MASS education DEBATE

OPSA hosted this year’s October Conference for the New Zealand Union of Students’ Associations (NZUSA).  A highlight was the Great Tertiary Education Debate, held on 3 October.

Gyro's Dummies student guide to voting

In case you’ve missed it, this year is an election year for New Zealand. This is our chance to make politicians have a think about the importance of education — and how we feel about that looming debt monster...

Cheap Beer

There are many magical places in Dunedin.  This one is out of one of those strange fairy tales where every miracle comes with a twist.  The miracle: you can go there and ask for beer and they will say: You can have any beer you want — any beer you can imagine.

Meegz & Ryan Show booked for further season

Ryan Ward and Meegan Cloughley will return as Co-Presidents of OPSA in 2009.  Newcomer Thomas Bloxham will take the role of Vice-President.

Why I Believe in Free Education

This edition I thought it might be useful to reflect on why I do my job, why supporting students to participate and hopefully achieve in tertiary education is important, and why the neoliberal framing of what education is and is about is so wrong. (reprinted from Gyro 2007, issue 8)

Secret places: Cliffside Potato Patch

I’m the fortunate owner of a copy of the old 2 in:1 mi map of the Otago coastal area.  On it, between Aramoana beach and Heywards Point to the west, is marked a “potato garden.”

Ask the MP

“What is your party’s long-term plan for
the future of polytechnics?”

Review: Take It or Leave It

After collapsing from a skanking-induced coma brought on by Dunedin’s favourite rudies The ‘Bones and Skaface Claw, it was time to regroup and give NZ ska giants The Managers the respect they deserve.

Gyro Chats Up Jaquie Brown

Where else but New Zealand could you get a Who’s Who of local talent, even the PM, and persuade them to act alongside a partially fictionalized version of yourself? I called the real Jaquie Brown and found her in the middle of a planning session...

Nats play doctor with student loans

The National Party released a voluntary health bonding policy in September involving student loan wipe-offs for doctors and nurses who work in hard-to-staff areas.

OPSA's annual Staff and Graduation awards are now open

OPSA’s annual Staff and Graduation awards are now open for nominations.  Additionally, Blues awards have been extended.

Satisfied bellies

OPSA’s International Cultural Food Festival, held in September, was once again a great success.

“How do you make such damn good beer?”

One general rule holds good for New Zealand beer: if it’s advertised on TV, it’s shite.  Don’t let that fool you into thinking there’s no good stuff to be had here.  Gyro spoke to the man who makes Dunedin’s finest drop...

Free Food: Dunedin's own wild foods festival

The hills around Dunedin abound in food for the starving forager.  And I mean that literally — it was back-breaking work making a living in pre-industrial New Zealand.

Review: Erfworld

If what happened was real, then last night I was magically teleported to an alternate universe which resembles a strategy game, filled with tiny cute people, who made me their leader.