New principal for Te Kura o Pi’opatanga o W’akaa’urangi Taranaki Diocesan School

Maria Taylor is the new principal of Te Kura o Pi'opatanga o W'akaa'urangi Taranaki Diocesan School. Photo / Roger Richardson

Te Kura o Pi’opatanga o W’akaa’urangi Taranaki Diocesan School’s new principal is no stranger to the students, staff, school or wider community, as she has been a member of the teaching staff there for more than 20 years.

In fact, says Maria Taylor, she knows the school so well “my hand can reach for the light switch in the dark and find it the first time”.

Most recently Maria has served the school as deputy principal and acting principal, and she says she is delighted to have been appointed to the role of principal.

“During my time in the acting role I have found it exhilarating and fulfilling, busy and challenging.”

Archbishop Emeritus Sir David Moxon, the Bishop’s representative on the school’s board of proprietors, says Maria is the perfect person to take on the role.

“Representing the Bishop of Waikato and Taranaki, it is my pleasure to endorse the appointment of Maria as the next principal of Taranaki Diocesan School for Girls. Maria has served as a senior leader in this unique learning community for some years now, and as a trusted and highly effective educator. She has the confidence of the Anglican Church and of her colleagues and boards. In particulate her vision and warmth are very welcome as principal as the school moves into a new phase of its life.”

Maria, who originally joined the school in 2000 as head of English, says while her job titles and responsibilities have changed over the years, once thing has remained constant.

“I love teaching our young people. They bring a freshness and sincerity to everything, and that originality, creativity and the sheer unexpectedness of each day is so refreshing. Our students have wonderfully curious minds and a desire to learn, they are wonderful to teach, and really to learn from as well.”

Maria teaches English at the school and says she loves the energy and thoughtfulness of teenagers when it comes to learning. Photo / Roger Richardson

Maria isn’t being flippant when she talks about learning from her students. As acting principal she says she has often asked the senior students how they want to approach assemblies and activities.

“It’s their school. I love it when they are in my office telling me what we are going to do.”

Another “wonderful” learning opportunity came when Maria left the school for a year in 2003 to take up a one-year role with the Ministry of Education, she says.

“Our whole family moved to the Cook Islands where we spent a year living while I worked as the head of English at Titikaveka College in Rarotonga. It was an amazing experience for all of us. I had never been in the position of being in the minority culture before, and that was a vital experience. It really gives you an insight and understanding into how other communities and cultures do things, and makes you think more about your own way of life.”

The ability to see other world views and cultures is something Maria says she is passionate about ensuring Taranaki Diocesan students are able to experience.

“Being in a small town, in the middle of a relatively small country at the bottom of the world, a long way away from other places, we can’t always travel everywhere. But we can bring the world to us, and through our international students plus the gap year students who come to help at the hostel, we are able to do that. All our school community benefits from having our international students here, and I am looking forward to welcoming more international students in the future.”

Maria herself is originally from Auckland, but says Stratford is most definitely home.

“We have lived here for a long time now, we raised our family here. It’s a beautiful place to call home.”

That sense of belonging is what Maria wants students to feel during their time at Taranaki Dio.

“We are privileged at Taranaki Diocesan, we have some wonderful, beautiful traditions that are very much part of our school and our special character, and at the same time we have some incredible opportunities we can access. Our students are able to hold all that is precious from our traditions, our history and our connection with our church and our community, while also being able to look around and explore the world around them.”

That world around them has a space for everyone, says Maria.

“As teachers our job is to walk alongside our students, enabling them to become whatever they have dreamed of being, or even what they didn’t yet know to dream of. We are here to help them discover who they are and what they can become. They all have their own talents, gifts and passions and our role is to make sure they are never limited. They can achieve anything.”