Year: 1951 - 1954
Occupation: Artist, Designer, Educator

Ray has been a teacher and leader all his life. His leadership includes Chief Executive & Academic Director PTE Arts & Media (Film & TV) College, Director Waikato Museum of Art & History, Chief Executive Northland Polytechnic Director where he lead rebuilding it into a debt free, award winning, degree granting institution. As Head of the Design School at Wellington Polytechnic, Ray worked with the Victoria University School of Architecture and the staff of both institutions to create New Zealand’s first university and polytechnic conjoint degree in design. As National Curriculum Officer for Art Education, he has worked with teachers throughout NZ developing and implementing a new art education syllabus for New Zealand primary and secondary schools and a new craft design qualification in polytechnics. He has had a huge impact on the way design was taught in NZ. He was the first Honours graduate in design from the University of Auckland and is a Life member of the NZ Design Institute.

Year: 1950 - 1953
Occupation: Neurologist

David came to New Zealand aged 16 with no English and left Tech at the end of 1953, having completed 7th form and having been awarded Dux. He went to Otago, qualified as a doctor, returned to Wellington for a few years then went to the UK to further his experience and specialise in neurology. He was persuaded to return to Wellington Hospital where he did a lot of work for epilepsy and migraine sufferers. He retired in 2004.David considered his most valuable work beyond his doctoring. David says that at Tech he never experienced racism but later in life learned that NZ has some very racist policies such as the Poll tax levied against Chinese in the early days. His work resulted in a government apology to the Chinese for their treatment in 2002, followed by the establishment of a small charitable Trust which provides assistance in research on New Zealand Chinese history and to assist in the recovery of the language and culture of the poll tax payers descendant community. He is currently writing the history of the New Zealand Chinese Association.

Year: 1950 - 1951
Occupation: Premier of Niue

Frank began working life in the merchant navy but became politicised when he returned to Niue and organised the successful first ever strike on Niue. Aged 28 he became the youngest person to be elected to the Niue Legislative Assembly. After losing the next election, he was re-elected in 1970 and spent the next 33 years in government, 24 as a cabinet Minister and 6 as Premier. He worked hard to improve life for people on Niue establishing village councils, family benefits, power and water supplies and free education and health. Frank stood down from politics in 1999. However, he has continued his community work and is currently Chair of the Niue Internet Users’ Society.

Year: 1949 - 1953
Occupation: Educationist

Don was Director of Victoria’s Resource Teachers of Learning and Behaviour (RTLB) professional development programme – a programme he had worked with a consortium to develop in the late 1990s. He had a clear vision for how we should support students with special needs and how we can improve our schools and classrooms to cater for their needs. He believed in cooperative teaching and learning and had a huge influence on teaching practice in NZ as we move to inclusive classrooms. He was elected a Life Member of the Psychological Service Association, a Fellow of the New Zealand Psychological Society, an Associate of the NZEI and was awarded the New Zealand 1990 Commemoration Medal for services to New Zealand. When he won the Dame Marie Clay Award, the President of the New Zealand Psychological Society commented that Dr Brown had been “an inspirational mentor, leader and teacher of educational and developmental psychologists and other education personnel, as well as a strong advocate for children’s rights and parental involvement in education”.

Year: 1949 - 1952
Occupation: Actor

Ken is a well known NZ actor, director and writer. He has worked in film, television( e.g.: Skin Deep, 479, Close to Home, Hunters Gold, Flying Doctors) Radio and theatre in the UK, New Zealand, and Australia since the 1960’s. He is best known internationally for his roles in Xena: Warrior Princess and Farscape. In New Zealand he is remembered as the boss in the popular sitcom Gliding On. He has an extensive career as a theatrical performer, and won many awards. In 1999 his performance as Vladimir in Waiting for Godot earned him the Best Actor award at the Chapman Tripp Theatre Awards. He was awarded the New Zealand Order of Merit in the Queen’s Birthday Honours List in 2005. In 1991, the BBC published Blackburn’s book Blitz Kids, about the Bristol Blitz