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Mr. Ellis Coxon graduated in Chemistry from the University of Durham in 1983 and became a qualified secondary school teacher in 1984. His first teaching assignment involved instructing Chemistry to 300 students aged 11 to 16, some of who were classes of students with special needs.

The UK education system at that time had no special education policies in place and teaching a theoretical subject to students who struggled with basic literacy skills proved challenging.  He describes how their lack of engagement led to them “taking great delight in misusing the acid , glass and fire involved in any practical work”.  The difficulties he encountered in this stressful and under resourced classroom environment took a toll on Mr. Coxon’s mental health, resulting in him eventually leaving the teaching profession altogether.

MusicHelps is a registered New Zealand charity governed by a board of music loving professionals who lend their expertise and passion to the cause.

They also provide emergency assistance to thousands of music people experiencing hardship and illness through our suite of music support services, including a world first, professional online, on-the-phone and face-to-face counselling service tailored to people who make music possible.

Collaborating with the Raukatauri Music Therapy Trust (RMTT) and The Kate Edger Trust to create a special award to support the growth of music therapy practitioners in Aotearoa New Zealand was an obvious partnership for the charity.

We are thrilled to announce a new award “The KEECT Master of Music Therapy Award” sponsored by Gattung Foundation and supported by the Raukatauri Music Therapy Trust (RMTT). The purpose of the award is to improve diversity within the music therapy profession by opening doors for Māori and Pasifika women.

Music Therapy is the planned use of music to assist in the healing and growth of people with emotional, intellectual, physical or social challenges.   A career in Music Therapy offers challenge, opportunity, and distinctive rewards to those with a strong musical background interested in working with people of all ages with various disabilities.  Music therapists have extensive training in music, psychology and human development.

The recipient of The KEECT Master of Music Therapy Award will receive $8,000 for one year of full-time study, and if they are in their second year of study, it will also include a minimum 750 hour placement with the Raukatauri Music Therapy Centre.  Raukatauri is committed to supporting students on placement into employment and intends to extend that commitment to recipients of this award.

RMTT Clinical and Centre Director Jen Glover (left) said she has been disheartened by the lack of Māori music therapists working in Aotearoa.

“Our experience in expanding to areas such as the Far North and the Eastern Bay of Plenty in recent years has made it clear to us that there are passionate wāhine musicians living around the country who would make amazing music therapists if they could be supported in their studies,” she said.
“We’re confident that the award will make a real difference in increasing the diversity of our field, and improving access to music therapy services around the country.”

Gattung Foundation spokeswoman Angela Gattung (pictured below left with her sister and co-founder Theresa Gattung) said the foundation was born out of a shared spirit to enable others and make real change.

“We support causes that touch us deeply and make a tangible difference – especially for Māori and Pasifika women,” she said.
“The aim of the scholarship is to inspire Māori and Pasifika wāhine musicians to consider taking up a career in music therapy, filling the need for more music therapists, whilst increasing diversity in the profession.”

The Kate Edger Trust feels this award aligns beautifully with namesake Kate Edger’s own skill and passion for music.  She was a gifted singer and played the piano and violin, performing publically at concerts with her siblings.  Her own children were also noted for their ‘gifted musical abilities’.

Full-time wāhine students, preferably of Māori and Pasifika ethnicity, studying a Master of Music Therapy can apply for the scholarship.

Applications for the award close on January 31, 2023.

Born in Northampton, England in 1931 to a ‘lower middle-class family’, Sylvia Tredwell pictured aged 29 with her eldest son Stephen, followed the social norms of the time which included leaving school at 16 to work as a shorthand secretary and later giving up work when she married to become a homemaker and mother to her 3 children Stephen, Susan and Michael.

While Sylvia later went on to have a successful and rewarding administration career where she was highly regarded, her family has often wondered if she had been born into different circumstances with the opportunity to attend university and gain formally recognised qualifications, how much more she might have achieved in her career.  They believe she would have most certainly ended up in a senior management role suited to her high level of intelligence and capability.

Sylvia’s return to the workforce and ensuing career began in 1973 when the young family emigrated to New Zealand and set up home in Hamilton. As the children were now all school-age, she worked in a number of administrative and reception roles for several years before the family moved back to Northampton in 1979.

Once back in England, Sylvia continued to work in administration, eventually ending up at British Gas where her common sense and no-nonsense approach to work and life prevailed over her lack of engineering experience and formal qualifications.  Her time there culminated in her managing a large team of Gas Engineers and their workload – a role that would have required a high level of specialised knowledge that she had gained over the years.

Even after her retirement from British Gas in the 1990s, she continued to enjoy working part-time for many years as an exam invigilator at several nearby tertiary institutions, something which gave her enjoyment and a continued purpose.

When Sylvia died in 2013 aged 82 years, she left a legacy her family is very proud of.  She displayed great resilience, tenacity, and an inherent level of practicality in her approach to her professional career and in overcoming the barriers and social preconceptions of the time.

It is with this in mind, that Sylvia’s family is offering the Women in Science Award in her memory so that someone else may be afforded the opportunities their mother didn’t, to pursue a career path of their choosing and reach their full potential.

Elizabeth Crannigan was born in 1927 in Warr犀利士
ington Lancashire.  Her parents were a WWI veteran and a housewife.  Tragically, both parents had died by the time she was 10 years old, and she and her 3 brothers were raised by their spinster Aunt Clara who undoubtedly would have struggled with the responsibility of caring for 4 orphaned children.

The difficulties young Elizabeth Crannigan faced in her early life shaped her for a lifetime of wanting to make a difference in the lives of others, especially those who were marginalised in some way.

On finishing school, Elizabeth went to London to study Art.  Her early art and design career included designing the artwork for well-known British chocolatiers Beeches Chocolates who recently celebrated over 100 years in business and for Sandersons, renowned wallpaper manufacturers.

In the late 1960’s, now a mother herself and with a passion for children and education, Elizabeth returned to study at Ilkley College of Further Education and gained a teaching qualification.  She was a passionate and creative art and remedial English teacher with a natural talent for hands-on craftwork, no doubt inherited from her carpenter father.

Challenging the gender myths of the time, she went on to teach metalwork and woodwork, eventually becoming the Head of the Craft Department at Ilkley School.  Mrs Crannigan used her classroom as an opportunity for students who struggled with mainstream subjects to discover their passion and strengths through creative work.

Outside the classroom, Mrs Crannigan continued to express her own creativity through watercolour painting and was an active and engaged member of the Ilkley Art Club.  During a trip to New York, she was invited to exhibit later that year in Philadelphia where her watercolours exhibition was a great success.  This was a special highlight in her artistic career.

After her retirement from teaching, Mrs Crannigan enjoyed travelling and had many happy trips to The States, Australia and New Zealand to visit friends and family.

She was widowed in 1998 with the death of her husband Tony, and 8 years later experienced further untimely grief with the death of her son Nicholas from cancer.  For someone who lost their parents at a very young age, to also lose a child seems very unjust.  But Elizabeth Crannigan had a special resilience and fortitude that she is especially remembered for.

In 2016 she suffered a debilitating fall which she wasn’t expected to recover from and was taken to the Gables Nursing Home to be cared for in her ‘last weeks’.  However, she confounded the experts by living and enjoying special times with her family for another 5 years before eventually passing away on September the 8th 2021.

The impact of education comes in many forms, including the teachers at school who leave a lasting imprint.  Mrs Crannigan’s students will no doubt remember her as the teacher that made them feel seen and valued.  She in turn greatly admired those students who, despite their difficult life circumstances, used her classroom to discover their creative passions, purpose and hands-on skills they could take with them in life.

It is with this in mind, that her daughter Margaret and family have chosen to honour her memory with a Kate Edger Trust Award recognising the resilience and achievement of a Kate Edger Awardee who has overcome adversity to achieve their education goals.