Pasifika Smart Centres Project focussed on how Pasifika centres
Ten years ago “significant gaps between the overlapping responsibilities of the Crown, local authorities and education providers” were identified in the 1999 report prepared by the the Manukau Education Strategy Steering Committee.
COMET was born to address these gaps and the committee recommended “a focused approach that encourages collaboration”
It has been estimated that over 1,500 families in Manukau City have seen and experienced COMET in action and the COMET staff crew has grown from one staff person to a fully manned operational team of 10 fulltime staff.
The 10 year anniversay co-incided with the worst economic global depression world wide where world wide businesses carsh laned, staff had too bail out from failing companies and banks were brought to their knees. Fortunately it has also co-incided with one of the most exciting eras in IT based communication with the Web 2.0 and Social Media phenomena, that is also having an equally dramatic on industry, technology, business trends, mass and individual communication methods.
Bernardine Vester, Chief Exective of COMET realised during 2009 that the organisations methods to engage with its various stakeholders had to change to keep apace with the new trends of Social Media, but more importantly to do this in a far more engaging way and at various touch points.
COMET runs a range of innovative programmes such as the Principal For A Day, where a local business leader becomes the nominated school principal that is designed to facilitate open, transparent one-on-one discussions between school leaders and their business counterparts, each party is able to better understand and appreciate the other.
The benefit is mutual, as schools and businesses discover that these partnerships offer a multitude of ways in which they can benefit and help one another. The COMET Principal for a Day scheme provides an opportunity to discover these benefits.
To help facilitate the flight path for COMET as it prepares for the launch into the next decade, COMET secured the services of the Social Media Consultancy and training team know affectionately as The Tweet Twins, to deliver a 2 hour insight as to how Social Media can bring the engagement they desire. The briefing seminar will explore some of the tools, trends, techniques, how to and cut through the mystery that often faces new teams wanting to launch their own Social Media flight path.
About COMET
COMET’s leading edge work connecting local government to education comes from a team of talented and committed employees that offer genuine leadership and service to education in this city.
COMET is supported by Manukau Institute of Technology who provide office accommodation and technology services including a telephone service and computers linked to MIT's network. http://www.comet.org.nz
