Brook Turner’s journey began as a high school dropout who left school with the belief that academic success was beyond his reach. 

Reflecting on his early experiences, he said, “In school, I always felt I wasn’t good enough. I left there thinking I could never achieve academically.

“I just couldn’t remember and retain things. I had dyslexic tendencies and needed to read everything twice in order for it to go in,” he says. 

Despite these setbacks, Brook graduated with a master’s with first-class honours, attributing his success to the support he received from Unitec, and particularly the guidance of his Social Practice supervisor Helen Gremillion. 

“Because of Unitec’s support for me and Helen’s support in particular, I showed myself that I could do it,” he says. 

The influence of mentors like Helen Gremillion was life-changing for Brook. 

“She lifted me in a way that I never thought was possible; the way that I thought, the way that I write, the way I analyse other people’s arguments.”

Brook’s educational experience was a path from self-doubt to self-belief. 

“It’s been a real journey of overcoming fear and insecurities about whether I could actually finish my masters,” he says. “Higher academic educational accomplishments were not modelled to me, so I never believed it would be possible.”

Using research to drive social change

Brook’s research project has had a profound impact on social policy and practice in Aotearoa New Zealand. 

His 60,000-word master’s thesis, Self-Determined Housing Options for Young People Leaving the Care System in Aotearoa, New Zealand, is the first postgraduate thesis on youth housing for care leavers in this country. It has been the basis for the design of youth housing provision, including Te Whare Hiwa youth housing project, and his work has directly influenced government agencies.

“As a direct result of my thesis, I’ve been invited into government agencies to share what best practice looks like for youth housing,” he says. 

The forty-four-year-old father of three started his Unitec journey by doing the graduate diploma in Not-for-Profit Management in 2009.

“I was completely blown away by the first block course,” he says.  “I felt like I was meeting people who knew what I knew. I felt like I’d really found my tribe.

“I thought that if this is what education looks like in this sector, I’m keen.”

He went on to work for the Zeal Education Trust in Wellington, a charity working with young people using the creative medium as a youth development tool. He helped build the first creative arts youth facilities, and eventually moved to Auckland in 2013.

Four years later, Brook joined the team at Visionwest, the charitable trust which supports vulnerable whānau, and then in 2019 he enrolled in the Master of Social Practice programme at Unitec under the supervision of Helen Gremillion.

A year later, the global pandemic struck, and Brook was forced to navigate completing his field research against the backdrop of the Covid lockdown.

“It was like nothing I’ve ever experienced,” he says. He had to cancel all his interviews – “vulnerable young people weren’t going to Teams in,” he says. 

It was a disruptive and challenging period - at times he had to shelve his master’s study while other projects took priority. 

“I had two suspended semesters because I was heading emergency response for Visionwest and there were moments of peak demand.”

“I really had to dig deep.

“My wife said to me, don’t think about not finishing, just don’t quit.”
 
Advocating for youth homelessness solutions 

Brook’s motivation for focusing on youth homelessness in his research was rooted in his desire to address a critical social issue.
 
“My biggest why was that I had to choose a subject that was bigger than the master’s... I was like, what about the youth who are homeless? Who’s writing about this?” he says.

This passion for advocating for youth who experience housing instability became the driving force behind his thesis. 

“Young people in care experience housing instability and when they leave care, many of them end up sleeping rough or in emergency accommodation,” he says. 

His research aimed to amplify the voices of these youth and propose self-determined housing solutions that align with their needs. 

Empowering practitioners to lead change in the sector 

Brook, who is now the Director of Partnerships at Visionwest, highlights the importance of choosing a research topic that holds deep personal significance. 

His advice to future students is clear.

“Choose a subject that you care about so deeply that when you feel like giving up, the cause is greater than the degree.” 

Reflecting on his journey, Brook says, “My journey with Unitec has allowed me to move from just being passionate about an issue to actually leading change in the sector.” 

He believes that adult learners and practitioners can use their master’s thesis as a tool for advocacy and action, rather than just an academic exercise. 

As he puts it, “What the work says and what the work does is the next step, right? And that’s what’s so powerful about it.” 
 
Family support integral to his success

Brook is grateful for the support of his family throughout his academic journey. 

“I have my wife, Katie, to thank. I thanked her in my thesis dedication alongside Helen, my cultural advisor, and my boss.” 

For Brook, succeeding academically was not just a personal achievement, but also a way to model perseverance for his children while also breaking generational cycles.

“Both my parents didn’t finish their tertiary studies.

“I never had it modeled to me that you push through and finish. So, I dropped out, right?” 

Brook graduated in 2023 – a “totally transformational moment” as he crossed the stage, he says. 

“There were other students that graduated on that same day and I could see by the response of their whānau that they were the first people in their family to get a degree. And I know that it was transformational for that family, because it was to mine.

“There have been many more people on this journey than just me -- my kids have seen me push through and succeed, and hopefully that’s inspired them to push through too.

“They’ve seen the journey of commitment, grit, despair, heartache, hope and transformation,” he says. “I’ve modelled the effort and hard work that it takes and shown that it’s possible.

“I came down off that stage after receiving my degree and sat down and cried,” he says. 

“My Dad did too. I hope I’ve done him proud.