August 2008

Pen Portraits

A recent survey has found that many parents in the school community do not know very much about the people who represent them on the board of trustees.  All of the parent representative trustees have at least one child enrolled at the school and every board member is passionate about giving every student at the school the opportunity to achieve at their best. We also have some relatively new trustees along with some more experienced members. Some very brief pen portraits of the board members are as follows:

Jude Black

Most readers will know Jude who has been a board member since 2003 when she was appointed principal. She came to us with experience in working with boards of trustees at a previous school. In fact it became apparent that Jude was cut out for leadership in schools when she was appointed Head Girl at Rutherford High School. She has strong qualifications for her complex role which could be described as learning leader responsible to the board for all aspects of education at Green Bay School.

She has 3 grown children and a one year old grandchild. Along with a love of beach life, swimming, writing and music, her family keeps her busy in her ‘spare’ time.

Bruce Crossan

Bruce was co-opted onto the board in 2005 as a parent representative trustee. The board was embarking on a review of Finance and Administration and Bruce has good skills and experience in this area from his role as General Manager - Finance & IT at Fresh Direct.  He recently introduced the vegetable box fundraising opportunity to Green Bay School. With the project and the administration area complete Bruce has now moved on to take on roles on the personnel and operations committee's.

When Bruce gets a moment away from family, work and board of trustee’s commitments he likes to take the opportunity to pursue photography, kayaking and walking.  He is a member of the Henderson Photographic Society and of the Titirangi Baptist Church.

Treasa Dunworth

Treasa has devoted many hours to the work of the fundraising committee and it was there that her skills were recognised when an opportunity came up for her to be co-opted onto the board as a parent representative in 2004. Treasa has excellent legal qualifications and specialises in international law in her role at the Auckland University Law School. She also works with international organisations involved in disarmament treaties.

As you can imagine it's quite handy to have a lawyer on the board. However Treasa's work on the operations committee which works on the board's policies and review areas is probably the least obvious but most valuable contribution she currently makes at Green Bay.

Treasa also chairs the trust which organises the Titirangi Music Festival. It is unclear what Treasa does with her spare time, if indeed she has any.

Janet Gibb

Many of you will know Janet through her tireless work on the fundraising committee and it was through her enthusiasm to see some of those fundraising projects completed that she was appointed to the board as a parent representative earlier this year. She has quickly made herself useful leading the strategic property team. In doing so she draws on her experience as a project manager at MPM Projects. The strategic property team currently has five projects in various stages and these will all benefit from Janet’s hard work.

Janet is also keen on the gym and manages to fit some sessions around her very busy schedule.

Eddie Mei

Eddie joined the board as a parent representative in 2005 and brought with him a wealth of leadership and fundraising experience from his time in leadership roles on the Motu Moana Scout Group. This experience has been applied to the fundraising committee, finance committee and from time to time the disciplinary committee. While Eddie hails from Gisborne and has been around New Zealand with his career his family has strong links with the Green Bay community.

Eddie is a keen rugby man and continues to support the game through his involvement with the Condor's Rugby club and Grammar Carlton.

Ross Porter

Ross became a parent representative trustee in 2002 when he volunteered to assist with a short stint on a building project. He seems to be enjoying it because he is still there.  Maybe it’s because he has learned so much along the way.  While his background in the property investment industry has had limited application he has been able to apply some of the skills he picked up on the rugby field as a player and referee.

While Ross enjoys a range of sports, these days you are most likely to find him on the sidelines supporting his family who also find his taxi driving skills quite useful.

 Metta Streefkerk

Metta was recently selected as a parent representative for the board through a selection process where she had to outline the skills, background and experience she would bring to the board. With her background in architecture she has quickly shown an interest in the projects under development with the strategic property team but has also taken a wider view of the activities of the board and has already attended a number of training sessions.  In her role as Retail Development Manager at Auckland Airport she works on development of the International and Domestic Terminal Buildings.

Having immigrated with her family to Green Bay relatively recently from the Netherlands, Metta will bring a fresh new perspective to many of the issues that face the board.

Metta enjoys the outdoors and she and her family are exploring the beaches, seas and mountains of New Zealand every free minute they have. She is very keen on hockey and spends a few hours per week in the gym, compulsory.

Richard Westerman

Richard was also selected as a parent representative through the recent selection process. Richard impressed the board with his interest in fundraising and the development of the school.  He has spent several years on the Motu Moana Scout Camp’s Management Committee and has taken the opportunity to attend a number of the recent training sessions that have been available for board members. Richard is a civil engineer with experience in local government and consulting engineering. Richard will be investigating a number of portfolios within the board before deciding on where to focus his attention.

Richard enjoys playing social & competition tennis.