Alasdair Maclean leaves Levin’s Fairfield School for new role in Indonesia

Alasdair Maclean with Donna Rowe (middle) and Yvonne Nicholson.

Alasdair Maclean spent 13 years teaching overseas before returning to Levin and becoming principal of Fairfield School in 2019.

But he never quite lost that love for teaching internationally - and when he saw an opportunity to be the head of Mt Zaagkam School in Indonesia, he knew he had to apply for it.

His new role will differ from his role at Fairfield School in many ways - most notably because students at Mt Zaagkam School are from families who live all over the world.

Maclean said the school focuses on developing all aspects of children, including leadership, academic learning, and their cross-curricular approach.

When he started at Fairfield College five years ago the happiness of his students and staff was his biggest priority, and that’s never changed, he said.

One of his most significant achievements was “developing a happy and cohesive school”.

Bringing back the school’s annual gala - which was stopped prior to Maclean taking over as principal - was a highlight for him.

Alasdair Maclean with students (clockwise) Rhiyon Capone Fletcher, Sasha Gardiner, Sophyia Kahaki, and Merry Luli.

He said the gala, which is held in March, raises the school about $23,000 and attracts thousands of people from all over the community.

Another highlight was getting the school library up and running again.

The library was shut down when more than 400 houses were built next door to the school, causing an influx of students. The library was used as a classroom to accommodate the extra students.

“Fairfield School was an overflowing primary school, and we needed more space.”

When the Ministry of Education reduced the school’s zone things started to settle down, and eventually the library was able to be brought back. Maclean said it has become quite the community hub for the students.

Maclean said working at Fairfield School has kept him humble, and his work alongside his deputy principal Donna Rowe and assistant principal Yvonne Nicholson also taught him a lot about working relationships.

“The three of us bring different strengths to the table but work very collaboratively. I would like to emulate this working relationship in my next post. This has really taught me how the school is run by distributed leadership based around trust.”

Maclean said the next principal of the school should enjoy working with the wonderful people at Fairfield School - including parents, students and staff.

“Fairfield School is truly a special place. Enjoy your time there.”

He also advised the next principal to get to know the Levin community, as you never know who could add value to the students’ learning.

Maclean will be finishing up at Fairfield School at the end of Term 4 and will start his new role in Indonesia in January.