Roana Bennett

Roana is an experienced governance and executive leader with more than 30 years of experience across education, iwi development, housing, forestry, tourism, engineering and environmental sectors. She brings strong expertise in strategic leadership, governance best practice, and organisational transformation. She is widely respected for her integrity, sound judgement and ability to support high-performing teams.

Roana is deeply committed to education and training as a pathway to regional prosperity and wellbeing. She has held senior leadership roles in education and iwi organisations, led national initiatives embedding mātauranga Māori into education, and continues to support practical, industry-aligned training pathways for rangatahi. She brings a collaborative, future-focused perspective and a strong commitment to ensuring vocational education delivers meaningful outcomes for learners, communities and industry.