Earlier this month it was announced deputy principal Anna McDowall would replace Mike Newell at the start of term two.
Mr Newell will take up the chief advisory role at the newly created Crown entity, New Zealand School Property Agency.
Mrs McDowall said she was a former student of the school and had returned to teach there in several stints during her career.
‘‘I really love it here.
‘‘This school’s a good fit for me, for my skill set and it’s a place I keep returning to because I really believe in what Hargest does and the education it provides and I’m proud to contribute to it.’’
It was the culture of the school that appealed to her. ‘‘We are a really supportive, inclusive school, but also challenge our learners. ‘‘I’m really proud of the work that we have done finding a place for everybody here.’’ Adapting the curriculum to meet the needs of learners was something else the school offered. ‘‘I think broadening our range so that every kid can see themselves being successful here is really important to me.’’ The school’s mission statement to equip all students to create the best possible future for themselves and their world was key to what happened in the school.
‘‘Making sure we continue to evolve and live up to our mission statement is something that I really believe in . . .we’ve got some amazing staff that want to be a really secure foothold [so] that kids can grow, learn, explore, experiment, lead, think and then go on to make their future whatever they want it to be.’’
The location of the school in a community that believed in the value of education and wanted their children to achieve academically also worked in its favour.
‘‘We are able to meet those [goals] and we have some of our graduates doing amazing things all over the world, [they] have gone on to universities in different places and have made a really successful academic career from this platform and I think that’s really unique and really special from a public school perspective.’’
Before becoming deputy principal five years ago she had been in other leadership roles which included mentoring young teachers.
More recently she had been working with heads of departments to process the curriculum changes being introduced by the government.
Education was in a time of transition and she applied for the principal’s position believing she would have the advantage over someone outside of the school.
‘‘I really felt I was uniquely positioned.
‘‘I know our staff, I know how hard they work and how awesome they are.’’
She said she could continue moving the school forward in ‘‘this time of pretty unprecedented change in education’’, and ‘‘walk alongside them through those massive changes that are coming at a really fast rate of knots’’.
She was the first woman to be appointed as principal in the 68-year history of the school.
‘‘I think it’s cool to be able to show you can be a mum and be a high school principal.’’
