From viral graduation moment to protecting Māori data in the AI era

_{Kiisha-Rose Woodhouse addressing Ara's spring graduation}

When Kiisha-Rose Woodhouse (Ngāi Te Rangi, Tūhoe, Te Whānau-ā-Apanui) crossed the stage at Ara’s graduation ceremony in 2024 with her baby son on her hip, she had no idea the moment would be seen around the world.

After her partner's emotional tautoko from the stands at Christchurch's Wolfbrook Arena was shared online, millions viewed the celebration across social media platforms.

This week, the Tāmaki Makaurau-born wāhine Māori returns to the graduation stage once again.

Now a Bachelor of Information Technology graduate, Kiisha-Rose is leading Ara Institute of Canterbury's spring graduation cohort and helping organisations navigate one of the biggest technology challenges of our time: protecting data in the age of artificial intelligence.

“From a very young age, I was probably the first kid in my whole family who chose robotics club instead of the sports team," she laughs.

As she got older, that fascination evolved into a desire to help protect people from the darker side of technology.

"I was sick of seeing whānau and friends getting scammed online. I wanted to be that nerdy superhero everyone needed."

_{Left: Kiisha-Rose and baby Hawaikii at Ara's 2024 graduation. Right: At work at Theta}

Her journey to cybersecurity wasn’t a straight line.

After moving from Auckland to Christchurch, initially to study music, Kiisha-Rose eventually followed her lifelong passion back to IT. The move was made easier thanks to an aunty who had helped raise her and offered her a place to live while she studied.

"She was my nanny growing up and then I became her kids' nanny. It was a full-circle moment really."

Like many tauira, the journey came with challenges. As one of only a handful of Māori and Pacific students in her classes, Kiisha-Rose sometimes struggled with confidence.

"I was too whakamā to put my hand up and ask questions."

Support from Ara's Māori learner services proved transformational.

The one-on-one tutoring and encouragement helped lift both her confidence and her grades, particularly after becoming a mother during her studies.

"Having that support on campus meant that when I was finished with study for the day, I could go home and focus on being a mum."

Alongside her IT studies, Kiisha-Rose also completed te reo Māori studies, strengthening her connection to te reo Māori while preparing for a career in technology.

And, just before giving birth, Kiisha-Rose learned she'd been awarded the Theta Te Ao Māori Technology Scholarship.

The scholarship funded her degree, provided paid internships during study breaks and opened the door to hands-on experience in both cybersecurity and software development.

Today she works for the technology consultancy, where an idea she developed for her Ara final capstone project has become a commercially available tool.
Inspired by concerns around AI and data sovereignty, Kiisha-Rose created an AI risk assessment platform designed to help organisations understand how Māori data is being collected, stored and used.

"I wanted to tap into something I was passionate about. Everybody's talking about AI, but I wanted to look at it through a Māori lens."
Her tool assesses potential risks, identifies vulnerabilities and helps organisations ensure Māori stakeholders are appropriately involved in decisions about data.

"Māori data is precious. It's important to know where it's being held, how it's being used and whether it's being represented accurately."

_{Kiisha-Rose and whānau at Ara spring graduation}

For Kiisha-Rose, the success of the tool is proof that Māori voices belong in technology design.

"There aren't enough Māori and Pacific people in the industry right now. I want to keep climbing the ladder and become a role model for others."

Looking back, she credits determination and support for the strides she's made.

"My mum always says never discredit the hard work that got you there. I set goals, looked in the right places to achieve them and worked my butt off. Having a baby was not part of the plan, but I made that work too."

As Ara celebrates more than 400 graduates at its spring ceremony, Kiisha-Rose's story reflects the determination, talent and innovation that can emerge when opportunity meets support.

And while millions may remember the viral graduation mum with a baby on her hip, Kiisha-Rose is focused on a future where Māori voices, knowledge and data remain at the forefront in a rapidly changing digital world.