Ok, so I know our blog has been quiet (too quiet) over the
past few months – but hey, I’m the new girl here and it’s taken me awhile to get
my head around what Learning Network
NZ is all about. Now that I have (and
while it’s still fresh and new), here are a few things I’d like to share...
Did you know that Learning
Network NZ is a not-for-profit organisation? Seriously! It’s not about the
money, it’s about the love. Clearly we have to remain profitable in order to continue to offer our excellent
professional learning, support and networking services to you all... but in the
end, our bottom line is about giving back, rather than raking it in. Cool!
Also, did you know that Learning
Network NZ has been around for 20 years now? Apparently (as the story goes)
back in 1992 a group of passionate, very committed Principals got together and
decided they wanted to establish an organisation that would provide quality
professional learning support and networking opportunities for educators in the
West Auckland region.
That’s exactly what they did – and as a result, from humble
beginnings (working out of a pre-fab classroom at the back of New Lynn Primary
School as the ‘West Auckland Education Centre’) an
institution was born. Not
only has Learning Network NZ changed location a few times and rebranded, it’s
also grown and developed over the years, responding to the evolving needs of
the wider educational community, and moving on from one-off isolated courses to
more in-depth support nationwide. Our services and our relationships and
networks with local, national and international educators have gone from
strength to strength, and today we’re seen as one of the most innovative and trusted providers of professional learning in New Zealand.
(Personally I am quite taken with this ‘little
history’ - I love the fact that things have changed HUGELY over the years, yet
the fundamental reason for LNNZ’s being remains the same.)
Lastly, did you know that the team here at Learning Network NZ is awesome? I have to say it’s great to be working with such a smart, up-beat, humorous, thoughtful and caring group of people. With the amount of work that gets done you’d think there were 50 busy bods running the place, not just five.
Keep an eye out for more musings coming your way soon. I promise (now I'm in the swing of things) I'll not leave it as long before the next one! - Danielle
(PS: I also promise I'll work out how to embed a picture or two, to make it more interesting...)