Meet The
Catherine McKeever The principal of GEMS Wellington Primary School in Dubai shares with us her vision for the school and tells us about her career to date
Tell us about your background in education. I have been in the teaching profession for over 30 years. After I graduated, I taught in America for five years. When I returned I spent over 20 years teaching in innercity schools in London. I taught there for five years before my first headship. Since then, most of my career has been spent in school improvement as a school leader. Following on from that I knew that I wanted to take the opportunity to work abroad again. I was also clear that I wanted to work with an education company whose business was education and improving the lives of students. I knew that GEMS Education was that company. In 2013, I applied for a job with GEMS Education and they invited me to Dubai. I’d never been here before, but knew when I first
14
Issue 8 | March 2020
arrived that it was where I wanted to take that next step in my career. In August 2014, I was appointed Principal of Jumeirah Primary School. I loved my two years there; it is a privilege to be the principal of an Outstanding-rated school. Due to my previous background, I was asked to consider taking on the principalship of a GEMS school in Switzerland (they knew I loved skiing and hiking). This school was an IB school, so it was an opportunity to take on a leadership position from a different perspective. It was also an allthrough school, with students aged 3-18 years. I relish the challenge of something new and so I loved my time there. After two years, GEMS asked me to come back to Dubai, where I was appointed Principal of Wellington Primary School (WPS).
What do you like about your role at WPS? The sense of community. Families treat the school very much as their own community, which I love. There are many GEMS schools in the UAE and we get to create a community and a network within the schools and with each other. That network creates many opportunities for students across all our schools. How do you approach your role as principal? The same way I approach my role at every school - doing the basics as
