Do you think you can better identify with them because you also work a second job to make ends meet?
Neil: (laughter) I’ve spent the better part of my adult life working 60 hours so I don’t know much else. I do think it’s important that we put more resources into Student Health and we have since I came here. MIke Calvert and his team have done a really good job working with the DHB but there’s always more we can do.
Jak: This is the part where you lie to us and say they Pā will open this year. They built a hospital in WuHan in 3 days. You told Lyam and Bronwyn in 2017 we would break ground by early next year. Where are we at? How far over budget are we?
Neil: We’re not that far over budget here. The cost overrun is in the order of about 5%
Jak: Are we going to have a Re-O’Week there?
Neil: Well, we’re currently making contingency plans. And we’re looking at a late April opening. But if you’re going to burn me an effigy if that comes to pass, I’m going to say probably.
Jak: Is A Trimester Graduation at Claudelands
Neil: Probably.
Jak: Which cool retailers are going to be there or is Kahurangi getting four spaces?
Neil: Uh no.
Jak: While we are on it…Tauranga? Where are we with expansion?
Neil: We have land-banked a number of buildings around that campus. Either we already own or have options to purchase. The biggest problem is needing to increase numbers of student enrollments. We need to work on strategy and what we can offer for growth.
Jak: Looking back at old interviews you seem to save your harshest critiques for Pōneke’s Salient Magazine. Last year they made news for throwing out a palette and a half of magazines a week (about 6000). This year they are allegedly printing 800 a week. By contrast we are doing 1200 and only tend to throw out the one Alister Jones pretends he reads. You once said of Salient, “ Salient is the most scurrilous rag that ever disgraced the Earth,” Anything to add?
Neil: No, I’d like to stand by that statement.
Jak: Finally, as we always do we want to get to know the real Neil. We have ten quick fire questions and we are going to line up some shots to do as we go, up for it? We can go more viral than a first year management student in college hall at a Foam Party. 10 questions, 10 shots.
Neil: I’ll let you do all 20 shots Jak but I’m happy to answer questions.
Jak: Are you more Rugby or Football? Neil: Rugby
Jak: What’s an ideal night in the Quigley house look like? Neil: A walk with the dog
Jak: Are you more of a Britney or Christina? Neil: Christina
Jak: If you could have a conversation with anyone, living or dead, who would that be? Neil: Barack Obama
Jak: Love Island or Celebrity Treasure island? Neil: Celebrity Treasure island, only because I know it.
Jak: Views on rap music? Neil: Not my favourite.
Jak: Favourite pizza toppings? Neil: Anything that’s got lots of Chilli or Salami
Jak: Last good book you read? Neil: Small Things Like These by Claire Keegan
Jak: Who controls the netflix queue in the Quigley house? Neil: Ella
Jak: What was first year Neil’s dream gig? And was their weed involved? Neil: I was around weed and I tried it but I was never much of a fan. Any gig where I was on stage.
