Marriage Celebrant Essentials
starting Tuesday 4 JuneThis very popular, on-line, short course provides all the essentials for starting out on the right foot as a marriage celebrant. MCE ensures a thorough knowledge of the legalities imposed by the Marriage Act and recent changes affecting celebrants. You will be well set up for applying or renewing your appointment with BDM, and dealing with the tricky legal questions that invariably arise in a public role. You will learn about designing ceremonies at the simpler end of the spectrum.
This course is ideally complemented by the Ceremony and Celebration in May, for those wanting a full planning and design process for all bespoke personalised ceremonies. It provides a thorough foundation for working as a celebrant and opens possibilities for offering a wider range of ceremonies.
Enrolment at least 5 weeks before course commencement to secure the earlybird rate (before 30 April) and adequate time for pre-course student preparation. Enrolments less than one week before course commencement incur a 10% surcharge to cover the additional admin.
Tuesday 4 June: 7:00pm-9:30pm
Tuesday 11 June: 7:00pm-9:30pm
Tuesday 18 June: 7:00pm-9:30pm
Funeral Celebrant – ultimate combo of online and face-to-face training
starting Thursday 4th April 2024This ultimate combo of online and face-to-face training as a funeral celebrant in New Zealand is a one-off chance to get the benefit of both online and face-to-face practical celebrant training. You will learn to competently and confidently design and lead funeral ceremonies and have the added bonus of site visits and discussions with a Funeral Director, mortuary, natural burial cemetery. Get real experience and build your collegial network! It helps if you have already completed the Ceremony and Celebration paper, although practising celebrants and others with experience in the industry and/or with loss and grief may also apply. (Contact the Director to discuss your suitability). This course will be delivered in a combination of online Zoom classes, followed by a full immersion weekend in Wellington. Grab this opportunity for the ultimate funeral package.
Note the dates:
Thursday 4 April: 7:00pm-9:30pm
Thursday 11 April: 7:00pm-9:30pm
Tuesday 16 April: 7:00pm-9:30pm
Thursday 18 April: 7:00pm-9:30pm
Saturday 27 April: 10:00am-5:00pm
Sunday 28 April: 9:00am-3.00pm (Please note: the weekend times may be adjusted depending on group size)
Marriage Celebrant Essentials
starting 30 April 2024This very popular, on-line, short course provides all the essentials for starting out on the right foot as a marriage celebrant. It ensures a thorough knowledge of the legalities imposed by the Marriage Act and recent changes affecting celebrants. You will be well set up for applying or renewing your appointment with BDM, and dealing with the tricky legal questions that invariably arise in a public role. You will learn about designing ceremonies at the simpler end of the spectrum and subsequent courses will develop deeper knowledge and skills.
THIS COURSE FILLS QUICKLY! Earlybird discount (saving you $50 off the full price of $360 has been extended to 3 April!) Enrolments received within the week before course commencement incur a 10% surcharge to cover the additional admin required.
Tuesday 30 April 2024: 7:00pm-9:30pm
Tuesday 7 May 2024: 7:00pm-9:30pm
Tuesday 14 May 2024: 7:00pm-9:30pm
Ceremony and Celebration – start your celebrant training here!
18/19 & 25/26th May 2024 (online across 2 weekends)Are you wondering what a celebrant does, what makes a good ceremony, or how to become a celebrant? This course gives a realistic preview of the role, explores a range of ceremonies, and starts to build essential skills. It is recommended as the first course towards the Certificate in Celebrant Studies (although other entry points are possible). You will gain a firm understanding of the nature of ceremony and ritual and the role of the celebrant in Aotearoa-New Zealand, build essential writing and delivery skills, and receive a framework for the planning and design of a broad range of contemporary ceremonies.
Weekend 18 & 19 May 9.00am – 4:00pm each day
and
Weekend 25 & 26 May 9:00am – 1.00pm each day
Note: We are delivering this programme fully by Zoom, but be assured that we have mastered how to keep you so engaged that time will fly on Zoom. Feedback from past participants shows that you build both skills and a professional network and have fun in the process!
Earlybird rate available until 16 April.
Please enrol early, so we can easily deliver precourse info to everyone. To enable smooth processing of enrolments and adequate time for pre-course student preparation, we need enrolments at least 2 weeks before course commencement. Enrolments after this date incur a 10% surcharge.
Professional Practice – starting 22 May
Finish Your CertCelSts in 2024Prerequisite: Ceremony & Celebration & completed full Marriage strand, Funerals or both.
This Professional Practice course will be in a series of 7 Wednesday Zoom evenings starting 22 May, through to 3 July. [The option of including a weekend meeting in-person in Auckland will be discussed with participants.]
All Zoom evening sessions are held 7.00pm-9.30pm.
Please enrol by 12 April to allow for thorough precourse prep and to access best course fee.
Diploma Accreditation Course June 2024
For Past Graduates with 5 papersThis is a small, guided, peer-learning course to stretch, refresh, and update practice. It is designed for those celebrants who graduated with their Certificate in Celebrant Studies prior to 2017 having completed all 5 qualification courses (when only 3 were required), who would like their ceremonial practice reassessed at the current Diploma level. A ceremony assignment will be set and assessed and any emerging themes used as a stimulus for group exploration. This course was extremely well-received by the 2023 pilot group as a mechanism to learn at an advanced level, and giving due regard for the experience within the group. A course outline and further info will be forwarded on application.
Application must include proof of completed celebrant papers, whether through AUT or The Celebrant School.
Dates: Tues 4th, 11th June and 25th June, 7-9.30pm each evening.
[Note: Past CertCelSts grads with 4 papers can complete the 5th to receive their Diploma in Celebrant Studies]
Transition Ceremonies – Diploma paper
starting 23 July 2024 - evening and weekend Zoom sessionsPrerequisite: Ceremony & Celebration Course plus at least one other
Gain mastery in Transition Ceremonies in a small class of experienced peers! This is an advanced course providing training in the design and delivery of ceremonies for transition through change and crisis – whether personal, family or community (e.g. illness, bereavement, abuse, infertility, separation and divorce, natural disasters etc). It is designed principally for those who have some experience as celebrants (or facilitators) and who wish to extend their practice into this area.
Dates: Tuesday evenings 23 & 30 July; 6, 13,20 Aug 7pm – 9.30pm and Sun 25 Aug 9.30 – 3pm
Weekend session time may vary depending on group size
Earlybird discount ends 18 June. Thereafter course fee is $795
Down to Earth – The Changing Funeral Needs of a Changing Society
by Marian BarnesMarian was a long-time campaigner for the right of non-religious people to have secular funerals.
This book was first published in 1991, and demand was so high when it went out-of-print, that she made it available for copying and distribution by The Celebrant School. This extremely thorough resource is a funeral classic, covers everything from the historic antecedents of the contemporary funeral, through funerals vs memorials, lowering vs not lowering the casket, considerations around death notices in newspapers, a sample funeral, readings and much more.
A highly recommended resource, this is copied and spiral bound.
Honouring Our Loved Ones
by Brian MalcouronneThis edition, published in 2014, contains notes and resources for funeral celebrants, families and friends. Brian was a local author and spiritual director, so writes from the New Zealand perspective.
The book is available exclusively through The Celebrant School by kind permission of Liz Malcouronne.
NB: Stocks are very low.
Finding Whakatauki – their Focus and Function in Ceremony
Workshop recordingThis Zui, led by celebrant, Karen Tangaere, was recorded during Te Wiki o te Reo Māori, 2023. It encourages celebrants to explore the focus and function of whakataukī (Māori proverbs), so that they are more knowledgeable and confident to use them in their ceremonies. Before watching the recording, you should first research a whakataukī that speaks to you personally, and have that with you.
Karen Rongokahekeiterangi Tangaere
He uri nō Porourangi e mihi atu ana ki a koutou katoa
I greet you as a descendant of Porourangi.
Ko Hikurangi te maunga
Ko Waiapu te awa
Ko Ngāti Porou te iwi
Tūwhitia te hopo! Feel the fear and do it anyway! We hope you enjoy this ongoing professional development session.
Fresh Perspectives on Funerals in Covid Times
Workshop recordingFunerals have been perhaps the most disrupted ceremony during the Covid pandemic. Celebrants have responded in creative ways to assist families in finding respectful, loving and appropriate ways to mark the passing of a loved one.
This workshop, facilitated by Winnie Duggan, brought celebrants together to share experiences and refresh ideas. For those who missed the session in November 2021, this video records the 3 main presentations by Winnie (Wellington), Sam Bennett (Taranaki), and Laura Manson (Golden Bay). They illustrate how celebrants have needed to find new ways to engage with clients and assist them mark the death of a family member.
NB: The Covid specific information shared back in November 2021 has since been updated, so check the Government website for current guidelines.