Capable New Zealand will shed more than half its staff — from about 30 fulltime equivalents to about 11 — under a proposal presented to staff this week, in response to declining roles since Covid-19.
Mr Ker said it was a "sad" situation.
He had some sympathy for present management, who had "inherited a mess" under the Te Pukenga model, and were now forced to meet "artificial" economic targets set by central government in order to demonstrate they could stand alone.
At its height, Capable New Zealand was the most popular school in the polytechnic, with more than 500 fulltime equivalent students.
People were also able to enrol weekly, giving it extreme flexibility for people who would otherwise be too "time-poor" to take high-level courses, Mr Ker said.
It also allowed for "innovative" work-based learning for students.
"There were some diabolical decisions under Te Pukenga, and one of the worst was shifting the enrollment for Capable New Zealand to semester-only."
Programmes managed by the school included the New Zealand diploma in construction level 6 — construction management; bachelor of information technology; bachelor of applied management; bachelor of engineering technology; bachelor of social services; graduate diploma in professional practice; master of professional practice and doctor of professional practice.
Mr Ker said the school was unique in New Zealand.
"I’ve got no doubts that it can bounce back; and what’s got to happen is to return to getting the message out there about the real strengths of this approach to learning."
The future success of the school centered on "an understanding of its uniqueness," and having the right staff to lead it, he said.
Earlier this week, Otago Polytechnic executive director Dr Megan Pōtiki said there were only about 274 fulltime equivalent students enrolled in the school’s programmes this year.
But staff who spoke to the Otago Daily Times on the grounds of anonymity said they were never given the resources or marketing to rebuild their enrollment numbers post-pandemic.
The staff member felt there had been a lot of "negative publicity" at a nationwide level about the polytechnic sector, as the minister responsible, Penny Simmonds, attempts to break up mega polytechnic Te Pūkenga into separate individual polytechnics.
However, all of the courses will remain taught and it will keep its branding.
Staff who spoke to the ODT said although it was good the polytechnic recognised the brand and value of the courses, any attempt to teach to the previous standards would be "totally impossible" with those diminished resources.
One staff member said they understood the need to rationalise resources, but did not expect the planned cuts to be so brutal.
"I honestly thought only five or six staff would be going."
Staff said those who remained would attempt to do the best they could.
"They are bespoke courses and they have considerable impact on making our learners trained agents for the future, and it’s really about generating the next generation of leaders within particular workplaces.
"The impact is at the level of the individual and at the level of the organisation."
Dr Pōtiki said it proposed to move each of the Capable New Zealand product offerings into the relevant college at Otago Polytechnic, matching options to existing areas and leadership structures and ensuring there was sufficient administrative support.
Staff would be offered continual support through the review process, she said.
