Notes from our past: 1974 to 1983

Things took off in this decade, with the appointment of Kaye Green the first full-time paid AWEA tutor-organiser in December 1975. AWEA was a leader in adult and community education initiatives such as community school.

  • The Association for Community and Continuing Education (now ACE Aotearoa) was formed in 1974, at a meeting called by the Auckland WEA, and attended by representatives of the university and the newly established community school.
  • The 1976 Summer School explored Māori Land Issues. It was led by AWEA tutor-organiser, Kaye Green, who saw these issues as “being of much more profound significance than any other issues of inequality that we were looking at.”
  • Legal rights courses were run in ‘halfway houses’ in Grey Lynn and Ponsonby. In 1977, AWEA supported the establishment of Grey Lynn Neighbourhood Law Office – the first Community Law Centre in Aotearoa.
  • When Radio Pacific began broadcasting in 1978 the WEA Radio Collective was set up. The Collective delivered weekly educational seminars on air until 1980.
  • There was a huge demand for AWEA’s adult literacy programme (which was informed by Paulo Freire’s ideas) and women’s studies courses.
Notes Our Past 1974 1983 Collage