About Aratiatia Marae

Around 1979, Whaea Erana Coulter (Ngaati Porou) took a young novice Fairfield College Kapa Haka team to the National Polynesian Festival to compete. Upon their return and due to comments made of the awesome work that the students had put in - Erana met with the parents of those students and told them her dream of building a community Marae at the school where students of Fairfield College and also the wider community could become immersed in Te Ao Maaori learning Maaori studies in a holistically Maaori environment and enabling the community to connect and/or reconnect to their Maaoritanga.
The Marae complex was opened in 1982 with classrooms and a prefab building, Principal Brian Prestige was the inaugural Chairperson of the Marae committee. Initially Napi Waaka was asked to carve the Whare but Matua Napi suggested and introduced Kereti Rautangata as the person for the job who was then enlisted to create the artworks, Matua Kereti utilised many of our local rangatahi and taught them carving skills and tikanga in order to create Te Ihorangi Whare which was offically opened in 1995 by the Honourable Koro Wetere MP and Ngaati Wairere kaumatua Hare Puke on behalf of Maaori Queen Dame Te Atairangikaahu.     
The Marae continues to house Maaori Studies classes daily and is also open for community classes, projects, events, noho, hui, waananga and celebrations.
For more information...or even if you have information to share contact the Kaitiaki Marae at nehae@faircol.school.nz