Leadership Updates
lower primary principal
An Ode to Maya Nelson By Michelle Jungmin Bang
Bidding Farewell to our Lower Primary Principal Trailblazer, Leader, Thoughtful, Wise – these are just a few of the adjectives given to Maya Nelson by our HKIS community – although Maya isn’t too concerned with praise and she likes to keep a low profile. Many might not suspect just how bright her career has been and how lucky we are to have had her at the Lower Primary for the past 11 years. Prior to coming to HKIS and building our wonderful new Lower Primary facility (a six-year accomplishment that was no small task), Maya built the first ever School Within a School Program for students with learning needs in Taipei. She is also one of the rare individuals to have been promoted internally from Associate Principal to Principal at the Lower Primary, after just one year upon her arrival to HKIS and at the encouragement of her then PAG. An international educator, parent and third culture kid herself, Maya grew up in Japan, England, Germany and Indonesia and has taught all over the world, all experiences that have helped Maya to make our Lower Primary what it is today — a shining beacon in early childhood education that serves as an educational role model globally.
This year will see Maya’s first graduating class at the High School in HKIS and the first operating year of our newly-built Lower Primary where our excited students (who helped Maya in the planning process) raced through the doors eager to learn. Maya has created a legacy, which will leave a lasting imprint on our students and for generations to come at the Lower Primary. Although I say this with great sadness, it seems fitting that this would be the time for Maya to move on to her next adventure and next great career opportunity — to head the elementary schools at Jakarta International School where she taught and attended as a student. Thank you Maya for creating, for so many of us, our home away from home, for being my teacher in early childhood development, and for the countless lives that you have touched in our community. It has been an honor to work alongside you, to know you and to be your friend. You will be greatly missed.
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There is an incredible amount of trust that you place in an institution and its leaders when they care for your children. This choice sets a precedent on how your parenting is shaped. In Hong Kong where the prevailing emphasis on academics and rigor can sometimes eclipse what is actually in the best interest of young children, Maya takes a brave stance placing at the center of HKIS’s Lower Primary philosophy the concept of play, an often-neglected aspect of childhood education. Each aspect of the Lower Primary program is intentional, carefully cultivated to equip our children with the skills Maya understands they will need in their more complicated futures. This was particularly important as I was navigating the learning process of my children, both of whom have absolutely blossomed as empathetic, confident and passionate learners after having gone through their Lower Primary experiences with Maya. I owe so much to the times that I have leaned on her for advice and wisdom, and for the wonderful transformations that I have seen in both of my children who have grown up in a foreign country away from family. I remember when I first met Maya when my son started HKIS in R1. She was steely-eyed and formidable, and I could not have imagined that I would have gotten to know her as I do today. For the past five years, I have worked alongside Maya as a PAG member of the Lower Primary. This volunteer work has provided me with a privileged window as a parent to understand her as a leader and as a person, as well as some of the inner workings of our school. I have witnessed with pleasant surprise the fierce loyalty that Maya engenders in her outstanding faculty and staff, and how she makes no decision at the Lower Primary without counsel, collaboration, careful consideration and a ton of research. I have come to understand just how much Maya knows and cares for each of our children. I now truly appreciate the challenges, sheer amount of work and dynamic leadership that goes behind making a complex and large school exceptional. And I can see how much Maya loves her job and how deeply she understands our children’s educational needs.
Note about the writer: Since 2014, Michelle has served on the Lower Primary Parent Advisory Group and since 2015, on the HKIS Parent Faculty Organization Board as Lower Primary Divisional Representative. She has two children at HKIS, Elliot Wong ’26 and Amber Wong ’28.
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DRAGONTALES SUMMER 2018