After an extensive recruitment process, we are excited to announce the appointment of our new deputy principal.

Matt Malone has been appointed to the role of deputy principal. He will take up this role at the beginning of the third term.

Matt has been part of St Joseph's board since the beginning of 2021, holding the role of chair for the last 9 months. His connection with the board meant some extra measures were put in place to ensure the appointment process was fair and unbiased. The board is confident that Matt was clearly the strongest candidate. We are fortunate to have attracted such a committed Catholic leader. He brings a wealth of varied experience with him to the role. 

Matt has recently completed a Master's Degree in Educational Leadership having originally trained as an Art and Music teacher. The majority of his teaching experience has been as Director of Religious Studies at St Bede's College. 

Most recently, Matt has been working part-time as an "Across School Leader" for the Christchurch Catholic Kahui Ako. Within this role, he has been leading initiatives to enhance student literacy, support wellbeing, improve the transition from primary to secondary and develop the ability for whānau, school and parish to strategically develop the faith of all members of our community. Due to our membership in this Kahui Ako Matt is able to continue in this role for the rest of 2022. 

Matt is a passionate educator and leader who is an active member of the St Peter Chanel Catholic Parish. He is married to Anna (a former student of St Joseph's School) and has four children (Ella, Emma, Bria and Elizabeth - with the latter two being current students at St Joseph's). 

Matt has a track record of keeping students at the centre and will be an asset to the school as we strive together to help every student reach their full potential in faith, learning and virtue. 

As deputy principal, Matt will teach part-time in the senior school. Anita Ward will stay on as the main teacher of Tui until the end of the year. 

NOTE - Due to his employment at the school, Matt is no longer eligible to be the presiding member of the school board. He can and will remain on the board as a proprietor's representative until the election in September. We are blessed to have the wonderful Emma Dangerfield waiting in the wings as the deputy chair!