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19 October, 2018 Academic

Introducing the 2019 Kindergarten to Year 6 leadership team

St Michael’s Grammar School is delighted to introduce the new 2019 K-6 leadership team including the Associate Head (K-6), Director (K-2) and Director (3-6).

Through the new K-6 structure we will strengthen the links between the Kindergarten, Primary and Secondary phases of schooling, but also recognise that there are essential and important differences between them.

The new executive role, Associate Head (K-6), will be responsible for the quality and consistency of teaching, learning and caring in K-6 classrooms, and will lead the staff of K-6 and ensure that the benefits of our K-12 structure continue to evolve. The renewed focus on the early and junior years will see a realignment of the Quadrants across the School in 2019. Reporting directly to the Associate Head (K-6) will be two new Director positions, Director (K-2) and Director (3-6).

Associate Head (K-6)

After an extensive recruitment and search process, we are delighted to announce that Ms Nicole Ginnane has been appointed Associate Head (K-6), and will commence at the School at the beginning of 2019.

Nicole joins St Michael’s after holding a number of senior positions in schools in Victoria and New South Wales. An outstanding educational leader, Nicole brings with her a breadth and depth of experience and a strong focus on educating the whole child. Nicole is currently Deputy Principal and Head of Junior School at Ruyton Girls’ School in Melbourne, and was previously Head of Junior School at MLC School in Sydney. Nicole has also held positions at Toorak College, Wesley College and The Peninsula School.

Nicole has demonstrated an extraordinary talent for building professional teams united in improving teaching and learning using collaborative, evidence-informed approaches and the analysis of data in planning to meet students’ needs. Nicole is creative, collaborative and curious, exhibiting and modelling the habits of mind of a lifelong learner. Nicole is also President-elect of the Victorian branch of the Independent Primary School Heads Association (IPSHA).

Nicole’s areas of interest include inquiry-based approaches and pedagogies that improve the level of personalised learning for students. She has experience of and a commitment to the Reggio Emilia philosophy that underpins the best practice programs of St Michael’s Margaret Thomas House Kindergarten.

Nicole holds a Master of Educational Leadership from the University of New South Wales and is a sessional lecturer in Education at the University of Melbourne. She is looking forward to bringing her unique blend of expertise and experience to St Michael’s.

You can read Nicole’s bio here.

Director (K-2)

Mr Glen Hayres has been appointed Director (K-2). Glen is currently Assistant Principal (Prep-Year 2) at Auburn South Primary School where he is responsible for leading the well-being, teaching and learning of the early years. Glen holds a Master of Education in Instructional Leadership from Melbourne University and he has used his strong understanding of the research base to inspire the development of high-impact teaching strategies designed to improve student learning outcomes and levels of engagement.

Glen has over 15 years’ teaching and leadership experience within local and international schools. For the past six years, he has held senior leadership positions at Auburn South Primary School. Prior to his current role, he held the position of Assistant Principal (Teaching and Learning Prep-Year 6) at the School for five years.

As Director (K-2), Glen’s expertise will ensure the play-based approaches that underpin quality learning in the Margaret Thomas House Kindergarten and Preparatory year programs are balanced with the acquisition of foundational skills in numeracy and literacy necessary for more complex learning.

Glen has a passion for holistic education and a focus on building staff capacity to deliver rigorous and engaging inquiry-driven transdisciplinary learning. He recently visited the town of Reggio Emilia in Italy, and is looking forward to overseeing our students’ journey from Kindergarten into Prep and beyond.

You can read Glen’s bio here.

Director (3-6)

Ms Emma Phillips has been appointed to the role of Director (3-6) commencing in 2019. Emma joined St Michael’s over 20 years ago as a classroom teacher in the Primary School and has taught across all year levels from Kindergarten to Year 6, as a classroom, Japanese, and English as a Second Language teacher, and as a member of the Additional Learning Needs team.

Following the completion of a Master of Education, specialising in Online Learning and Assessment, Emma was appointed to the position of Junior School ICT Co-ordinator and subsequently Assistant Head of Learning Systems where she was instrumental in the embedding of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Learning in the junior years and the introduction of the popular Maker Space program facilitating design and invention thinking.

In her current role as Head of Digital Literacy, Emma leads the Knowledge Commons team and the implementation of Digital Literacy programs across the School. Emma has demonstrated a commitment to leading teacher teams to ensure every learner is known and valued and that each student’s developmental needs are met. Emma is a strong advocate for innovative approaches to learning and has a demonstrated ability to engage, enrich and differentiate learning for all students.

You can read Emma’s bio here.

‘I look forward to welcoming Nicole and Glen to St Michael’s in 2019 and to supporting Emma as she changes roles. We will be providing opportunities for parents, staff and students to meet and get to know our K-6 leaders in a series of communications and events to be held in the remainder of 2018 and at the beginning of 2019,’ said Head of the School, Mrs Terrie Jones.

‘I am excited about this next phase in Kindergarten to Year 6 at St Michael’s, and I am confident that in Nicole, Glen and Emma we have a strong team that will ensure the best possible teaching, learning and caring experiences are provided for all students throughout the early and junior years.’