Palmerston North College of Education

The Palmerston North College of Education was officially opened on 23 March 1956 as the Palmerston North Teachers’ College – New Zealand’s sixth teachers’ college. Mr. K.A. North was the foundation Principal of the college, which was based at sites on Princess Street and Grey Street.

During its early years, the college was under the control of the Education Board. This changed in the late 1960s when the college was moved under the control of the Education Department. In the 1990s the college came free from departmental control when it was given its own charter.

By 1961 the college had a total number of staff of 27 and a student roll of 341. The student roll peaked in 1974 with a total of 1,073 enrolled students.

The move to the Hokowhitu campus began in 1971. Over the course of the following decades more buildings were erected at the Hokowhitu site as the college grew. During the 1980s the Teachers’ College established a range of teaching activities in Napier. These activities were consolidated on the Ruawharo campus which was opened in April 1994.

During its forty year history, the college played an important role in teacher education in New Zealand. It not only offered primary teacher training programmes, but also early childhood, secondary, professional and community education programmes.

Te Kupenga o te Matauranga Marae opened in 1980 on the Palmerston North Teachers' College campus. It was the first marae (meeting house) at a tertiary campus in New Zealand. The complete Te Haonui Marae Complex opened in June 1990.

At a Council meeting on 19 May 1989, it was decided to rename the college. This was formalised by an amendment to the Education Act that changed the name to the Palmerston North College of Education from the beginning of 1990.

Throughout its history the Teachers’ College had a close association first with Victoria University College and later with Massey University. From 1966 a combined Massey/Teacher’s College staff team provided degree level training in some subjects to the Teachers’ College students at the Massey University campus. In 1970 a B.Ed. degree was introduced at Massey University for internal and distance students.

In 1972 a School of Education was established to formalise joint teacher training and cooperation between Massey University and the Teachers' College.

A closer association with Massey, and a move to the Massey site at Turitea were mooted as far back as 1959, but it was only from the late 1980s that a merger with Massey University was seriously considered.

This merger finally eventuated on 1 June 1996. Out of this merger between the Palmerston North College of Education and Massey’s Faculty of Education was born Massey University’s new College of Education.