Student Experience
Laidlaw’s Student Support is part of the Student Experience team. The Student Support team works closely with the Library and with Student Services to ensure that students are well supported in their Laidlaw journey from admission to graduation. Student Support provides academic and pastoral support for all students in all modes of learning that Laidlaw offers. Our main goal is to help students succeed in their studies. If you need help with an assignment, essay writing, referencing, time management, exam preparation or study effectively, then we are able to assist. Along with academic support, we provide pastoral support and IT support.
Please feel free to drop in to meet any of our Support Staff at any time on your campus. For Distance Learning Students, this can be a “virtual” drop in by email or through Teams Chat. If there is no support staff available when you drop in, you can make an appointment to meet with one of the team at a time that suits you both.
Here is our support team. Feel free to approach any of them ….
All Campuses
PASTORAL SUPPORT
We encourage you to utilise the pastoral support structures of your own church. However, you are very welcome to talk through any personal matters with our Student Dean, Jenny Mackie. She is also able to assist you to access other avenues of support, both here at Laidlaw and with other agencies. Jenny can be contacted at [email protected] or on 09 836 7806. You can find her at the Western end of Level 3 on our Henderson campus.
DISABILITY SUPPORT
We have staff members specifically tasked with assisting students who have a physical or learning disability and who may need practical or academic support. Fiona Fey is here to both offer support and connect students with those who can give additional support.
She can be contacted at [email protected] or
09 836 7878.
TECHNICAL SUPPORT
Aidan Quayle is an Information Technology Assistant at Laidlaw College. He is onsite at the Henderson Campus on a part-time basis, and is available on Tuesdays and Fridays providing support to all students and staff alike, including distance learning students via phone or email ([email protected]).
Henderson
STUDENT SUPPORT
Fiona Fey is a graduate of Laidlaw College and loves the Laidlaw community. Her vocational background has been in disability support and Youth Work with the Presbyterian Church of Aotearoa New Zealand. Fiona is responsible for all the undergraduate students on the Henderson Campus. Academic life can, at times, be stressful, so Fiona’s role is to support students in finding ways forward to reach their goal to graduate at the end of their programme. Alongside her responsibility to lead the Student support team across the country, and in supporting students with disabilities, she is the programme advisor for Theology undergraduate students for the Henderson and Manukau students. If you are doing a Diploma, Degree or a Graduate Certificate or Diploma, Fiona will help you work out which papers fit best to meet the goals of heading into the vocation God has called you to beyond Laidlaw. She can be contacted at [email protected] or on 09 836 7878. The student support office is located at the far end of the ground floor of the library.
Fia Esera joined the Student Experience team at Laidlaw College in October 2024. In her role as Student Experience Advisor she provides academic and pastoral support to our Distance Learning and Pasifika students as they journey from enrolment to graduation.
She completed her BA at the University of Auckland, majoring in Education and Sociology, and graduated in May 2024. She then worked as a Life and Identity Services Officer for the Department of Internal Affairs for about three months before pursuing her calling at Laidlaw College!
Fia was born in Samoa and raised in West Auckland. She is a member of the New Lynn Samoan Seventh-Day Adventist Church and is passionate about engaging with her youth group through sports, Bible studies, and other youth events. Outside of work, she enjoys playing volleyball and spending time with her family.
She can be contacted at [email protected]
Joanna Oh is a Student Experience Advisor. In her role she supports both students on campus and our distance learners from enrolment to graduation. She assists with all things academic-related as well as pastoral care of students. You will also spot her at Te Wāhi Maīoha (Henderson campus welcome pod) and in the Henderson campus library helping students find books and sending distance learning requests.
She moved to NZ from South Korea when she was 10 years old. She grew up in Tauranga and lived abroad in Seoul and Melbourne. She has a diverse background, from studying a Bachelor of Fine Arts to being on staff at Student Life (Auckland University’s Christian group), to working as an English as a Second Language teacher at public schools in South Korea for many years and, most recently, as the community events specialist at Tauranga City libraries.
Joanna likes to go for nature walks, relax at the beach and is a foodie who loves finding new recipes to try!
She can be contacted at [email protected]
Christchurch
STUDENT AND PASTORAL SUPPORT
Mele Taakimoeaka Campus Coordinator - Christchurch
Mele sits at the front desk of the Christchurch campus where she carries out daily operational and administration tasks for the campus, as well as welcome all students, staff, and visitors with a smile as they walk through the front doors. Mele works alongside the student leadership team to plan events that promote community life and engagement, as well as advocate on their behalf for any initiatives they want to implement towards the operation of Laidlaw College. Throughout the year, Mele coordinates events like O-Week, Community Lunches, Open Nights, and Graduation.
Mele is first generation New Zealand-born. Her parents hail from the friendly islands of the Kingdom of Tonga. She was born and raised in Ōtautahi along with her five siblings. She has lived all around Ōtautahi but has since moved back to Upper Riccarton where she now lives with her husband.
ACADEMIC SUPPORT ADVISOR
Rowena Stevenson offers academic and pastoral support to students on the Christchurch campus. As part of the wider Student Experience team, she contributes to ensuring a smooth progression from enquiries to graduation. Rowena works part time and is generally available Monday to Wednesday.
She works with individuals or small tutorial groups on everything from time management and study planning to research and resourcing, shaping an academic essay and reviewing marked assignments. She helps unravel two favourite questions for all students: “What does this question mean?” and “How do I reference this?"
Rowena enjoys engaging in life-shaping conversations, guiding programme and course selection, particularly for Theology Students on the Christchurch Campus and those studying by distance.
She loves seeing students move from nervousness to competence. She helps others find a way to manage study alongside life’s derailing curveballs.
Outside of Laidlaw, Rowena is a registered Marriage Celebrant, offers pastoral supervision, and preaches occasionally at Anglican churches in her locale. She pulls weeds from her garden paths, aspires to walking the Port Hills more often than she does, and appreciates watching the tides and the seasons come and go.
As a founding trustee she keeps an eye on Sonrise Christian School in Gisborne, but these days her eye is more on her delightful grandchildren and wondering why they live so far away.
She can be contacted at [email protected].
Distance Learning
STUDENT SUPPORT
Fiona Fey is a graduate of Laidlaw College and loves the Laidlaw community. Her vocational background has been in disability support and Youth Work with the Presbyterian Church of Aotearoa New Zealand. Fiona is responsible for all the undergraduate students on the Henderson Campus. Academic life can, at times, be stressful, so Fiona’s role is to support students in finding ways forward to reach their goal to graduate at the end of their programme. Alongside her responsibility to lead the Student support team across the country, and in supporting students with disabilities, she is the programme advisor for Theology undergraduate students for the Henderson and Manukau students. If you are doing a Diploma, Degree or a Graduate Certificate or Diploma, Fiona will help you work out which papers fit best to meet the goals of heading into the vocation God has called you to beyond Laidlaw. She can be contacted at [email protected] or on 09 836 7878. The student support office is located at the far end of the ground floor of the library.
ACADEMIC SUPPORT ADVISOR
Rowena Stevenson offers academic and pastoral support to students on the Christchurch campus. As part of the wider Student Experience team, she contributes to ensuring a smooth progression from enquiries to graduation. Rowena works part time and is generally available Monday to Wednesday.
She works with individuals or small tutorial groups on everything from time management and study planning to research and resourcing, shaping an academic essay and reviewing marked assignments. She helps unravel two favourite questions for all students: “What does this question mean?” and “How do I reference this?"
Rowena enjoys engaging in life-shaping conversations, guiding programme and course selection, particularly for Theology Students on the Christchurch Campus and those studying by distance.
She loves seeing students move from nervousness to competence. She helps others find a way to manage study alongside life’s derailing curveballs.
Outside of Laidlaw, Rowena is a registered Marriage Celebrant, offers pastoral supervision, and preaches occasionally at Anglican churches in her locale. She pulls weeds from her garden paths, aspires to walking the Port Hills more often than she does, and appreciates watching the tides and the seasons come and go.
As a founding trustee she keeps an eye on Sonrise Christian School in Gisborne, but these days her eye is more on her delightful grandchildren and wondering why they live so far away.
She can be contacted at [email protected].