Victoria Dai
Early Years Centre-Chinese Head
THE School
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No.15 Linhai No.3 Road, Meilan District, Haikou, China
Head Mistress
Mrs. Kelly M Wailes has been in education for more than 20 years across the USA, the UK and China. Most of her career has been focused on educating younger children, and Mrs. Wailes’ leadership experience has been built upon her work as an Early Years and Primary specialist. Mrs. Wailes believes that having been a teacher for over 10 years across various countries and continents has given her an insight into other cultures and how young children learn and develop, and this has been further developed and enriched by having her own two daughters.
CHINESE PRINCIPAL
Cathy has been deeply involved in the education industry for 18 years. She holds an MBA from Hult International Business School and has worked in education management positions in well-known international school groups for more than 15 years. Cathy has not only the experience of managing foreign children’s schools, but also the experience of establishing private bilingual schools. Her long experience of working and studying in a multicultural environment has given her a broader perspective, more diversified thinking and a more tolerant mentality. In Harrow Haikou, she will lead the team to cultivate the core values of Harrow for the new generation of Harrow students through teaching and learning, leadership projects, institutional systems and other activities, namely “Courage, Honour, Humility and Fellowship”, the four core values that Harrow students would benefited from throughout their lives, enabling them to have a foundation and strength to go further.
Deputy Headmistress
Jo Evans has over 20 years of educational experience in the UK, South America, the Middle East and China. Her career started in education departments of major London museums and galleries and moved into visual arts, supporting middle and high school children develop creative approaches to problem solving and self expression. Jo has developed her educational leadership experience primarily within pastoral roles but has also worked in curriculum development and off site learning experiences. Her guiding principle is to ensure that every child receives the quality and consistency of provision that she would wish for her own two children.
Deputy Head Master
Mr. Alex Ward has been deeply involved in education for more than 25 years. He holds a bachelor’s degree in advanced mathematics from the University of Leeds and a master’s degree in human resources training and development management from the University of Edinburgh and has obtained a teacher qualification certificate from Keele University.
Before moving to Harrow Haikou, He was the Head of Upper School in Harrow Beijing and has served as the school’s academic director. He has work experience in the Middle East, the United States, Canada, Australia and China and other countries or regions. His educational philosophy is focused on developing the student, not just in their academic endeavors but also in their broader personal development.
Key to this is guiding students to take responsibility for their choices and actions as they develop their educational excellence for life and as leaders of the future.
Head of Upper School
Mr. Cooper has taught in a number of private international tier-one schools since 2008, notably Jumeirah English Speaking School, Dubai; followed by Harrow International School, Beijing; and Dulwich College’s Dehong Chinese International School, Shanghai. Having taught in both international and bilingual schools, he feels particularly attuned to the educational environment within a culturally rich Chinese context. His breadth of experience has led to a strong belief that children are happiest, and learn best, when they are fully engaged; challenged with inquiry based practical activities that have a real-world learning context, often taking place beyond the classroom.
Assistant Headteacher (WS) and Head of Lower School
Ms. Romano has 31 years‘ teaching experience and 21 years‘ school management experience. She is an expert in team management, curriculum design and teaching. Ms. Romano had been the role of Chair of Knowsley, a Primary Heads Training and Development Forum, aiming at ensuring an effective match of provision for training and educational developments. Ms. Romano will join us with her rich experience and passion for innovation.
Deputy Head of Lower School
Mr. Moore has rich teaching experience in Japan, China and Thailand. He is familiar with all aspects of planning and delivering differentiated lessons in a wide range of subjects as well as designing appropriate curriculum, evaluation and testing strategies. He is the specialist in providing opportunities for students’ personal development and the cultivation of a positive outlook.
Head of Early Years
Ms. Starling has more than 15 years of teaching experience in lower schools, teaching early years and primary school courses. She came to China in 2018. As a member of the founding team in an international kindergarten, she took on many additional responsibilities, such as Literacy Lead and the English Curriculum Coordinator. Ms. Starling moved to China in July 2018 to join the founding team of a new bilingual kindergarten. Having worked in leadership roles for a number of years in both China and in England, she feels passionate about creating a culture of collaborative working and teamwork, with shared responsibilities and leadership, and where everyone feels valued and respected. Prior to moving to China, she enjoyed a varied career working all over England. I qualified with QTS in 2002 following a PGCE at the University of Exeter.
Ms. Starling believes all children achieve best when they feel supported, valued and engaged, and when they are viewed as independent and capable. She believes the best way to achieve this is through responsive intentional teaching which values the interests and passions of each child, balanced with a carefully planned enabling environment.
Early Years Centre-Chinese Head
BA Applied Psychology , HUNAU PGDip Child developmental psychology, Institute of Psychology CAS Principal qualification certificate ， Guangdong Province Kindergarten Principals’ Training Center
I have over 20 years of early years educational experience and have been a kindergarten principal for more than 15 years. Most of my working experience in early years is related to bilingual education. Other than that, I have spent 3 years in the research and practice of gamification education. My main interests are child psychology, bilingual education and cross culture management.