After more than 20 years of sterling service to Ponsonby Primary School as Principal, and to Ponsonby as a popular and engaged citizen, Anne Malcolm has taken a well-deserved retirement from her beloved Ponsonby Primary.
She was allowed to bypass a BA at the University of Auckland because of her Teacher’s Diploma and go straight for an MA majoring in women’s leadership.
Anne Malcolm has always had a yearning to learn.
Not satisfied with an MA, she undertook a doctorate which she completed in 2012. It featured research in the learning pathways of primary principals.
As a young family man, I did a masters degree part time while teaching and sharing the responsibilities for two young sons. It’s a hard ask, so I salute Anne’s ability and tenacity.
Anne Malcolm is a woman with a huge personality and a keen sense of humour. When she was first appointed Principal of Ponsonby Primary, a young student asked her name. “Mrs Cox,” she replied. “Cock-a-doodle-do,” a student crowed. Anne was indeed married to Brian Cox.
“No,” she said, “it’s Mrs Malcolm.” She never used Cox again and laughs when she says Brian declined to be called Mr Malcolm.
Sadly, Anne lost Brian to medical issues some years ago. That loss and Anne’s pursuit of a doctorate curtailed her sailing interests and she sold their prized yacht.
Over 20-plus years, Anne Malcolm’s focus has been to grow positive, capable leaders and principals. She is pleased and proud to have her deputy principal, Sanjay Rama, internally appointed to succeed her as Principal of Ponsonby Primary. She introduced me to one of her deputy principals, Francis Naera, and said he’ll be a principal in four years or so. He grinned appreciatively.
The education heirachy recognised Anne with a Woolf Fisher Fellowship, and an APPA Distinguished Service to Education Award. She has also received a local Good Citizen’s Award.
Ponsonby Primary under Anne Malcolm always had a lovely tone when outsiders visited. The pupils were warm and welcoming. An Education Review Office report on Ponsonby Primary in 2015 said this: “The school’s active promotion and support for the wellbeing of all students impacts positively on their engagement and learning.” She loves her kids, and introduced me to a couple of them when
I visited recently.
I would sum up Anne Malcolm as a strong advocate for inclusive education and anything that supports excellent leadership development. She values ‘family’ and ‘belonging’, things rampant individualism has undermined in recent years.
She is critical of the way much bureaucracy works so slowly and in such an uncoordinated way.” It’s so ad hoc,” she claims, “the way they do things.”
She feels that the recent major education review, chaired by Bali Haque, has not been well implemented. Some form of the proposed ‘Hubs’ may well have been useful.
The shortage of teachers in New Zealand is a travesty, Anne told me. “We have four brilliant UK teachers, but we can’t train enough of our own. We need to look to countries like Norway and Finland, where teachers are among the highest-valued professionals.”
I sincerely hope Anne Malcolm will continue in a number of mentoring and leadership roles in education in the next few years. Her experience, wonderful personality, ability to relate and good fun approach to serious issues is very refreshing in a world so often coloured by cautious, politically correct behaviour.
Go well, Anne – you will be missed. (John Elliott)