The first person in her immediate family to attend university, Trinity completed a Bachelor of Arts majoring in Linguistics and Te Reo Māori with support from a Victoria University of Wellington Foundation Trustees' scholarship.
Trinity says finding out about the scholarship was a transformational moment. “It was like winning the Lotto… I was really stoked and really thankful. I wouldn’t have studied if I hadn’t got the scholarship.”
She says she appreciates the assistance she received throughout her studies, especially from Te Pūtahi Atawhai, a study mentoring facility specifically for Māori and Pasifika students.
“They were so good to me—they supported me through my whole degree.”
Part of Trinity’s scholarship also included a mentorship provided by the University. Trinity’s mentor, Helen Sutch, says she enjoyed watching Trinity’s confidence grow throughout her studies.
“As Trinity's mentor, it was rewarding to guide her through some of the challenges of university life while also admiring her positive and focused approach to academic work,” says Helen.
“I was also impressed by her ability to spare time to contribute to good causes, such as helping her church to provide breakfasts for children who go without. Her degree is very well deserved.”
Trinity says she appreciates the way Helen challenged her during the course of her degree.
“We’d catch up regularly and it was really cool—especially having someone to check in with in my first year. It pushed me to always try and do my best.”
Helen also encouraged Trinity to try new and unfamiliar things, including a Theatre course, which Trinity admits was well outside of her comfort zone.
“I was so far out of my depth at first, but I loved it—and I probably wouldn’t have done it without Helen’s encouragement.”
Not one to sit still for long, Trinity will hit the ground running after graduating as she embarks on establishing her own media company, ‘Fruit from the Vine’, which aims to provide positive representations of millennial Māori through original media content.
“It’s about reducing the suicide statistics among young Māori through having positive, diverse representations of our people in the forefront—media plays a huge role in either marginalising or empowering people, and I want to create media that empowers.”
Trinity spent the final trimester of her degree focusing on topics relating to mass media in preparation for launching her company. She is also utilising connections she made throughout her studies by collaborating with her former Theatre tutor Trae Te Wiki and former classmates Kahu Kutia, Tamatha Paul and Te Nia Matthews.
Trinity celebrated graduation at Victoria's Te Herenga Waka Marae with whanau who came from around the country, as well as friends she made during her studies.
Reflecting on her three years at Victoria, Trinity says that her degree has armed her with the confidence and skills to forge her own career path.
“So many people finish university and think ‘what’s next’, but I already know what’s next and I’ve started building towards that.
“Everything has fallen into place and I credit my studies for giving me the framework to be able to prepare for my future.”