Ahead of International Women’s Day on March 8, School News is revisiting some of the fantastic Principal Speaks contributions from Aotearoa New Zealand’s female tumuaki.
It’s no surprise that most of the nation’s teachers are women, who make up 76 percent of primary and secondary school teachers as of 2024. The figure for principals is harder to come by, but reports suggest that as of the 2018 census, just under 52 percent of principals were women, making them the slim majority in school leadership.
Read the latest print edition of School News online HERE.
However, many of those principals are making an outsized contribution to their students, schools and communities, instigating change, uplifting results and inspiring ākonga. Here, we revisit some of the words of wisdom shared with us to answer the big questions facing many female teachers and principals.
Related School News article: Learning support gains at cost of women and expert teachers
What does it take to nurture a shrinking school to grow?
Last year, School News spoke to Tumuaki Billie-Jean Potaka Ayton (Ngāti Whakaue) about her leadership role at Kaiti School in Gisborne. Once a setting with a falling roll, substantial principal turnover and an atmosphere she described as a “negative space”, the kura is now thriving with student numbers that have more than tripled, high attendance rates and a strong, holistic focus on Te Ao Māori.
“We believe that our tamariki need to know about who they are and where they come from before learning about other areas of the world.”
In 2025, Ms Potaka Ayton was recognised as a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to education in thanks for her service to Kaiti School.
Read Tumuaki Billie-Jean Potaka Ayton’s Principal Speaks column here.
How can time away from school make you a better principal?
Principal Sarah Corry may lead a school in Northern Territory, Australia, but her candid message to School News in her Principal Speaks column last year is just as important to Kiwi leaders; burnout is real, rest is crucial, and time away from work can be the very thing that makes us better at our jobs. In 2024, Ms Corry won a Schools Plus Teaching Award in recognition of her school-to-work transition program at the specialist high school she leads in Darwin, and in 2025, she used her Long Service Leave to hike the Great Ocean Walk in Victoria.
Read Principal Sarah Corry’s Principal Speaks column here.
What can we do to value a school community’s uniqueness?
With over 30 years’ experience at Tāmaki College, few know the Glen Innes community as well as Principal Soana Pamaka. The first Tongan secondary school principal in New Zealand, Ms Pamaka was named a 2018 Blake Leader for the transformative work she has undertaken with her school whānau, including implementing a trades academy and a service academy for would-be armed forces members. Ms Pamaka spoke to School News about the importance of knowing your community and offering tailor-made solutions.
Read Principal Soana Pamaka’s Principal Speaks column here.
How can we build students’ and schools’ identities?
As the first wāhine Māori to hold the Tumuaki role at Northland’s Mangakahia Area School, Principal Maria Dunn was well-placed to support her school’s majority-Māori students. On entering the principalship, she noted that Te Ao Māori was not a significant part of the school, an omission as 93% of ākonga identified as tangata whenua. Ms Dunn brought her life experience, which includes a career as a nurse, service in the New Zealand Airforce, and studying for a PhD, to help the school on a path to build its own unique identity.
Read Principal Maria Dunn’s Principal Speaks column here.
