Meet the Staff

Kathy commenced her teaching as a Primary school teacher having completed teacher training and spending an extra year to finish her Bachelors degree. During that time, she completed a double major in order to foster her love of English literature and drama.Three years of teaching Primary students and with the honour of a year with New Entrants, Kathy realised that her plan of moving up the levels to secondary having gained a firm pedagogical base of other levels, was never going to happen and thus she jumped overnight to secondary teaching at Hilcrest High School. Three years later, she received her first promotion and became a Head of Drama at Cambridge High School where she also developed an interest in film and ran a small studio. Having worked extensively with teacher trainees in her classrooms, Kathy was seconded to the University of Waikato to lecture in English, Drama and Film and was fortunate to gain tenure after one year. For six years, Kathy was incredibly motivated to provide the best teacher training that she could and even broke protocol by going  into schools to demonstrate for her trainees. During those six years, Kathy returned to another area of interest and performed in dozens of shows that ranged from drama to musicals.

mhughes@chilton.school.nz

Michelle began her career teaching in the upper primary levels before moving to Scots College where she taught Years 2, 3 and 4. This cemented a love and passion for Independent Schooling. During her time at Scots College she led the Junior Syndicate, as well as being the PYP Coordinator. Michelle developed the Primary Years Programme (PYP) at Scots from the Interested to Authorised Stages. She is an advocate of inquiry based teaching and believes that the PYP provides a strong framework with which to develop critical, creative thinkers.

Michelle has been a Chilton parent since 2002, with both her daughters having begun their Chilton education in the Preschool. When presented with an opportunity to work at Chilton Saint James School, she jumped at the chance! She has taught Years 4, 5 and 6, and was awarded the position of PYP Coordinator in 2013. Continuing to develop the PYP at Chilton provided challenge and reward. In 2015 Michelle was announced as the new Head of Primary where she oversees the pastoral care and curriculum development of the Primary School

scolson@chilton.school.nz

Sue is a longstanding staff member of Chilton Saint James School. After 12 years as HOD Physical Education she has recently taken up the new role of Head of Middle School and also co-ordinates our Learning support Programme.
After graduating from Otago University and Christchurch Training College, Sue began her teaching career at Awatapu College in Palmerston North. From there she travelled overseas and was based in London for 2 years. After returning home, Sue taught Physical Education and Health at Upper Hutt College for 6 years before leaving to have a family.
Sue enjoys the Chilton community and the underpinning values that make it a positive place in which to work. In contributing to the pastoral care of students Sue has been involved in netball, badminton, skiing, civil defence and golf with- in the school’s extra curricular programme.

BCom, GradDip Professional Accounting
mboyd@chilton.school.nz

Mark joined Chilton in 2013 as the Business Director responsible for finance, operations, IT, and health and safety. An experienced accountant, Mark has spent time living in the USA, working most recently in the hospitality and ski industry.

Currently completing his Chartered Accountants designation, outside of study and work Mark enjoys spending time with his wife, young daughter and watching NASCAR.

ARAD Solo Seal, RAD Life Member, RAD Registered Teacher, RAD Teaching Certificate (Distinction), ISTD Advanced (Modern Branch), ISTD Advanced (National Branch)
bbennett@chilton.school.nz

With more than 30 years teaching experience Bronwyn’s passion and dedication to dance has inspired many children throughout the Wellington area. Prior to Chilton, Bronwyn owned her own dance school in the Hutt Valley for many years – teaching both Ballet and Jazz. In 2002 she joined joining Chilton Dance Centre in 2002 to focus on teaching Classical Ballet.

Since becoming Director of the Chilton Dance Centre, Bronwyn has worked to build the Dance Centre to a highly successful school, offering a range of dance styles to students taught by high-calibre teachers. Past students have gone onto tertiary dance studies with successful careers in dance and performing arts both nationally and internationally.

In her spare time, Bronwyn enjoys reading, walking and spending time with family.

jhambidge@chilton.school.nz

Jane is an experienced teacher with 17 years classroom experience. Jane is a born and bred Wellingtonian who started her teaching career at NaeNae College where she taught Classical Studies and Accounting.  Jane comes to us after nine years at Upper Hutt College as a Head of Commerce and House Dean.

Whilst at Upper Hutt College one of the many things Jane was involved in was the Fencing club as a manager and fitness trainer.  She also implemented new courses to promote Financial Literacy in schools and undertook the National Aspiring Principal’s Programme. Prior to this Jane spent time teaching at secondary schools in the UK where she taught Economics and Business Studies to A level. Jane was also Assistant Head of Commerce at Wellington College where she set up Business Studies courses and Young Enterprise groups.

Jane  has always  had a strong focus on pastoral care within her teaching practice and looks forward to developing and fostering relationships with the students at Chilton Saint James and the wider school and business community.

lrusling@chilton.school.nz

Lindsey is a Provisionally Registered first year teacher who is currently teaching Drama.  Lindsey is originally from the UK and has a background in Human Resources and Administration and spent many years working for NATO in the Netherlands.

Lindsey is a qualified Science and Social Science teacher with an MSc in Environmental Science who first came to Chilton Saint James School as Human Resources Co-ordinator and expanded her role to Administration Manager which involved organising and carrying out relief teaching.

Alongside her administration work, Lindsey has worked extensively in the theatre industry as a performer, choreographer, director and adjudicator for many years and this had led to her teaching Drama and also heading CSJ Drama, our after school drama programme for the wider community.  Lindsey recently helped to launch our Middle School by producing Disney’s Beauty and the Beast Jnr which also incorporated boys from Hutt International Boys School.

Lindsey is excited to be in her dream job and looks forward to encouraging students to gain confidence in the performing arts.

abaker@chilton.school.nz

lholland@chilton.school.nz

jsouthee@chilton.school.nz

jparish@chilton.school.nz

Jane is a Cantabrian, who completed her Bachelor’s degree in English linguistics with a minor in French. After completing her teacher training, she commenced her teaching career as an English, Mathematics and Music teacher at Kaiapoi High School in Canterbury. She has also taught at Saint Andrew’s College, Christchurch. Moving to Wellington, she taught Mathematics and English in a range of schools including Aotea College, Upper Hutt College, Hutt International Boys’ School, and Saint Patrick’s College, Silverstream. She has held the position of Head of Department, English, at both Hutt International Boys’ School and Chilton Saint James School. Jane has been involved in the marking panels for Bursary English and NCEA Levels Two and Three.

Jane has coached a wide variety of sports; her main interest is netball where she is a volunteer umpire mentor as well as continuing to coach a junior team. She has also worked with the music departments at Kaiapoi High School and Hutt International Boys’ School as accompanist for school productions. Her interest in sport has continued in the role of supporter of her daughter and son who play tennis, hockey, football and cricket.

Jane completed papers for an Advanced Diploma in Children’s Literature while she raised her second child. She has also worked in the Ministry of Education but quickly returned to her interest in working with young people. Seeing teenagers engage with language and literature and develop empathy for others is what Jane finds rewarding.

shart@chilton.school.nz

Susan completed her Bachelor’s degree at Victoria University followed by a Master of Arts at Canterbury University and her Diploma of teaching. She commenced teaching French and German at Upper Hutt College, remaining there for five years before leaving to raise a family of four children. She resumed teaching French part- time to primary students at Wai Ora Montessori School, did some relief teaching at various Hutt Valley schools and then was appointed as a part-time teacher of French and English at Chilton Saint James School. After six years in this role, she became HOD Languages, teaching French to Years 7 – 13.

Susan considers learning a language to be part of a complete education. The celebration at school of International Languages Week helps to raise awareness of the importance of this. Susan also runs a successful Language Club for Year 7 & 8 girls, giving them the opportunity to experience cultural activities such as cooking, crafts, treasure hunts and the celebration of festivals.

Susan enjoys sharing her passion for French with young people and has led trips to New Caledonia and France. She finds it very rewarding to see the growth in students’ language ability after intensive language lessons and time staying with French families. She loves watching the buzz they get from being able to communicate in French and encourages them to continue to develop and use this real life skill throughout their lives.

jgilling@chilton.school.nz

Jocelyn began teaching with a New Entrant class in Palmerston North after completing her teacher training in Wellington. She has vast experience in teaching having taught in Primary schools inTauranga and then made the move to secondary when she accepted a position at Kelston Boys High School in Auckland and later completed a stint in the Waikato. This varied career in teaching also encompassed time spent teaching special needs students at Hamilton North Special School as well as teaching students from aged five to eighteen. Not only has she taught in a range of schools but also has experience as a guidance teacher and Dean.

While in  the Waikato she completed her Bachelor of Education whilst maintaining a busy teaching life at Melville High School.  In coming to Wellington, Jocelyn became Assistant Head of Department at Taita College and Wellington Girls before being appointed as Head of Department at Chilton Saint James 17 years ago.  Jocelyn has also experienced Chilton from a parent’s point of view.  Her daughter went through the Secondary School graduating in 2013 as the Head Librarian. Her daughter’s enrolment in the school was a clear example of Jocelyn’s belief in a Chilton Education.

Higher learning has always been important to Jocelyn who took the opportunity to finish her Masters in Science with a specialty in Mathematics Education with Distinction. While at Chilton, Jocelyn has lead the Mathematics Department and has been involved in a number of Academic extension initiatives and this year has embarked on the challenge of teaching the CIE curriculum.

tchatterton@chilton.school.nz
Tom is the Head of Department Music, recently joining us from having worked in a number of schools in Auckland.  He began his teaching career in the UK, working as a music teacher at Oakham School, a large international, private, day and boarding school.  Here Tom gained a lot of experience teaching numerous international qualifications and pastoral experience as a boarding house tutor.

Tom holds music degrees from the University of Cambridge, a teaching degree from the University of Buckingham, as well as a performance music diploma in the organ from the Royal College of Organists.
Tom has a passion for engaging young people with both the study of music and music making.  He particularly enjoys working with youth choirs and orchestras and at Chilton directs the Amadeus Orchestra and I See Red Choir.

Tom is excited to have the opportunity widen the scope of music performance at Chilton and make the school’s music a greater presence in the local community.

csutherland@chilton.school.nz

Charlie comes to us from Melbourne Australia, where she spent the past 5 years teaching senior Chemistry and Junior science in a large Anglican Girls’ School and in the last year Co-ordinating Year 10. Prior to this she completing teaching college in Otago and enjoyed 4 years teaching Science, Chemistry and Biology Wainuiomata and Wellington Girls College.

Her love of teaching Science prompts her to try and include relevant practical activities in Science wherever possible in order to inspire others to see the links between the content covered in class and the world around us. Over her 9 years teaching experience she has contributed to many extracurricular activities, one of which is Run Club to share her interest in running for pleasure and exercise

athomson@chilton.school.nz

sport@chilton.school.nz

Nadine studied Physcial Education at the University of Otago and then transferred to Waikato University where she completed a Bachelor of Leisure Studies Degree.  She then worked in the UK for several years teaching PE and coaching a range of sports teams, before returning to New Zealand to take up the position as Head of Sport at Queen Margaret College.

There she developed the sports programme from the ground up.  Nadine is now into her second year working at Chilton and is proving her worth throughout the school.  Nadine believes in providing opportunities for all and that providing pathways to all levels regardless of ability is essential to a successful sports programme.  Students need to be exposed to quality sporting experiences where self esteem is enhanced so they then continue to choose to be involved in sport and physical actiivty for life.

rdaddy@chilton.school.nz

Art has always played an important part in Rachel’s life. From an early age she understood that great pleasure could be had from viewing and creating Art. In her final years of school at ACG Senior College, Rachel earned a scholarship grade and the Prize for Excellence in Painting. This encouraged her to find a career where she could be involved with Art every day.

Rachel attended Elam School of Fine Arts where she studied a range of disciplines, including printmaking, painting and photography. Rachel enjoyed the opportunity to take papers in a variety of other subjects, such as Art History, History, English and Anthropology and her learning in these areas informed her Art practice. In 2010, Rachel gained a Bachelor of Fine Arts with Honours. She completed a Graduate Diploma in Teaching (Secondary) the following year.

Rachel was fortunate to spend the first three years of her teaching career in the very successful Art Department at ACG Strathallan College. There she taught a range of levels, from Year 6 to Year 13. She gained experience teaching the Cambridge curriculum and specialised in Painting. Her students attained high levels of achievement and it was a very formative time for her teaching practice.

Rachel and family moved to Wellington in 2014 to experience life in the capital. Rachel soon began work at St Mary’s College where she taught NCEA Visual Art and Painting. In 2015 Rachel and family celebrated the birth of baby Xanthe, and Rachel took some time off from teaching to care for her two children.

Rachel is excited to join the Art Department at Chilton St James in Term 2, 2016. She gains great satisfaction from helping students to strive for excellence and achieve their personal best. Rachel continues to enjoy making art herself and feels blessed to teach the subject she loves on a day to day basis. When at leisure Rachel likes to spend time with family and friends, and enjoys getting outdoors as much as possible, especially tramping, camping, swimming and mountain biking.

kmason@chilton.school.nz

Kelsey is an experienced teacher with 6 years of classroom experience. Kelsey attended Otago University where she obtained a BSc in Human Nutrition and went on to complete her PgDip in Secondary education at the University of Otago College of Education. Her teaching career began at City of London Academy (COLA) in England where she taught Food Technology, Materials Technology and GCSE Catering.

While working at COLA Kelsey was responsible for setting up an after-school Cooking Club for years 7-9 and ran a schoolwide MasterChef competition. Kelsey has come to Chilton after her return to New Zealand where she is now teaching Food Technology, Food and Nutrition and Health. She also holds the role of Year 7 and 8 Dean and Careers Advisor for Year 7-10.

scolson@chilton.school.nz

Sue is a longstanding staff member of Chilton Saint James School. After 12 years as HOD Physical Education she has recently taken up the new role of Head of Middle School and also co-ordinates our Learning support Programme.
After graduating from Otago University and Christchurch Training College, Sue began her teaching career at Awatapu College in Palmerston North. From there she travelled overseas and was based in London for 2 years. After returning home, Sue taught Physical Education and Health at Upper Hutt College for 6 years before leaving to have a family.
Sue enjoys the Chilton community and the underpinning values that make it a positive place in which to work. In contributing to the pastoral care of students Sue has been involved in netball, badminton, skiing, civil defence and golf with- in the school’s extra curricular programme.

bnewton@chilton.school.nz

Bev began her career teaching Materials Technology and Science at Auckland Girls’ Grammar School after completing a Home Science degree in Dunedin and teacher training in Christchurch.

Three years into her teaching career, she was promoted to Dean of Year 10, followed the next year as Acting Head of Department for Foods and Materials.  Family life followed but Bev continued working part-time at Onehunga College teaching Special Needs students, Science and Foods. A move to Wellington meant that Bev worked at Te Kura Pounamu, teaching and writing courses, including one of the first on-line courses that the school introduced.

The opportunity to teach part-time at Chilton Saint James School arrived and she relished the opportunity to be back in the classroom. This was followed by four years as HOD of Foods and Materials. Having a family and seeing the importance of spending time with then was a priority but nevertheless her joy of teaching meant that she continued to work part-time. Once her children were a little older, she returned to full-time teaching and has had a varied and exciting programme ever since, including the role of Dean. It is with pleasure that Bev saw one of her students win the Newmarket Young Fashion Designer award in 2014 and in a runner up in 2015.

jtungatt@chilton.school.nz

Jude has a Bachelor of Physical Education from Otago and a Teaching Diploma from Auckland. She began her teaching career at Upper Hutt College where she taught Physical Education, Health and Science. She enjoyed coaching a variety of sports and participating in school tramps and camps. Jude started teaching at Chilton Saint James School as a relief teacher and then took on a part-time role while her four children were young. She moved into a fulltime position in 2007, teaching Health, Physical Education and Food Technology. Jude is responsible for the Education Outside the Classroom programme in the secondary school as well as being a Dean. She really values the opportunity to get to know students outside of the school environment. Jude is kept busy outside of school with her adult children, keeping fit and travelling to visit family overseas.

jwong@chilton.school.nz