Sandra Morrison

Sandra Lee Morrison is a New Zealand academic, and is a full professor at the University of Waikato, specialising in researching and advocating for adult education for diverse populations across the Asia Pacific region.

Early life and education
Morrison affiliates with Ngāti Maniapoto, Ngāti Rarua, and Te Arawa iwi. As a child Morrison took part in performances of Māori singing and dancing for tourists, with her family, but did not enjoy it and preferred reading books, which she says got her 'hooked on learning'. She was the first in her family to graduate from university, and saw a 'ripple effect' through the family as they realised education was a route into better job opportunities. Morrison obtained a master's degree in 2002 of Māori and Pacific Development from the University of Waikato.

Academic career
Morrison is on the faculty of the University of Waikato, where she was appointed as a full professor in 2022.

Morrison served from 2004 to 2008 as President of the Asia South Pacific Association for Basic and Adult Education. From 2008 she was elected President of the International Council for Adult Education. Morrison said her goals for her four-year term were to "reaffirm and strengthen that access to good quality education is a human right" and "to achieve greater recognition of the importance of education in sustainable development and this means taking into consideration the rights of women and those vulnerable groups. For example, the number of illiterate people is still unacceptable." Morrison co-founded the Indigenous, Maori and Pacific Adult Education Charitable Trust (IMPAECT) to develop cultural diverse approaches to education.

Morrison is part of the Deep South National Science Challenge, where she leads work on iwi relationships with the Southern and Antarctic oceans, Te Tai Uka a Pia, and leads the Vision Mātauranga work. She has written about the importance of the Treaty of Waitangi, and about iwi attitudes to climate change.

Honours and awards
In 2009 Morrison was inducted into the University of Oklahoma’s International Adult and Continuing Education Hall of Fame. In 2011, she won an Ako Aotearoa award for Sustained Excellence in Tertiary Teaching.