CHANNEL INTERVIEW: ALEX REED, NEW PRINCIPAL OF PINEHURST
He came back to Westlake as Associate Principal in 2011. “Westlake is a fantastic school, I feel very lucky to have worked there for 10 years. I’m also very lucky to be moving on to Pinehurst.” Headmaster David Ferguson respects Alex’s move, saying: "I'm delighted for Alex. He will be an outstanding leader of a school and I wish him every success at Pinehurst. He leaves Westlake with all of our best wishes and we thank him for all his great work over the years." So who is Alex behind the suit? He now lives in Glenfield, and has two daughters, aged 14 and 16, both at Westlake Girls’. They like art and Alex enjoys trips to Auckland Art Gallery with them, for example. He has inherited his dad’s love of cars, though insists he’s not a petrolhead and doesn’t feel the car he drives worthy of a mention. He likes walking, the beach, the usual Shore outdoor stuff. He reads, he writes. Then he casually throws in the fact that he’s currently doing a PHD. It’s on 1970s British novels and this occupies a lot of his time outside of work. No kidding, is my thought, as I marvel at his modesty.
has built Pinehurst into the school it is today from two mobile classrooms and a field. I know they’re huge shoes to fill and I want to make sure that I sustain and build on the great work she’s done. “I want to do all that I can to add to it and to keep it a really special place, and I guess, to me, that’s the most important thing I can do in this role.” As Alex happily obliges to having his photograph taken, we joke about school photos. “The teachers are the worst,” he divulges. “The kids don’t mind. Us teachers all want to see ourselves in photographs the way we looked 20 years ago, that’s the problem!” His voice and demeanour are calm and assured throughout. Some things are easy, they flow. Like this interview, I suspect the upcoming change of face at Pinehurst will be a smooth process too. Not effortless, but smooth. People who are very good at what they do can make the extraordinary appear to take very little effort at all.
Pinehurst is a really special place and I want the community to realise that I recognise it’s a very special place. I want to pay tribute to Sherida who has built Pinehurst into the school it is today from two mobile classrooms and a field. Which teacher did he most admire at school? “My Year Four teacher Mr Middlemiss,” he smiles. “He was a Geordie. He was gruff, funny, took no nonsense, but cared for every single one of us. I wanted to work hard for him. I discovered that I loved writing when I was in his class and he is probably the man that inspired me to start writing and reading more.” Privilege is something we discuss, in terms of this being Alex’s first role at a private school. “Kids are kids,” he says. “Whether they are fee-paying or not doesn’t matter. The main difference to me is that I will also be working with primary-aged children, which I’ve never done before and that’s something I’m really looking forward to.” He chooses to focus on the privilege he feels to be in this job. “It’s a real privilege; I have spent my working life with young people. They are lively, engaged, fun and unpredictable sometimes, and also want to learn more. What a privilege! You don’t get that working with adults,” he smiles. What does he see as his biggest responsibility as a teacher? “To keep kids safe; making sure we are looking after his or her wellbeing. Of course we have a responsibility to challenge them, but ensuring that they feel safe and respected and happy has to be the main thing. We have to show them that we really care.” And why the Pinehurst move? “Pinehurst is a really special place and I want the community to realise that I recognise it’s a very special place. I want to pay tribute to Sherida who Alex Reed
www.channelmag.co.nz Issue 77 - June 2017
109