Antony Welton Fellowship

“I believe in the potential in people and that everyone can lead lives of value. Realising a life of value is harder for some and they are battling barriers before they even start.  Te Rourou is providing a chance to lower a few of the barriers through this fellowship. I am excited to see what rangatahi achieve when they are provided support shoulder to shoulder.”  – Antony Welton

In 2021, Antony Welton stepped down from his role as the Chair of Te Rourou, One Aotearoa Foundation after 12 years of dedicated voluntary service. To honour his contributions to our organisation and the commitment he has made to improving outcomes for rangatahi, we established the Antony Welton Fellowship.

This fellowship, set up with the generous support of One New Zealand and its CEO Jason Paris, provides one young person each year with a $10,000 Fellowship to support them to work towards their vision for the future. The Fellowship recipient must be able to describe a goal that they want to work towards for the 12-month period of their fellowship, and a longer-term vision for themselves and their community. This vision must help to create positive change for other young people, and work towards the Foundation’s goal of a fair Aotearoa for all young people.

After two rounds of the Antony Welton Fellowship, we have reviewed the process and have decided to narrow our focus for 2023. We are aiming to support young people whose needs have not been, or are not being, met by the education system, who have exited secondary education prematurely, or are at risk of disengaging from education.

Nomination Process

Young people must be supported by a nominating organisation such as a school, alternative education provider, a youth organisation or a partner organisation of Te Rourou, One Aotearoa Foundation. They must live within a nominated geographic region – for 2023, this region is Invercargill and Bluff – the Waihōpai and Awarua Rūnaka.

Criteria for selection for 2023 applications:

Many young people’s lives are demanding, and they don’t have the right resources to thrive. Many are struggling in the education system and have had to exit secondary school at a young age for various reasons. We are aiming to support those young people whose goals and dreams could be given a head-start with this fellowship. For us, this means young people who have had one (or more) of these experiences:

• Stand-downs and exclusion from school
• Early exit from secondary school
• Young people spending time with an alternative education provider
• Young parents
• Young people who are in secondary school but are at risk of disengaging
• We will also give additional weight to young people who identify as Māori or Pasifika and have experienced structural, systemic, and interpersonal racism – though young people of all backgrounds and ethnicities are welcome to apply

The Applicants must meet the following criteria:

• The young person must be aged between 14 and 24 years on 1st September 2023.
• They must live within Invercargill or Bluff – Waihōpai or Awarua Rūnaka, the nominated geographic region for the 2023 round.
• They must have an achievable goal for the 12-month period of their fellowship and a clearly articulated long-term vision for the future.
• They must have an intention to invest the $10,000 in personal and/or professional development. This may include:

• • Ongoing education and training
  • Non-academic research
  • Retreat or travel experiences with a specific learning goal
  • Connection to whakapapa or cultural heritage

• The application must be supported by a nominating organisation who are willing to make a strong recommendation, as well as two character referees who can help our selection panel understand more about the applicant.

The successful recipient will receive:

• $10,000 as a contribution towards their goal
• An opportunity to visit One NZ and Te Rourou at our Auckland Head Office
• Mentoring from Antony Welton and others with goal-specific skills

MEET OUR ANTONY WELTON FELLOWS

2023 Antony Welton Fellow: Izaya Simeon

Winner of the Antony Welton Fellowship 2023 is Izaya “Izzy” Simeon. Izzy, a Motupōhue/Bluff local, aspires to be a boxing coach, and is passionate about supporting Māori and Pasifika young people to achieve their goals.

A haerenga (journey) to explore his whakapapa is one of the first goals Izzy hopes to achieve, and he plans to shadow his boxing coach to learn the ropes, and eventually train rangatahi to overcome barriers in their lives through boxing.

“I am so grateful to be receiving this volume of support! This belief in me has inspired me even further to push towards my goals and I can’t wait to start ticking them off. I wish to empower Māori and Pasifika and shape the way they embrace learning and combat hardship while being proud of where they come from.” – Izzy

2022 Antony Welton Fellow: Sydney Bristow-Kennedy

2021 Antony Welton Fellow: Bailey Ives