Latest news with #Findlater
Otago Daily Times
23-05-2025
- Business
- Otago Daily Times
Harvard dream hitch due to Trump decree
Michelle Findlater, of Invercargill, may not be able to attend a course at Harvard University in the United States after US President Donald Trump issued a directive preventing foreign students from enrolling in the student exchange and visitor programme. PHOTO: SUPPLIED Michelle Findlater's dreams of attending Harvard University have been thrown into limbo. The Invercargill woman has completed her online studies with the prestigious university, but her enrolment for a two-day course in the 2025-26 year is now in doubt after a dispute between the university and US President Donald Trump resulted in a directive preventing foreign students from enrolling in the student exchange and visitor programme. She said she had been able to complete three required online courses after receiving a Janet Lane MNZM Scholarship from the Motor Industry Training Organisation but hoped to complete a two-day on-campus course in Boston, Massachusetts. But the US government and the university had clashed after the institution refused to limit pro-Palestinian protests, and remove its diversity, equity and inclusion policies. Harvard had been warned in April that the ability to host international students could be revoked as a consequence of its stand. "I'm not sure how it's going to affect me ... "I'm halfway through now, so it'd be nice to finish that off. "I may have to complete it all online rather than heading over, which would be disappointing ... we'll just have to cross the bridge when we get there." Ms Findlater and her family had hoped to combine her on-campus education stint with a family holiday. "... it would be fantastic for the kids to see mum go to Harvard." Part of her objective to attend the university was "just for the experience and the people you'd meet". "I'm being optimistic the powers that be can see some sense." Ms Findlater said the American university year was different from New Zealand's and the course she was completing was professionally based and the 2025-26 course was yet to be released. There had been no correspondence from the university, but she hoped to learn more when she started next year's enrolment. The former Menzies College student now heads Southern Automobiles as its dealer principal after starting in the motor trade as an auto electrician in her 20s. Ms Findlater said the calibre of training and people she met online had made her classes, which ran from 3am to 6.30am (NZ time), "well worth it". "I'm hoping it continues." — Toni McDonald
NZ Herald
20-05-2025
- Health
- NZ Herald
Bowel cancer sufferers, survivors protest lowering screening age at Parliament
Mother of three Jay Findlater was living with stage four bowel cancer. She said it took eight months of appointments and several hospital admissions before she was diagnosed with the advanced cancer. 'Because of my age – being 38 – I didn't fit into the box and they didn't test and, yeah, and then it turns out stage four,' Findlater said. Findlater said the time since her diagnosis had been 'a hell of a year' and she was determined that other young families should not face a similar struggle. 'In Australia, I would've had a chance at life' Arini Poutu had survived for two years after being given three months to a year to live. By the time she was diagnosed – at 55 years old – the cancer had spread to her lungs and liver. 'I spent most of my life in Australia. I returned to New Zealand to embrace Te Reo and raise my children here. So it's kind of frightening that – if I had stayed Australia – I would've got screening and had a chance at life,' Poutu said. Poutu said she didn't want anyone else to die from what should be a preventable disease. Matching Australian screening age Health Minister Simeon Brown met with the protesters on Parliament lawn. He told them he was determined to lower the age for screening but would not be drawn on when this would happen. 'We will match Australia. We're committed to that. Access to colonoscopies is the key to being able to do that and that requires the capacity of the system to be able to deliver that and – as it increases the capacity – we will lower that age,' Brown said. 'You are never too young' Board member Mike Killick said a report presented to the previous Health Minister Shane Reti showed there was capacity in the public and private health systems to do more colonoscopies. But he said testing was needed at early stages to direct patients towards the investigative procedure more efficiently. 'That earlier detection is critical and a FIT [Faecal Immunochemical Test] test is pretty simple, it's pretty cost effective and so it needs to be rolled out to get that earlier detection coming on through,' Killick said. Bowel Cancer NZ support nurse Victoria Thompson said if detected early a person had a 90% chance of surviving bowel cancer, but if allowed to advance to stage three or four their chances dipped below 10%. She said there needed to be a change of mindset in the health system so people who presented with symptoms at a younger age weren't discounted. 'There does need to be a shift in the conversation that you are never too young and, although the symptoms can be a little bit difficult to detect, they need to be addressed and they need to be investigated regardless of how old you are,' Thompson said. Protest organiser Rachael Ferguson's cancer was in remission following her diagnosis at 32 years old. She said it was important to put real people dealing with bowel cancer in front of the Ministers. '[We] absolutely feel heard, [there's] still work to be done which we were expecting but it's been a great turnout. 'We got to talk to the people we really needed to talk to and there was a lot of emotion around today. That has a really big impact when you're talking to the face of our Government so I think today was a good outcome,' Ferguson said.
