Our Staff

Amanda Shaw

Amanda has 19 years of experience working alongside students and families, sharing the common goal of achieving academic success

Hezahne Prinsloo

Hezahne is an experienced teacher who has taught Chemistry, Physics and Science in South Africa and now New Zealand.

Brent Smith

Brent specialises in senior Physics, but has a Chemistry degree and loves to teach junior science as well.

 

Tatyana Duffin

Tatyana believes that her role as a tutor offers students a positive environment where they can develop self-confidence and a passion…

Kelly Hayward

Kelly was a founding teacher at ACG Tauranga and finds great satisfaction and enjoyment in building the Performing Arts area…

Alison Stevens

Alison is an experienced teacher who has worked in several different schools throughout New Zealand and overseas.

Daniel Pratt

Daniel has taught in schools in Auckland, Japan, and in Saudi Arabia.

Dave Hanna

Dave finds teaching Year 4 rewarding, as students have a natural curiosity and love of learning.

Amanda Shaw

Amanda has 19 years of experience working alongside students and families, sharing the common goal of achieving academic success

Terence Beeton

Terence joins the school after six years at ACG Parnell, where he taught middle school Science and Computer Science and…

Hezahne Prinsloo

Hezahne is an experienced teacher who has taught Chemistry, Physics and Science in South Africa and now New Zealand.

Dani Miller

Dani is a passionate and experienced dancer, choreographer and dance teacher.
 

Brent Smith

Brent specialises in senior Physics, but has a Chemistry degree and loves to teach junior science as well.

Rob Webster

Rob is an experienced teacher who has worked in a number of positions, both in New Zealand and Vietnam.

Jackie Webb

Jackie comes to ACG Tauranga with over 13 years of experience teaching mathematics in New Zealand.

Jo Landeg

Jo is a passionate mathematician who has the ability to teach both pure maths and statistics.  
 

Sue Wood

Sue has been a teacher in Auckland and London with almost two decades of experience.

 

David Paul

David creates learning situations that both engage interest and develop deeper understanding, and enjoys seeing students reach that “aha” moment.

Nicky Gawler

Helping students see links between course content and the real world is a key driver in Nicky's approach to teaching…
 

Stephanie Vaughan

Having majored in English, Stephanie supports students who have English as a second language while also teaching Humanities.

Kelly Hayward

Kelly was a founding teacher at ACG Tauranga and finds great satisfaction and enjoyment in building the Performing Arts area…

Leana Buxton

Leana is both an art teacher and successful artist who has participated in several exhibitions.
 

Robyn Dixon

"I am a strong advocate for the importance of learning through play while providing your child ...

Debbie Lindsay

"I desire to see all children reach their full potential."

 

Rita Smit

“The best part of my job is working alongside children, giving them the opportunity to explore and discover.”

Rachel Landeg

“I love encouraging children to explore and grow.”
 

Raechel Thompson

“I have a really important role to play in children’s lives and in supporting our community. It’s a huge privilege.”
 

Toni Stevens

“I believe children need to grow in a supportive and encouraging environment where they are able to learn through play…

Thea Kilian

Thea is passionate about the importance of a holistic education and believes that expert teachers are a school’s most valuable…

Terence Beeton

Terence joins the school after six years at ACG Parnell, where he taught middle school Science and Computer Science and…

Jackie Webb

Jackie comes to ACG Tauranga with over 13 years of experience teaching mathematics in New Zealand.
 

Tatyana Duffin

Tatyana believes that her role as a tutor offers students a positive environment where they can develop self-confidence and a passion…

Johan Prinsloo

Johan has extensive experience in property management, with more than 10 years corporate experience in operations and facilities management.

Sharron Angus

Sharron has held various administrative roles over the years and has a particular passion for education.
 

Liam Duffin

Liam has been an administrative employee at ACG Tauranga since 2020 on a part-time basis. He has strong connections with the academic programme after attending ACG Strathallan primary school and is a former Tauranga Boys' College student. Liam's primary position includes working with ACG Tauranga students that have educational differences to assist in their assessments and examinations. He provides the reader/writer services that enables these students to produce their best work and encourages them to have academic confidence whilst at school. He is currently studying towards a Bachelor of Management Studies with Honours at the University of Waikato and is majoring in the economics and political science fields. Liam has a keen passion for motorsport and car restoration.

Simon Wheatley

An experienced educator, Simon has spent the last 21 years teaching in a variety of educational settings, including language academies, university, and international schools. While teaching internationally in Qatar and Brunei, for the last seven years, Simon gained experience teaching the Cambridge Curriculum, specifically IGCSE and A Level Humanities courses as well as International Baccalaureate (IB). Simon is passionate about encouraging students to do their very best in all aspects of their lives, while developing a love of Humanities, especially History. Helping students to see the links between the course content and the real world is a core focus in his approach. Simon holds a Bachelor of Social Science, Bachelor of Teaching from Waikato University and a Master of Applied Linguistics from University of Southern Queensland.
 

Denise Wheatley

Denise is an experienced primary school teacher. She has taught in New Zealand and several international schools in South Korea, Brunei and Qatar. With 15 years of teaching experience across a range of ages, she has been involved in various positions of responsibility, including Leader of Primary English. Denise has experienced not only the New Zealand Curriculum, but also the English National Curriculum, the International Primary Curriculum (IPC) and the Cambridge Curriculum. Denise believes in celebrating cultural diversity and providing an environment where students can excel. Denise holds a Bachelor in Medical Laboratory Science from Massey University, a Post Graduate Certificate in Primary Teaching from Victory University and a Masters in Applied Linguistic from University of Southern Queensland.

Helen Dunning

Helen has arrived at ACG Tauranga from 20 years of teaching locally and internationally. She has experience with teaching English, Media Studies and Design in the New Zealand NCEA, British (including Cambridge), American and International curriculums. Most recently, she has been teaching Language and Literature with the International Baccalaureate programme, but appreciates the chance to get back into the Cambridge curriculum. She is enthusiastic about Language, Literature, Media, Art and Design and especially loves the connections between them. Another joy for her is when students are able to engage authentically with written, audio and visual texts, and use them to make sense of the world. Helen has a Bachelor of Art (Humanities) from Massey University and a Diploma of Teaching from the University of Auckland.
 

Dierdre Sadd

Having owned a businesses for 25 years, Deirdre decided to pursuit her passion and enter the Education Sector. After training as a teacher, she tutored Beauty Therapy and Cosmetology at Toi Ohomai. Taking a position in Educational Administration, Deirdre spent 5 years at a local Primary School before joining ACG Tauranga. Deirdre lives with her family on a rural property in Ohauiti where she enjoys gardening and looking after her animals.

Ian Shaw

Ian joins ACG Tauranga as Head of Sport, PE and Health having held Senior leadership positions and subject specific positions in the UK and New Zealand. Ian obtained his Bachelor of Science Degree in 2000 from Edge Hill University in the North West of England and went on to study a Postgraduate Certificate in Education at Liverpool Hope University. Ian has a wealth of knowledge having taught for 19 years creating a classroom environment, which is supportive, challenging and promotes progress of the individual. Ian feels very passionately about teaching and aims to continue to provide a classroom atmosphere that fosters a high level of achievement, ultimately ensuring greater enjoyment is gained from study. Ian is a New Zealand Football C licence coach and in the UK system has a Level 2 Senior coaching qualification & Youth Module Football Association qualification. Whilst at Avondale College 2007-2012 in Auckland Ian was Director of Health and PE and was in charge of the Sports Academy. Ian Taught IGCSE, AS and A level PE theory. Ian finished in the top three for the Auckland Football competitions and 3rd in the New Zealand National Premier Girl’s Football tournament in 2008 winning Coach of the year and a Canterbury Coaching Scholarship award. Ian has worked for Everton Football Club as a Talent Identification scout, Teacher and Coach. Ian is looking forward to building upon the Sporting success at ACG Tauranga, increasing participation and adding additional sports to the offer from the Sports Department. Ian represented his school and County in Athletics, Cross Country, Football and Tennis. He ran for the North of England at 400m & 800m. Ian has mentored athletes to go on to scholarships in the USA and professional sports contracts such as Betsy Hassett (NZ All White- FIFA Women’s world cup 2011, 2015 & 2019, Olympics 2012 & 2016), Jasmine Pereira (U17 World Cup, All White 2016 Olympics) Mason Lino (NZ Warriors & Newcastle Knights NRL), Aaron Morley (Rochdale FC) and Dominic Kerrigan (Fleetwood Town). Ian also helped Betsy Hassett, Nadia Pearl and Hannah Hoeksema gain Athletics Scholarships to America.
 

Sonia Bernard

Sonia is an experienced educator orignally from New York, who has taught in both the United States and New Zealand over the past 25 years. She relocated to New Zealand over a decade ago with her husband (who is from the UK) and their son and daughter. Sonia has worked with the IB and NCEA curricula and has taught in primary, secondary, and tertiary institutions. She is passionate about enabling learners to reach their full potential and wants them to be excited about acquiring and applying new knowledge and skills! Some of her interests include cooking, reading, travelling, and languages. Sonia has a Bachelor of Arts in English, with a Minor in Elementary Education, certification in Secondary Education, and a Master of Arts in Applied Linguistics from Victoria University of Wellington.