Senior writer Mary Anne Gill meets two Rotorua deputy principals who are stepping onto a national leadership pathway, carrying with them decades of lived experience, cultural connection and a shared belief that great schools are built on trust, courage and community.
A leadership journey for John Paul College deputy principals Laurelle Tamati, left, and Caroline Gill. Photo: Mary Anne Gill
When Laurelle Tamati and Caroline Gill sit side by side in an office at John Paul College in Rotorua – finishing each other’s sentences and laughing at how far they have come – it is easy to forget that this moment represents something much bigger than two careers quietly progressing.
Both deputy principals have been selected for the Ministry of Education’s new Aspiring Principal Programme, a highly sought‑after national initiative designed to prepare the next generation of school leaders. Of the 200 places available nationwide, only 14 have gone to the Bay of Plenty. Two of them are at the same school.
That alone is remarkable.
But then, John Paul College has long had a habit of producing people who leave their mark.
The Catholic co‑educational secondary school in Rotorua, catering for Years 7 to 13, opened in 1987 following the amalgamation of Edmund Rice College and MacKillop College. Established to serve Catholic families in Rotorua, it remains, nearly four decades on, a place where faith, culture and education intersect in deeply personal ways.
For Laurelle Tamati, 47, the connection is lifelong.
Laurelle Tamati is welcomed to John Paul College in Rotorua in 2024 as deputy principal Kaihautū Māori. Photo: Bryony Edwards
She grew up in Rotorua, immersed in te ao Māori and Catholic values, was a John Paul College student, a prefect, a Young Achiever, and a performer at Te Matatini while still at school – an unusual feat that foreshadowed a life of leadership long before any formal title followed.
Te Matatini is New Zealand’s premier national kapa haka festival. It represents the highest level of kapa haka performance in the country – often described as the Olympics of kapa haka. Most performers reach Te Matatini as adults, making Tamati’s achievement while still at school particularly rare.
She went on to study Māori and then teaching, working across both primary and secondary education. Her leadership journey includes more than a decade shaping haka excellence, where teams she led became national champions, and teaching at Rotorua Girls High.
When she returned to John Paul College as a deputy principal, Tamati began one portfolio from scratch – rebuilding relationships with iwi and re‑establishing Māori presence in a school that, for a time, had lost its way in that space.
“There was a perception in the community that this was a Pākehā school,” she says.
“Māori weren’t engaging in Catholic education, and Catholic education wasn’t engaging Māori.”
Changing that has required careful, relational work – rebuilding trust, strengthening cultural identity, and grounding leadership in tikanga and whanaungatanga. It is not work that fits neatly into spreadsheets, but it is work that lasts.
Alongside her sits Caroline Gill, 41, whose path to leadership was less linear but no less determined.
John Paul College principal Justin Harper, right, welcomes deputy principal Caroline Gill to the Hoani Pāora whānau house last year. Photo: John Paul College.
Gill laughs when she recalls that she did not get into teaching the first time she applied after completing her secondary school education at Sacred Heart Girls College in Hamilton.
“I always wanted to be a teacher. My nana was a teacher. It was just what I thought I’d do.”
Initially turned away, she followed another passion – performing arts and physical education at Waikato University – before reapplying and being accepted. That detour shaped the leader she has become: reflective, curious and deeply invested in learning.
Now overseeing curriculum, assessment, staffing, timetabling and professional growth at John Paul College, Gill is known as a change‑maker – comfortable leading in complex spaces.
“I love learning, and I believe that as educators we should always be looking to improve our practice.”
A strategic thinker, her leadership is grounded in fostering a strong culture of learning, where decisions are student-centred and teachers are supported to strengthen their craft so students can thrive. It is work that requires conviction, resilience, and trust – qualities that have not gone unnoticed.
John Paul College deputy principals Laurelle Tamati, left, and Caroline Gill in front of the John Paul stained glass window. Photo: Mary Anne GillBernadette Fredricksen, the school’s director of mission, has watched both women step into leadership with confidence and humility.
“To have two deputy principals from the same school selected is extraordinary. It reflects the calibre of leadership here.”
She acknowledges the bittersweet reality of the programme, which is designed to move participants into principal roles – potentially within 18 months.
“That’s the flip side of accelerating really good people.
“You might lose them. But they go on to make a bigger difference,” says Fredricksen.
The Aspiring Principal Programme, launching in term two, is a government‑funded initiative announced in Budget 2025 and delivered by the University of Waikato. It combines academic study, practical leadership projects, mentoring by experienced principals and time spent working in other schools.
Gill and Tamati speak candidly about the realities of leadership: budgets, health and safety, governance, making hard calls, and always putting student wellbeing first.
“At this level, you see things differently. If my gut tells me something isn’t safe for kids, then it’s not happening.”
Both credit John Paul College with giving them space to lead – reporting directly to the board, making decisions, and being trusted to do so.
“We’re supported here. We’re given autonomy, but we’re also collegial. We check in with each other,” says Tamati.
It is that combination – trust, challenge, faith and community – that has shaped them.
And as they prepare to step into a national programme designed to fast‑track future principals, there is a sense this is not an ending, but a continuation.
Two women. One school. And a leadership journey rooted in service – to students, to community, and to the belief that education, done well, can change lives.
See: Building leadership capability
Aspiring principals, Caroline Gill, left and Laurelle Tamati outside John Paul College in Rotorua. Photo: Mary Anne Gill
