PhD candidate receives Student Excellence Award for welcoming workshops
Art History PhD candidate Anna-Marie White has been awarded the Internationalisation Award at this year’s Wellington International Student Excellence Awards. This is in recognition of the writing workshops she organises for PhD students, which are attended by both domestic and international students.
“I wanted to create a homely and comforting environment, so I always bake cheese scones and cakes in the department oven in the morning and have always provided a basic hot meal to share for lunch. These small gestures established the sharing culture that we have developed into elaborate and memorable feasts being presented each weekend. People bring their comfort home food to share for main meals and the common snack table,” Anna-Marie explains.
“I am very proud of the community that we have developed. We have a very diverse community representing many disciplines across Victoria University of Wellington, all ages from all around the world. We have a sharing culture and support each other in relaxed and informal ways. To me, this award recognises the magic of manaakitanga.”
The workshops follow a model seen around the University, but Anna-Marie’s are longer with self-regulated breaks. The group meets on Fridays from 5.30 pm–11 pm, and then 9.30 am–11 pm on Saturday and Sunday, once a fortnight. It provides people with a communal silent writing environment on-campus and away from the distractions and pressure of the other parts of life.
“Our room holds 12 people and we are regularly full. Many of us work—full-time, part-time, on and off campus—and these weekends allow us to leave our busy lives behind and reside in a fully-catered academic world.”