Famed Māori Battalion lives on in Whangārei boys' academy

Members of the academy's new intake (with Danish-born Tama Hodgson on the left) perform a haka. Photo / Peter de Graaf

A Whangārei boys' academy based on the values of the 28th Māori Battalion has celebrated its 10th intake in front of more than 800 people at Waitangi Treaty Grounds.

The crowd — which included whānau, government ministers and battalion descendants — turned out last Saturday to watch a badging ceremony for boys who had passed a tough two-week selection course for the Leadership Academy of A Company.

The military-style academy, which is hosted by Whangārei kura Te Kāpehu Whetū, takes about 20 boys a year and provides extra support and training in leadership and tikanga Māori alongside their normal studies.

Saturday's ceremony was all the more poignant because it took place 75 years to the day since Sir James Henare, last commander of the 28th Māori Battalion, marched the returning soldiers through the streets of Wellington — and because the new Defence Minister awarding the badges was Sir James' grandson, Peeni Henare.

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Leadership Academy old boys march up Nias Track in the footsteps of 28th Maori Battlaion soldiers who took the same route to the Treaty Grounds in 1940. Photo / Peter de Graaf

Founder Raewyn Tipene said the push for the academy came from a 2007 report which showed only 19 per cent of Māori boys in Whangārei were achieving NCEA level one.

Boys in the academy were taught to embody the principles of the battalion and to honour the speech by Sir Apirana Ngata about the ''price of citizenship'' Māori paid by going to war.

''So we instil into the boys the need to repay that debt, that sacrifice. They learn very quickly that they need to succeed in a whole host of areas.''

Tasha Perrett carries a photo of her great-grandfather Major Rawson "Ross" Wright. Photo / Peter de Graaf

Each intake was named after a member of the battalion. The first intake, in 2010, was named after Sir James; the newest takes its name from Major Rawson ''Ross'' Wright.

''It's a very good feeling that we've been able to march out our 10th intake to a crowd of this size in a place of this magnitude, and get this level of support from many many quarters,'' Tipene said.

As well as the defence minister, that support included Labour Te Tai Tokerau MP Kelvin Davis, National deputy leader and list MP Shane Reti, Whangārei MP Emily Henderson, and representatives of the Defence Force and all four of the battalion's companies.

A large delegation from C Company, from East Cape, included former Gisborne mayor and now race relations conciliator Meng Foon.

Harawira Pearless, left, and friend from Tairāwhiti with a banner displaying photos of every member of C Company. Photo / Peter de Graaf

Among the 18 newest members of the academy is Tama Hodgson, 17, who was born in Denmark to a Danish mother and a Ngāpuhi/Ngāti Hine father. He moved to New Zealand last year but Covid meant he couldn't join the academy until now.

Hodgson, who is bilingual in Danish and English, said he learnt little about his Māori side as he was growing up.

''I wanted to learn the language and learn about where I'm from, and the heritage that I carry.''

Zion Bryers, left, of the 2019 Kahi Harawira intake and Danish-born Tama Hodgson of the 2021 Rawson "Ross" Wright intake. Photo / Peter de Graaf

The drills, the physical training and being the oldest boy made the selection course tough, ''but they pushed us through it''.

Hodgson hoped to be able to hold a conversation in te reo by the time he finished.

''I also want to get better at mihi and kapa haka ... just to get better and more confident with the Māori part of me.''

Boys of the academy's newest intake stand in formation at the Treaty Grounds. Photo / Peter de Graaf

The new recruits were supported by old boys such as Zion Bryers of the 2019 Kahi Harawira intake.

''I joined because I heard a lot of good things about the brotherhood in the academy and how the boys learnt leadership skills, gained confidence and grew bonds that last forever.

"I wasn't the most confident, I didn't have a strong voice, but my two years in the academy really shone when I was out in front of 800 people, yelling at the top of my lungs. It's helped me grow a lot of confidence.''

Highlights of Saturday's ceremony included Rawson Wright's great-granddaughter Tasha Perrett reading his account of the bloody battle for Monte Cassino's railway station in 1944, and a series of powerful haka by academy members and old boys.

Tasha Perrett reads an account by her great-grandfather Major Rawson "Ross" Wright of the bloody battle for Monte Cassino railway station in 1944. Photo / Peter de Graaf

Peeni Henare delivered possibly the shortest speech by a government minister in history, in which he simply urged the boys to ''live life with a purpose and clear intentions'' — and to remember they represented the men of the Māori Battalion.

The academy, the kura and an early childhood centre all come under the umbrella of He Puna Marama Trust.

Raewyn Tipene, the trust's chief executive, said when the academy started the boys stayed in a hostel and went to six high schools in Whangārei.

An initial five years' funding from the ASB Trust ran out just as charter schools came into being, so He Puna Marama jumped at the opportunity and set up Te Kāpehu Whetū.

Members of the new intake perform a drill in front of the Treaty House. Photo / Peter de Graaf

The Whangārei-based kura continues to host the academy but a few boys from this year's intake attend other schools in the city and further afield.

Tipene said the boys generally started in Year 10-11 and went through to Year 13, but, like the battalion, ''once you're marched in you're in for life''.

Boys were put forward by their whānau and had to pass a two-week selection course.

''The boys in this intake were very, very tough. They all got through,'' she said.

Defence Minister Peeni Henare congratulates new members of the academy during the badging ceremony. Photo / Peter de Graaf

Everything they did was built on the three pou (columns) of kia Māori (be Māori), kia matau (be knowledgeable, be educated) and kia tū rangatira ai (be honourable, be determined).

Tipene said the academy had succeeded academically but there was more to it than that.

''Our old boys all have NCEA and they've all got jobs but regardless of where they are in life they still stand by those three pou. That's our success.''

Academy old boys perform a haka at the conclusion of the ceremony. Photo / Peter de Graaf