Neil Chalmers
(Principal)

New to Mapua School in July of 2008 Neil is enthusiastically looking forward to his role as principal and working alongside students, staff, and parents
to ensure that 'To Be All I Can' is truly the driving force behind every decision here and that every child achieves their full potential.

Mapua is a fabulous school in a fabulous part of the country and Neil is looking forward to enjoying all that the school, community, and region offers. Keen on a variety of outdoor recreations Neil is looking forward to getting out and about around the region. "A little skiing, sailing, tramping, and cycling would go down well" says Neil. Interests in the arts and craft areasare also a real attraction in this region and Neil is similarly looking forward to enjoying these.

Denise Gabites
(Office Manager)

Denise has been the Office Manager at Mapua School for nearly 13 years.

She is married to Brian and they have two daughters and one grandson, Oliver.

She likes spending time with her family, gardening, reading and walking.

Denise enjoys working at Mapua School and thinks the children are all special in their own way. They are friendly, polite and caring towards each other.

Mandy Stephens
(Deputy Principal)

Who teaches the senior students of the school, Year 7 & 8 students (mainly Year 8 students) in Room 5.   Senior Syndicate Leader and Deputy Principal are also part of my responsibilities.

Is married to Mark, also a teacher, and has two gorgeous children, Pirran (7) and Teona (5) who make up the crazy Stephens Family!

Main interests are spending time with my family and friends, biking, walking, reading and travelling.

What I like about Mapua school are the fantastic kids, the wonderful opportunities available to them and having 5yr olds to 12 yr olds all in the same environment.

Who would I least like to be stuck in a lift with, well that’s a hard one – most probably a rabid rat!

Who would I like to be stuck on a desert island with?   My family of course!

Favourite food? Sushi, English marmite and bizarre combinations of food.

Paula Dawkins
(Assistant Principal)

Mapua School is a great place to work.
I teach the wonderful New Entrants in Room 2.
All the children are really positive about their learning and our fun activities.
I am also the Assistant Principal and lead the Junior Syndicate.

My Partner Waihaere Mason is a retired Intermediate Principal.
He now works extensively for local Iwi.
We have a blended family of six grown up children.
There is quite a bunch of grandchildren.
We also have four elderly cats.

My main interests are (you guessed it) family ocassions, travel (to see family) gardening, walking, reading and enjoying Nelson's food, lifestyle and Art

Malcolm Hepburn
(Senior Teacher)

 Mr Hepburn's hobbies are mountain biking and wood work. If he were principal he wouldn't change anything. He says that Mapua School is perfect how it is. He says that all the other teachers are FANTASTIC people! He says that if he had to choose to be a teacher at any other school he would still choose Mapua School. His favourite thing about Mapua School is the friendly and helpful children , staff and parents.

He likes the Mapua views - lucky to have it all. He says that Mapua has a friendly and supportive atmosphere.

His favourite music artist is Cat Stevens - GREAT MUSIC!!!!

He says that he would least want to be stuck in a lift with Mike Tyson. 

He says that he would spend his last ten dollars on a coke and curry - yum yum. We asked him which 3 people/celebrities he would most want to invite to dinner and he said: Muhumad Ali, Rob Muldoon and Jerry Seinfield

Whaea Aroha

Aroha teaches in Room 8.

She loves Summer, BBQ's, time at the beach, eatin chocolate and of course, her two sons, Nikau and Kaleb.

She says that if she was the principal, she would build a big gymnasium, bigger swimming pool and A CHOCOLATE MAKING MACHINE IN THE STAFF ROOM - man!

She would spend her last ten dollars on a bar of chocolate, and raspberry coke.

We asked her which 3 celebrities she would invite to dinner, and she said that she would invite Billy Connolly, Peter Pan, and Cinderella's fairy godmother.

Her favourite thing about Mapua school is the kids. Awwww....She thinks Mapua school has a wonderful atmosphere, and is a great place to be, and she said she is very lucky to be here.

Whaea Aroha loves being a teacher at Mapua School.

Teressa Hosie

Where were you born?
Mapua . I lived here for the first four years of my life.

Do you have any kids?
Three: Karen and Andrew, both living in the UK and Craig who lives and works in Greymouth.

Do you have any pets?
A dog and three cats.

What's your favourite sport?
Walking and tramping.

What’s your favourite colour?
Blue. It is the colour of a sunshine sky.

What subject do you like to teach best?
I like teaching most subjects but art would be my favourite because I like the outcomes. I think children are wonderful artists.

How long have you been teaching for?
Around twenty years.

How many schools have you taught in?
Five.

Have you ever taught in Mapua before?
Yes, three years ago. I left to be an I.C.T Facilitator for the Waimea Cluster schools.

What do you think of Mapua School?
That it is a great place to teach. The people - children, teachers and parents - are caring, friendly and cheerful.

Theresa Brown

Theresa has joined the Mapua team while Mrs Pilcher is on maternity leave. Theresa loves horse riding and has recently bought a horse she has dreamed of owning for the last three years.

She has taught in the U.K. and New Zealand. She is enjoying teaching Room 7 and is very happy here.

Leanne Hough

Do you enjoy teaching the wonderful Rm 1 children?
“Who wouldn’t enjoy teaching the best class at Mapua School? Yes I do! I think the thing I enjoy the most is that every day it is fun teaching in Rm 1!”

What’s your favourite hobby?
“ That would be riding my horse.”

Who would you least like to be stuck in a lift with?
“ Hmmm, … Barney the dinosaur – scary!!!!”

If you could have three people over to dinner who would they be?

“??”          

What’s  your favourite song?
“Ummm……. That’s a tricky one! I like a whole variety of music, it’s hard to pick just one. I do  know that it’s not the Crazy Frog song.”

Who’s your favourite rugby player?
“Daniel Carter.”

What’s your favourite food?
“I like Thai food and custard squares”.

What’s your favourite TV show?
“Shhh..anything D.I.Y. I can’t wait till I buy my first house so I can renovate!"

Jan Egarr

Mrs Egarr teaches Year One and Two students in Room 3. She loves teaching and really enjoys the enthusiasm her students show for all areas of learning.

Mrs Egarr has lived in Mapua for 22 years and her three children attended Mapua School. She has a white cat, and three fish which live and swim at Mapua School.

In her spare time, Mrs Egarr likes to work in the garden, go kayaking, read, and spend time with her family. Her favourite music is from the 60's and 70's and she also enjoys popular opera.

"I really like living in Mapua as the people are so friendly and there are plenty of facilities. The climate allows for such a lot of outdoor activity which I enjoy."

Struan McKenzie

Libby

Libby works in Room One and is a very good Teacher Aide. She came from England and has settled in Mapua. She has two children.
Libby enjoys art, sewing, ceramics and her pet cat.
Her favourite food is spaghetti bolognese.

Bronwyn Llewellyn

Bronwyn helps children who are having trouble with reading and writing. She has a lot of patience with those who don't learn as quickly as their peers.

Some of her favourite things to do are: reading, walking and gardening. She likes all foods and doesn't have a favourite.

Lisa Shymkus

Wolfgang Bathen