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Our Staff
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Emalene Cull - PrincipalMy name is Emalene Cull. I am a descendant of Ngāi Tahu through my mother, Taranaki through my father and the proud people of Poland through my grandfather.
I was born in Taranaki, grew up in the mighty Manawatū and went right through the Catholic schooling system in Palmerston North. After graduating from Massey University and teaching around the greater Manawatū region, my husband Anthony and I moved to the Waikato as newlyweds in 2008. For the majority of our married life we lived in Te Aroha, where we were blessed with our three children: Mikaere, Kahu and Terina. We very much consider the Parishes of the Holy Family part of our whānau and the church is our second home. After a decade at St Joseph’s Catholic School in Te Aroha, most of those years as DRS, in 2018 I took a leap in my career accepting the position as Principal of Bishop Edward Gaines Catholic School in Tokoroa. Like St Joseph’s, Bishop Edward Gaines is a small school with a big heart and a warm family feel. The past three years have given me a solid grounding in the diverse role of a teaching principal and I am thoroughly excited to bring my knowledge and experience to the role of Principal of St Joseph’s. My passions lie in The Arts and Te Ao Māori. I love the self expression The Arts provide; I have written and directed numerous whole school productions, led music ministry in different parishes and tutored Kapa Haka. I dream to one day to be conversational in Te Reo Māori. I love to have a laugh, to have a sing and when I can, I like to catch a show at the theatre or a cuppa at the local café. I feel very blessed to be the Principal at St Joseph’s Catholic School, Paeroa. |
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Alex Harwood - Year 0-2 Teacher (Kererū)I am an experienced classroom teacher with a number of years teaching in both urban and rural schools. Teaching and supporting junior school children on their learning journey is my passion. I enjoy teaching practical foundation skills that students will utilise and develop further as they travel on their learning-for-life journey.
I believe in listening to students, to discover their interests and passions along with their learning ‘can-do’s’. I enjoy identifying specific ‘next learning steps’ with students and providing the right support for each one so they can progress and achieve. Together we celebrate each success. I am constantly open to new learning and I encourage my students to develop the same attitude. I promote thoughtful risk-taking in the classroom and teach that mistakes are specific, targeted opportunities for learning. I strive to be flexible and open-minded, and I am dedicated to the holistic welfare of students in my care. With this in mind, I do my best to develop strong relationships with students and their whanau. |
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Jane Prescott - Year 3-5 Teacher (Tūī)I have been teaching at Saint Jospeh's Paeroa since 2013. I previously taught in two Auckland schools for fourteen years. I have taught most year levels over that time, thoroughly enjoying the experiences. In addition to being a classroom teacher, I have trained choirs to perform in several Auckland festivals. This year I am supporting Mrs Hale in leading our change to an 'Enviro' school. I am passionate about children’s learning with a special interest in literacy. I am also the Curriculum leader in Literacy, Music, Science and Health. I have previously run the Reading Together workshops for parents over the past few years , which was very successful. I have been involved in accelerating target students in Writing and Reading through the Accelerating Literacy programme over the last couple of years. I have a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology and a one-year graduate diploma in Primary teaching, (The University of Waikato). In 2011, I attained a certificate in teaching English to second language learners, (Celta) from the University of Cambridge.
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Anna Crawford - Year 6-8 Teacher (Takahē)Hello! My name is Anna Crawford and I am very excited to be teaching Year 6, 7 and 8 in 2022. I have been working at St Joseph's School in Fairfield Hamilton for the past 6 years and have loved working in the Catholic school environment. I have been teaching for 11 years in total, and have worked with Senior school students the majority of the time.
I was born in Thames and moved away to travel the world as a young adult. I am married to Mike and have two children, Thomas who is 26 and Sophie who is 22. I also have a blind dog called Louie. Now that our children are doing their own thing, Mike and I feel it is the perfect time to move back to be closer to family and the beautiful beaches in the Coromandel. In my free time I love to go walking(especially in the bush). Camping and fishing are two of my favourite things to do. I also like to travel, however that is on hold at present. Being connected to family and friends is important to me. |
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Margaret BrinkmanI am the administration officer for St Joseph’s school and I am usually the first point of contact for visitors. I have worked at St Joseph’s since 2002 in various roles and have been in my current role since the beginning of 2013. I am responsible for the smooth running of the School Office in all its facets and also assist the Principal, staff, parents and students.
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Lesley Hale - Reading RecoveryLesley is a very experienced and competent classroom teacher. Knowing how crucial literacy skills are to becoming a successful learner, Lesley is now working as our Reading Recovery teacher as well as spending time with our Year 0 children to accelerate their literacy progress.
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Colleen O'NealeMy husband John and I, along with our two children, arrived here in Paeroa in October 1985. Our daughter finished her primary schooling that year and our son moved into Form 2. I volunteered to type up the cards for the library here at school with a number of other mothers using the Dewey Decimal system that required cards. The library has since become computerised, and even though I am no longer typing the cards I am still in the library, and the rest is history...
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Tania Ratana - Teacher Aide |
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