I am a passionate educator and a lifelong learner. 

My career in education can be summed up in three chapters. The first chapter of my career was focused on learning and developing the craft of teaching. My roles were a mix of full time and part time while my children were young but always involved stretch and leadership in Mathematics and ICT.  

The second chapter,  I refer to as the innovative stage. I embraced the emerging technology in a fast changing world and ensured I remained current in my practices and kept learning. It was during this phase of my career that I developed my theories around ubiquity, agency and autonomy for the learners and how technology advanced and accelerated engagement and learning. “Know when to turn it on and when to turn it off,” became a catch phrase of mine. 

The third chapter of my career, has been focussed on leadership development and I have been incredibly fortunate to do this from the establishment phase of Shotover School and as a team leader at St Clair Primary in Dunedin.  

I feel very fortunate to live in Queenstown and to be a member of the Shotover Primary School community. I  enjoy getting outdoors as much as I possibly can and am often seen trekking the trails with my foxy x, Baxter. . When I can be outside with my two adult daughters and young grand daughter, I feel at my best!

I began my teaching career in Ireland before leaving home to seek new experiences and adventures around the world. My travels took me to Queenstown, where I have lived for eight years and which I now call my home away from home. I am very proud of my Irish heritage and have a huge family at home. When I am not working I love to take advantage of the wealth of adventure that Queenstown offers by snowboarding, hiking and biking.

I feel extremely lucky to have begun my New Zealand learning journey at Queenstown Primary School where I developed my knowledge of the curriculum and an understanding of 21st century learners. I am tremendously excited about the next step of my journey at Shotover Primary School and to developing positive and caring relationships with all the community. I hope to bring my passion for creativity to the modern learning environment at Shotover Primary School and I look forward to guiding the children towards becoming life-long and productive learners.

I am thrilled to be part of the Shotover team and to be working in such an exciting space.
I grew up in Dunedin where I completed my schooling and tertiary education. My family and I moved to Queenstown at the beginning of 2016.

Every child deserves the chance to succeed and to become an independent lifelong learner. I am passionate about developing meaningful relationships with the children and their whānau. I bring to the classroom an element of challenge that helps drive the children to succeed. My aim is to develop life-long learners who are inquisitive and strive to achieve their personal best.

My family likes to get outdoors. We enjoying camping and mountain biking together. I enjoy reading, anything crafty and running, and am looking forward to exploring Queenstown and its beauty.

Being born and raised in Southland I’ve been a regular visitor to the Wakatipu Basin for many years. I always enjoyed my visits here, but it wasn’t until my wife Andrea and I moved to Queenstown, 14 years ago, that I got a true appreciation of what a healthy impact your environment can have on your life. I appreciate the outdoor lifestyle we have on our doorstep and love getting ‘lost’ in the hills, be it trail running, biking or skiing in the winter. Andrea and I have made Lake Hayes Estate our home for the last 9 year where we have slowly grown our  family. We are incredibly proud parents of Freddie, Rosa and George.

Having trained at Dunedin College of Education and Otago University in the 90’s, my teaching career has spanned well over 20 years. During this time I have taught in a variety of schools around New Zealand, Australia and the UK. Since returning to New Zealand from my OE and settling in Queenstown, I have taught at (most of the) local primary schools. I’ve held a variety of positions in schools around the Basin having started as a Classroom Teacher before taking opportunities to be a Team Leader, Deputy Principal and at times, Acting Principal. 

I’m incredibly excited and privileged to be continuing my leadership journey at Shotover Primary School. I especially look forward to connecting with our local community and building relationships with the families in our area. I value relationships, believing that they are fundamental to learning and the key to engaging our tamariki in a successful start to life!!