I am pleased to announce the appointment of Mr Mark Hooper as the permanent Deputy Rector for Otago Boys’ High School.

Mark has been the acting Deputy Rector of our school since the depatrture of Mr Andrew Turner at the end of 2017.

Mark is a curriculum leader, and for 7 years has led the school’s academic programme in conjunction with Heads of Departments and Teachers in Charge of courses. This means he has led change and improvement in the type of courses we now offer. Alongside this he has been the school’s Principal’s Nominee with direct links to NZQA. His links with that organization are deep and he has been a source of knowledge for some time.

He is an expert teacher who maintains the highest standards and expectations. Students in his classes feel well supported to, not only learn, but to exceed.

Mark also leads scholarship programmes in our school and regularly, along with other key staff, lead the learning of students who achieve scholarships. This ties into our school’s Gifted and Talented programme; the Road to Rhodes which is developing the school’s 8th and 9th Rhodes scholars.

Mark is fully engaged in the co-curricular life of the school and has led sports teams and learning trips to Europe.

He has worked extremely hard to form positive relationships with the boys and their parents. I am confident he will not only hold the line, but he will implement a firm, fair and consistent approach to learning.

He has significant community backing.

Mark is an expert in boys’ learning and we are confident that we have the right leader to help us take our school forward. His relational skills are excellent and the boys will respect him, not for the title he will carry, but for the man he is.