The Waiariki Community College was opened in Rotorua in April 1978. Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, the college established additional campuses in Tokoroa, Whakatane, Taupō, Tūrangi and Kawerau. In 1998, the college was renamed Waiariki Institute of Technology. The institute provided education in various areas, such forestry, Māori studies, business management, journalism, sport and music.[3]
In 1982, the Bay of Plenty Community College was opened in Tauranga (later known as Bay of Plenty Polytechnic). The college initially ran various administration, engineering, and agriculture courses, later expanding to other areas such as hospitality, tourism and television. By 1991, the polytechnic had expanded to two main centres - Windermere Campus in Poike, and Bongard Centre in downtown Tauranga. In 2010, a total of 9,443 students were studying at Bay of Plenty Polytechnic.[4]
On 1 May 2016, these two institutions merged to form Toi Ohomai Institute of Technology. The new name was gifted by local iwi, and means "to aim high and achieve great heights; to be awakened by learning."[2]
On 1 April 2020, Toi Ohomai Institute of Technology was subsumed into Te Pūkenga (the New Zealand Institute of Skills and Technology) alongside the 15 other institutes of technology and polytechnics (ITPs).[5]
