Our Team

Keen is a Year 13 student. His motivation for establishing this club stems from a deep understanding of the critical role enrichment activities play in child development and in maintaining the mental and physical health of our elderly population.

He also recognises the pressing need to guide younger generations toward more productive yet engaging pursuits, offering an exciting alternative to the potential pitfalls of excessive gaming and social media use.

While this idea has been considered for some time, the endeavour has been accelerated by the people who work alongside him.

Through Koru STEM’s robotics and STEM programmes, the team aims to channel creativity and curiosity into practical skills.

Benjamin is a Year 12 student with a long-standing passion for STEM. From a young age, he's been fascinated by how things are made. When travelling, Benjamin's passion draws him to science and technology museums, where he'll gladly spend an entire day immersing himself.

This curiosity has evolved into a strong interest in STEM, particularly the fields of robotics, programming and AI. Benjamin's drive has led to competing in the FIRST LEGO League and the opportunity to represent New Zealand in the International Robot Olympiad.

Benjamin believes science and technology are essential for improving well-being and building a more sustainable world. Witnessing Aotearoa's declining STEM performance and unequal access to STEM education, he feels a strong stand to make a difference. He is committed to overcoming these obstacles by making these fields more engaging and available for underrepresented and low-decile Kiwi communities in Auckland. Through outreach and education, he hopes to ignite the same passion he has for STEM, raising the country's capabilities in a rapidly changing world.

Beyond his work with KoruSTEM, Benjamin is an active volunteer. His involvement with community service began at the age of five with St John, a long-term commitment instilling the value of contribution. This continues today through his weekly volunteer work with the SPCA, where he has dedicated the last two years of his time. In his free time, Benjamin enjoys spending time with his schnauzer, playing games with friends, building LEGO and Gundam models, trying new food, playing golf and travelling.

Colen is a Year 13 student with a passion for programming and astronomy, which has led to Physics, Computer Science, and Math being his favourite subjects. He has experience in 3D modelling and game development and has recently developed an interest in Finance. With a long history of leadership positions, Colen has planned and organised many events along with his fellow council members for his school which promote awareness on social issues, as well as engaging volunteer work for the community.

By making STEM education more accessible in New Zealand, his goal is to create more opportunities in Science and Engineering for local communities. His hobbies include skiing, volleyball, and playing video games. He plans to study Finance at university.

Natalia is a Year 11 student.

She is passionate about robotics and love cats.

Born in Japan and now living in New Zealand, she has maintained a strong connection to her Japanese roots. She enjoys watching Transformers movies, with Bumblebee being her favourite character, and hopes to one day build a real-life transformer robot using her robotics skills.

Natalie is a Year 10 student and renowned for her exceptional management, communication, and organizational prowess.

She demonstrates an unwavering commitment to inclusivity, ensuring everyone feels embraced and valued. During workshops, she remains perpetually eager to assist with any inquiries.In her leisure time, Natalie immerses herself in performing arts with unbridled passion. From acting and singing to dancing and illustrating, she exhibits remarkable versatility. Having participated in theatrical productions since age eight, she has cultivated a bold stage presence. Her memorable roles include Scarecrow in The Wizard of Oz and Louisa von Trapp in The Sound of Music.

Beyond the proscenium, Natalie explores screen acting. Though a neophyte in this field, she has appeared as an extra in Minecraft: The Movie and featured in a Ford Ranger advertisement. With a palpable excitement for the myriad opportunities ahead, she approaches her artistic journey with enthusiasm.As an integral part of her club, Natalie's aspiration is to create an entertaining and welcoming environment, filled with imaginative activities and infectious energy!

Arielle is a Year 9 student and a member of Koru STEM.

When COVID started, Arielle was six, and everything changed so quickly. The world is now full of amazing things such as AI, renewable energy, digital money, and so much more. Learning from home was definitely challenging at times, but she feels incredibly fortunate to have parents who supported her in staying at the forefront of learning. At her former school, Papakura Central School, students were already using Chromebooks and online apps, which made it easier for her to adapt to remote learning. She will always have special memories of her time there.

That experience sparked Arielle’s interest in robotics and programming, and she has been competing in national and international robotics competitions ever since. This year marks her fifth year, and it has been an exciting journey filled with learning, creating, and connecting with amazing people from all over the world.

What matters most to Arielle is sharing.

She wants to bring these smart ideas back to her community and share what she has learned with whānau and friends. Helping others grow, especially younger children who are curious and eager to learn, is something she really cares about.

At school, Arielle is in the extension class and enjoys helping others with mathematics. Writing is another passion of hers. She has recently fallen in love with Shakespeare and really enjoys doing relay writing with her best friends. Drawing is something she loves too, and she was super excited to win an online art competition recently.

Arielle is looking forward to seeing everyone throughout the year, whether at events, in classes, or wherever the learning journey takes her. She can talk about her interests forever and is always excited to hear about the interests of others. Her ears and heart are always open.

Ethan is a Year 9 student with six years of dedicated experience in robotics design and programming. He proudly represented New Zealand at the International Robotics Olympiad and consistently achieves top results in mathematics and digital technology.

Outside of academics, Ethan trains in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (BJJ), which has instilled resilient leadership and tactical adaptability, reinforcing his belief that “true strength elevates everyone around you.” This mindset enables him to coordinate teams and resolve technical challenges with calm precision.

Ethan is passionate about mentoring younger students in STEM fundamentals and aspires to guide them through the workshops to ignite their curiosity. Beyond STEM, he enjoys building LEGO, playing basketball, and video games such as Minecraft and War Thunder.

Aarna is a Year 11 student. She has had a fascination for STEM from a young age, and is passionate about robotics. She started her journey in robotics from 2024, but has and continues to learn and enjoy herself. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her rabbit, she also aspires to one day visit every Disneyland in the world.