Kia Ora,

I am thrilled to be introducing myself as the Principal of Rūnanga School. My name is Jessica (Jess) Lees.

I have introduced myself to the children as ‘Miss Lees’.

I am a dedicated educator and have a passion for supporting children to flourish and succeed. I am positive my experience and skillset will have a positive impact at Rūnanga School, working alongside the students, staff and community to build on the school’s strengths. I have gained valuable leaderships skills throughout my career and have taken on various roles which I know will support me in transitioning into this new exciting role.

I am originally from the UK. I moved to New Zealand in 2019, where I initially travelled the country in my campervan. This is where I fell in love with Aotearoa’s beauty and decide this is somewhere I’d like to stay. I have been teaching for nine years both in England and New Zealand. My partner and I moved to the West Coast last year and have enjoyed every minute of it!

I was delighted to meet with the community at the meeting in July to discuss next steps for the school and I am excited about what the future holds for Rūnanga School. It was both uplifting and exciting to see the community showing up and wanting to support our wonderful school with moving forward. We have lots of exciting opportunities arising, including setting up our own school PTA, (Parent Teacher Association).  My conversations with staff and families have given me privileged insights into the core beliefs and values the school and community hold.

It has been fantastic to be welcomed so warmly into the school this week. After a very busy week I am  looking forward to spending more time in the classrooms next week, getting to know the children. Moving forward, I will be teaching in the Tasman class on a Monday and Tuesday. I am also looking  forward to spending time in Coal Creek class, covering some of Isle Verburgh’s release days.

I have always placed a great deal of importance in open communication; my door is always open. I am looking forward to meeting more of the Rūnanga whanau and community over the coming weeks. Let us always keep our students the primary focus of our work. I look forward to celebrating our  collective success during the remainder of the year.

Please do not hesitate to get in contact. Alternatively, pop into school and introduce yourself!

Kind regards,

My name is Ilse Verburgh and I teach Coal Creek, our junior class. 

Born and raised in Pretoria, South Africa, I qualified at university with a bachelor's degree in Speech Pathology and Audiology.  For the first half of my career, I practiced as a Speech Therapist.  Having also completed a post graduate certificate in Teaching,  I have been in the classroom in various schools for the latter part of my career.

Sharing my love for languages, sciences, reading and art with the students brings me great joy.

In my own time, I enjoy doing sewing and reading.  My husband, four children and two grandchildren are also in the queue for a bit of my attention.

Hi, I'm Carolyn Straker and I'm the Office Administrator here at Runanga School.  I do the Accounts and lots of other jobs as needed.  In my spare time I do embroidery, biking and reading.

Hello, I'm Larrae Duncan 

I have been a teacher aide at Rūnanga School for over 6 years. I enjoy working with the children at Rūnanga School, and I love celebrating their successes, whether they are big or small. 

I live in Runanga with my husband and daughter. My hobbies include fishing at the beach and having a boat day on the lake with our friends and family.