The Porirua Team
This is our team of teachers and staff at Educare Porirua. Scroll through to find out more about our teaching team.
Tessa Drowley
Centre Manager, Registered Teacher
Hello I’m Tessa, I currently live locally in Tawa with my daughter Madison. I have a Bachelors degree in Early Childhood Education. My passion in early childhood education is building relationships with the children and their families.
I also have a strong passion for giving children different ways to express themselves through music, dance and crafts. I am looking forward to building long lasting relationships and getting to know the children of Educare Porirua.
Joleene Eru
Assistant Manager, Registered Teacher
Kia ora my name is Joleene. I have been working as a ECE teacher for 15 years and I have worked with all ages under 5. My passion is discovering all tamariki as individuals who are competent and confident learners in their own unique way. I love developing partnerships with whānau work alongside them to provide the best learning outcomes with their own personal expertise on their tamati.
I am a mother of two children and enjoy spending time in the outdoors exploring nature and going on adventures with my family. I am exited to get to know the tamariki here while working alongside the amazing kaiako to provide the best leaning outcomes for everyone.
Kate Chapman
Registered Teacher
Kia ora, I’m Kate on of the fully registered staff members here at Educare Porirua and hold a BA / BTeach in Early Childhood Education. My experience is with infants and toddlers but I love working with all age groups. I live locally in Tawa and my son Kingston is also joining us here at Educare.
I love being in the outdoors and out in nature and like to bring those aspects into my teaching practice. I believe in building strong bonds with the tamariki and their whānau and look forward to getting to know you all.
Malinda Williams
Registered Teacher
Goeie day, my name is Malinda. In 2002 moved from South Africa to Aotearoa and established ourselves in Wellington. I feel very privileged to be part of this amazing community. I am a registered early childhood teacher. I love learning about other cultures and beliefs as I come from a multicultural background, and I understand the importance of learning about and celebrating other cultures. Providing tamariki with a sense of belonging and making sure they feel valued, respected and safe is of the utmost importance to me. It is a privilege to watch our tamariki grown and learn while working in partnership with their parents and whānau.
In my spare time, I enjoy spending time with my family and friends as well as reading, paddle boarding and exploring our beautiful New Zealand.
Nick Ballentyne
Registered Teacher
Kia ora, my name is Nick Ballantyne. I am a qualified teacher with a graduate diploma in primary teaching. I began my teaching career in primary school, but have found a passion for working with younger children. I'm really looking forward to getting to know them and helping them develop in these formative stages. I currently live locally in Titahi Bay and enjoy taking my dog for a wander down to the beach, and the occasional arts and crafts.
Talalelei Alspana
Registered Teacher
Talofa lava and Kia ora! My name is Talalelei Alesana.I am a full Samoan, currently living with my family in Porirua. I have a Graduate Diploma in Early Childhood Education &
Masters degree in Education. I am passionate about building relationships with tamariki and whānau, and supporting children to be inclusive and connect with people who are different than
they are. I believe all children deserve the best education in their first vital years of their lives and we are the first to make that difference alongside the families and community. I enjoy working in a ECE team environment where all the teachers bring talents and strengths to share together to enhance the children's learning. I am looking forward to building trusting relationships at Educare Porirua.
Paulina Meli
Registered Teacher
Kia Ora, Talofa lava; My name is Paulina Meli. I am Samoan, and am staying in Porirua with my family. I have a Bachelor Degree of Teaching in Early Childhood Education. My passion is to build a strong relationship with children, parents and whānau. I believe children's learning is essential and every child is entitled to have the best education in the first stage of their learning. I love working in an ECE setting where we collaborate with other teachers and share knowledge and abilities to improve children's learning. I am looking forward to meeting and getting to know the children, parents and whānau of Educare Porirua.
Melissa Roe
Registered Teacher
Kia Ora my name is Melissa, I graduated with a Bachelor of teaching at Te Rito Maioha Early Childhood New Zealand in Wellington. I have always had a passion for working with and alongside children on their learning journeys. I believe each child has the right to learn in a way that is of value to them. It is my job as an educator to support every child through ensuring they feel valued, facilitating learning experiences where there are opportunities to extend on their interests, and believing in that they are confident and capable learners.
I live on the Kāpiti coast, surrounded by the beautiful beaches. I enjoy the outdoor environment, keeping active and spending time with friends and family.
Katie Wild
Registered Teacher
Kia Ora, my name is Katie and I live in Tawa with my children and cat. I graduated back in 2001 with a Bachelor of Education and have 15 years experience as an ECE teacher. I love working with young children as I get to be a big kid and act silly.
I am passionate about arts, crafts and messy play, I look forward to sharing this interest with your children.
I know how important my role as an ECE teacher is to guide and support your child's learning journey and I will do my best to bring the best out in your child. I look forward to meeting and getting to know you all.
In my spare time I like walking and watching my son play football.
Louise Dai
Registered Teacher
Kia Ora, my name is Wanqin (Louise) Dai. I come from China and I have been in New Zealand for 6 years. My journey with Educare started in 2018 when I was relieving at the Tawa Centre, once I graduated I transferred to a qualified teaching position here at Porirua. My teaching philosophy is basically respecting different cultural backgrounds, tamariki and whānau. Building reciprocal relationships with everyone and providing a harmonious learning environment. In my spare time I enjoy dancing, photography and watching Netflix. I look forward to meeting you all at Educare Porirua.
Rebecca Hudson
Provisionally Registered Teacher
Kia Ora, I’m a qualified teacher with a bachelor of education (primary) but found my passion with ECE due to the growth and development that is made in these essential years and seeing the wonder and curiosity in their eyes.
I grew up in Whangarei. I am a very passionate sports person with my craft being hockey. I have represented Northland on multiple occasions. I also love to coach and develop young sports people and get them out there being active. I also love to adventure and do freelance photography.
I look forward to growing as a Kaiako, forming and building relationships with your children and whānau and other important people in your lives.
Amie Dennis
Unregistered Teacher
Kia ora I’m Amie, I’m from Auckland, Tāmaki Makaurau. I have a passion for children to help them feel safe, learn in a positive environment and thrive. I love to incorporate messy play and the outdoors in to my teaching practice, giving tamariki the confidence to explore their environment. I have spent a lot of time traveling, I love the outdoors and having adventures. I am looking into studying and becoming a qualified early childhood teacher.
Eliana Lardner
Teacher
Kia Ora, Im Eliana but you can call me Eli. I grew up in Auckland and decided young to travel around. I spent 3 years as a camp councillor for teenagers in the states before moving back to New Zealand. My sister introduced me to the passion of Early Childhood, I decided to follow in her footsteps and give it a try. I love taking the tamariki outside to get some fresh air, play in a variety of sensory activities and get messy. I am currently living in Tawa with a bunch of friends. I love to read, spend time with family and friends and a great sideline sports cheerleader to them while they are playing sports.
Katie McKenzie
Nutritionist
Tena koe taku whanau hou, ko Katie toku ingoa. I feel so privileged to be part of the Educare whānau and will thoroughly enjoy building relationships with the tamariki and whānau of Porirua. I am very lucky to be able to combine several of my passions through my mahi – these include teaching and learning with both adults and children; cooking, food and nutrition; and sustainability and environmental kaitiakitanga. I studied and have a background in ECE, having graduated back in 2006. In more recent years I have learned and worked in food preparation and service with focus on sustainability and whole food principles. I look forward to meeting you and providing the best quality food to your tamariki at Educare Porirua.
Jayde Mackintosh
Administrator
Kia Ora koutou katoa, Ko Jayde toku ingoa, my name is Jayde and I am the receptionist/Administrator at Educare Porirua. I have been working in the ECE sector as a reliever and teacher since 2015.
I love to be a part of children's learning, working alongside tamariki and their whānau to help their tamariki blossom. After an injury I wanted to look into a career change which has led me into this position here as the Administrator. I am looking forward to working with and alongside all the tamariki, whānau and kaiako and getting to know you all.
