The principal has been delegated authority by the school’s board of trustees to take responsibility for ensuring the school’s strategic plans and annual action goals are successfully achieved, and for leading the day to day operation of the school. The principal works in collaboration with the leadership team composed of the deputy principal, assistant principal and SENCO leader in order to continuously improve the educational experiences of our students. Our Leadership Team at Whangarei Primary School are:
Kia ora koutou whanau, Ko Exmoor te Maunga, Ko Exe Te Awa, No Somerset, England ahau, Ko Ngapuhi tonu te Iwi, Ko Donald toku papa, Ko Celia toku mama, Ko Tanya Maich toku hoa rangatira, Ko Ella toku kotiro, Ko Oliver raua Milan oku tama, Ko Danny Jewell toku ingoa, Ko au tumuaki te kura o Whangarei Primary. No reira tena koutou, tena koutou, tena tatou katoa.
My name is Danny Jewell and I am privileged and excited to be the new Principal of Whangarei Primary School, from Term 3, 2019. I have been teaching and leading in education for the past 25 years in a diverse range of locations, schools and ages. In England I taught for 10 years in private schools, where I honed my skills in leadership as a Head of Sports for four years at Haberdashers' Aske's Boys' School in Elstree. I arrived in New Zealand in 2005 and taught at Tauraroa Area School for 10 years, where I had experience teaching in Years 4-9, and was Deputy Principal in charge of the Primary area for 6 years. in 2014, I moved to Parua Bay School as their Principal, where the roll rocketed from 220 - 390 in two years. Under such extraordinary circumstances, as a first time Principal, I learnt very quickly about the varied roles of a Principal. My educational philosophy is really quite simple: the student is front and centre and needs to be engaged, stimulated and empowered to learn; the teacher is the most valuable resource a school can have, and needs to be supported, valued and motivated; and whanau is at the top of the pyramid, and connections between student, school and parents need to be strong and based on relational trust for optimum learning to happen. Therefore, I would urge that you, as parents and whanau, get involved in your children's education - get to know your child's class teacher, take every opportunity to visit the school, make connections to the school and ensure your child has the best possible chance of achieving by becoming involved in the school. I look forward to connecting with you at school, and ensuring that your child is happy and successful at Whangarei Primary School.
I am a born and bred Northlander having done all of my schooling in the Tikipunga area before spreading my wings in the big wide world.
After teaching around New Zealand and around the world I finally returned to Whangarei in 2000 to start my family. I now live in Tamaterau with my husband and my two children.
My most recent teaching has been in the year 7 and 8 area and as a Deputy Principal locally. Over the past 18 months I have been volunteering within St John and working part time in schools around Whangarei. The rest of my spare time is spent following my kids around their sports indulging my family's love of fishing, travelling as much as possible and spending time in the paradise that is the Whangarei.
My passions in education are wide and varied but you are most likely to find me in classrooms encouraging a love of oral language, drama, sports and finding the fun in learning. I look forward to spending the next three terms working with the students and community of Whangarei Primary.
Prior to moving my family to Whangarei in 2016, I worked at a number of schools both around NZ and abroad. Since working at Whangarei Primary I have enjoyed working in an environment of high challenge and innovation having been the Curriculum Leader for both Literacy and Languages along with sitting on most other curriculum lead teams while teaching in the senior syndicate. I am passionate about empowering students throughout the learning process and feel privileged to be part of this great teaching and learning team.
All of New Zealand’s state and state-integrated schools have a board of trustees. The board of trustees is the Crown entity responsible for the governance and the control of the management of the school. The board is the employer of all staff in the school, is responsible for setting the school’s strategic direction in consultation with all stake holders, and ensures that the school provides a safe environment and quality education for all of its students. Boards are also responsible for overseeing the management of personnel, curriculum, property, finance and administration.
Trustees are elected every three years by the school’s parent community and staff members. Our school’s Board of Trustees is generally made up of four trustees elected from amongst the parent community, one elected staff representative, and the principal of the school. The board can also co-opt additional trustees when it needs a particular skill set in order to strengthen its operation.
Erica Phillips: Chairperson
Ray Campbell: Member
Jarrod Goodall: Treasurer
Victoria Bell: Member
Rewi Henderson: Member
Teresa Battersby: Staff Trustee
Danny Jewell: Principal
We are most fortunate to have an extremely dedicated and very capable team of teachers at our school, who have a reputation for going the extra mile for the students in their care. The on-going professional development of our team has a high priority in the school’s strategic plan, and as such every teacher has access to regular training opportunities to ensure they remain at the forefront of the most effective research based teaching practices. Our team of teachers at Whangarei Primary School are:
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"Be kind whenever possible. It is always possible."- Tenzin Gyatso, 14th Dalai Lama
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"It takes a big heart to help shape little Hands."
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"God give strength to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference."
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