Our People

Meet our dedicated teaching staff, support staff, and board members who drive our impact, ensuring all ākonga (learners) in Aotearoa New Zealand schools have access to exceptional teaching and learning.  

David Ferguson

CEO

David, originally from the North-East of England, has called Aotearoa New Zealand home for the past 21 years. Coming from a family of education leaders, he was instilled with core values of hard work, being nice to people and contributing positively to acommunity during his formative years.
 
David began his teaching career in the early 1990s as a PE teacher in the UK before relocating to Aotearoa and stepping into the role of Headmaster at Westlake Boys High School in 2010. As he commences his role as CEO at The Teachers’ Institute, David is excited to contribute to the future of teacher education training in Aotearoa. David believes that being a teacher is a great privilege and is a purposeful and enjoyable way to earn a living.

Nina Hood

Academic Director

Nina has a background as a secondary school teacher in Auckland. She has a DPhil in Education from The University of Oxford, and worked as an academic at The University of Auckland for eight years. She is the founder of The Education Hub, a not-for-profit with a mission to bridge the gap between research and practice in education. 

Nina is passionate about finding innovative ways to address key educational challenges. She has been involved with The Teachers’ Institute since its inception and is passionate about the work it is doing to strengthen the teaching profession in Aotearoa New Zealand.

Jay Allnutt

Operations Manager

Jay worked with Teach First in England before moving to Aotearoa New Zealand in 2015. He served as the CEO of Ako Mātātupu Teach First NZ for 5 years, focusing on advancing social justice and driving equality in education before stepping back to spend more quality time with his two young daughters. Currently a doctoral candidate, Jay is also a director and co-founder of the Māia Centre for Social Justice and Education. 
 
Having been involved with The Teachers’ Institute since its inception, Jay is an advocate for school-based education and understands the critical factors involved in effectively developing and supporting classroom teachers.

Nina Hood

Academic Director

Nina has a background as a secondary school teacher in Auckland. She has a DPhil in Education from The University of Oxford, and worked as an academic at The University of Auckland for eight years. She is the founder of The Education Hub, a not-for-profit with a mission to bridge the gap between research and practice in education. 

Nina is passionate about finding innovative ways to address key educational challenges. She has been involved with The Teachers’ Institute since its inception and is passionate about the work it is doing to strengthen the teaching profession in Aotearoa New Zealand.

John Etty

Secondary Programme Director

John trained to teach History in England in 2001, and taught there for eight years before moving to New Zealand. John has been at Auckland Grammar School since 2012. John has a PhD in Soviet history and 1930s-1960s visual culture and has written several texts for academic publications, as well as several history textbooks and teacher guides for Cambridge University Press. 

He has marked external exams in the UK and in NZ, run professional development for teachers, and is currently Associate Headmaster (Academic) at Auckland Grammar School.

Victoria Macann

Teaching Fellow

Victoria is an NZ-registered secondary school science and biology teacher. She is also a New Zealand Ministry of Education accredited professional development facilitator. Victoria has submitted her PhD in Technology Education, and worked as a research scientist at Michigan State University, and Koi Tū (the centre for informed futures) based at the University of Auckland. 

Victoria was also a Fulbright graduate award recipient. Victoria is an advocate for connecting research to teaching practice to make learning more meaningful, relevant, and effective.

Adrienne Birtwistle

Programme Manager

Adrienne gained a Bachelor of Arts Degree from Auckland University and trained to teach English at Auckland Secondary Teachers’ College. Adrienne holds extensive domestic and international teaching experience. Currently in the role of Deputy Headmaster (Pastoral) at Auckland Grammar School, Adrienne holds positions of responsibility in her curriculum area and has marking experience on external examination panels. 

As a Specialist Classroom Teacher, Adrienne has run professional development programmes for Provisionally Certificated Teachers, and induction programmes for trainee teachers.

Johnny Waititi

Subject Lead – Te Reo Māori

Johnny has been a teacher for over 30 years in roles including Deputy Principal; a Principal’s Nominee, and the Head of the Faculty of Te Ao Māori at Westlake Boys High School. Johnny has vast experience in Māori medium education in teaching and professional development for NCEA Te Reo Māori.

Johnny worked for NZQA as the National Facilitator for Te Reo Māori and Music as well as leading the annual translation project of external standards into te reo Māori. Johnny is passionate supporting teachers to the best that they can be.

Mary Robinson

Subject Lead – Geography

Mary studied geography, history and economics at the UoA and became a passionate geography teacher after completing a Master’s of Arts in coastal geography. Mary has taught for the past 25 years and in 2022, she became the national Kaiārahi (leader) for Geography to assist teachers with the implementation of the NCEA changes. Most recently, Mary has taught geography classes at Saint Kentigern College.

Aase Diegel

Subject Lead – Biology

Aase has taught Science and Biology for more than 25 years. She was head of the Science faculty at Mount Albert Grammar School for 6 years and prior to that she was head of Biology for 7 years at St Cuthbert’s College.

Aase has a masters in cell biology and completed her teacher training specialising in Biology and Chemistry. She has marked external exams for both NZQA and IB and is passionate about teaching Biology-Science, and helping students reach their full potential.

Most recently, Aase taught Biology (IB and MYP programme) at an international school in Lausanne, Switzerland.

Ritu Sehji

Subject Lead – Technology

Ritu completed her teacher’s training in 2002 and has taught Technology (Food, Textiles) Home Economics, and Hospitality at a wide range of Auckland schools. Ritu was the Head of Food Technology and an Across School Lead for Pupuke Kāhui Ako prior to joining Southern Cross Campus as a Deputy Principal. 

In 2010, Ritu authored a textbook and developed a digital teaching resource for Food Technology. She was granted a Royal Society of New Zealand Fellowship in 2013 and Next Generation Scholarship in 2015. Ritu has been involved with material development for NZQA, run numerous workshops for staff and students, and presented at conferences nationally and globally.

Audrey Young

Subject Lead – English

Audrey has been teaching English since 2006 and is currently the Deputy Head of Faculty at St Cuthbert’s College. She is also the Literacy Coordinator (Years 1-13), which has enabled her to work with both primary and secondary teachers, as well as running professional development sessions for staff on integrating literacy practices.

Audrey’s experience spans across both the NCEA and IB Diploma Programmes, and she has marked external examinations for NZQA, as well as coordinating teacher trainees and mentoring new teachers. Audrey has also been involved in English curriculum writing for the Ministry of Education.

Gerard Leeuw

Subject Lead – Mathematics

Gerard completed a Bachelor of Science (Mathematics) at Auckland University and a Diploma in Teaching from Auckland College of Education.  Early in his career, Gerard discovered a passion for the development and writing of specialised maths course resources. He assisted in the Form 5 Revision textbook (RJ Watson) published by ESA Publications in 1989.

In 1997, Gerard became the Head of the Mathematics Department at Auckland Grammar School and has gone on to write several more textbooks and workbooks. In Gerard’s 27 years at Auckland Grammar School, he has organised NZEST Scholarship marking panels for Statistics and Calculus, helped develop the AGS Scholarship programme, and has led a diverse group of Mathematics teachers. 

Rob Boasman

Subject Lead – Physics

Rob studied astrophysics in 1990, then worked as a jazz musician before training as a teacher in 1994. After teaching in the north of England for seven years and working for the AQA examination board, Rob emigrated to New Zealand in 2002.

Rob took up a teaching post at Lynfield College, where he became the Head of Physics in 2004 and then faculty leader of Science in 2007. While at Lynfield, he worked as a Chief Marker for NZQA L2 Physics and wrote three Physics books for Cengage.

In 2012, Rob moved to Diocesan School for Girls as the Head of Physics and Data Manager. He has completed a Master’s in educational leadership and works as a mentor with Provisionally Certified Teachers.

Ian Torrie

Subject Lead – Chemistry

Ian taught at Carmel College as HOD of Science for 14 years and then for 30 years at St Cuthbert’s College as both Head of Science and Chemistry, interspersed with 1-year teaching fellowships at Auckland and Waikato Universities.
Ian attended a number of international chemistry education conferences early in his career, which sparked a lifelong research interest in how we learn. 

Ian has been actively involved for 40 years in curriculum and assessment at the national level, having assessed, led marking panels and set national exams at all levels from L1 to Scholarship.
Ian believes that we need to pass on the “guild of knowledge” to the next generation of teachers.

Heather McRae

Board Chair

Widely respected as one of New Zealand’s leading Principals, Heather is currently the Principal of Diocesan School for Girls as well as the President of the Executive of the Association of Heads of Independent Schools (AHIS) and is a member of the Curriculum Assessment Group and the College Sport Board. Prior to her appointment at Diocesan, Heather was Principal at Pakuranga College, a co-educational school with 2100 students. 

Between 1996 and 2002, Heather gained extensive international experience as Director of Educational Operations at Multi Serve Education Trust, a leading exporter of education. This included the establishment of an International School for the Sultan of Brunei and a range of educational projects in Japan, Indonesia, Malaysia and China.

Deborah George

Trustee

Deborah started her career as a secondary school teacher and has spent the past thirty years working in education in a variety of roles across commercial, government and not-for-profit organisations. Over this time she has owned businesses in both Hong Kong and New Zealand, worked for the New Zealand and Australian governments, and was one of a team of three to expand the Duffy “Books in Homes” programme nationwide. 

In 2017 she was invited to join the judging panel of the Prime Minister’s Excellence in Education awards which celebrate outstanding achievements across the sector. Deborah is a Trustee of the Woolf Fisher Trust and The Teachers’ Institute and the former chair of both Inzone Education and Teach First NZ which she co-founded in 2011. In 2020 she was made an Officer of the NZ Order of Merit for services to Education and Governance.

Debi Marshall-Lobb

Trustee

Debi (Rangitāne, Ngāti Kuia, Ngāti Rangi, Te Wainui-ā-Rua and Ngāti Apa) has over 40 years of experience in Aotearoa-New Zealand’s education system, with a significant portion of her career spent as a principal in mainstream schools and as a Tumuaki in Kura Māori.

Debi brings extensive practical experience from working across various educational settings, including primary, secondary, and tertiary sectors, as well as special education and Māori medium education.

Throughout her long-standing service in education, Debi has dedicated her career to empowering students, whānau, iwi, and educators to realise their potential through targeted and effective strategies, with a strong commitment to the roles of culture and education.

Tim O’Connor

Trustee

Tim (Ngāti Tuwharetoa and Ngāti Hauiti) has a proven track record in education management and is currently serving as the Headmaster of Auckland Grammar School. He began his secondary teaching career in 1990 and was appointed Deputy Principal of Nelson College in 2000. In 2002, Tim took on the role of Rector at Palmerston North Boys’ High School, where he engaged in various initiatives related to boys’ education. 

In recognition of his contributions, Tim was awarded both a Woolf Fisher Fellowship and the Sir Peter Blake Trust Emerging Leader accolade in 2007. Additionally, he has pursued post-graduate studies in both educational and executive leadership at Harvard University.

Alison (Ally) Watt

Selection and Enrolment Manager

Ally’s career spans a range of industries including education, media, and telecommunications. She has held roles in marketing and communications at ACG Education, Dilworth School, Spark, and The Radio Bureau, amassing a wealth of experience. 

Ally works closely with our community of schools and prospective teacher trainees, guiding them through the admissions process. She is deeply passionate about education and believes that all tamariki should have access to quality education and exceptional teachers.

Tay-Marie Yorsten

Quality Assurance Manager

Tay-Marie brings over 22 years of diverse experience in the tertiary sector to the TTI team. Her career began with designing hospital buildings and services for health authorities in NZ and London before practicing law in Auckland. After teaching business and commercial law at UNITEC for 12 years, she transitioned into senior academic quality roles with tertiary institutions to lead and manage the design of programmes and implementation of the QMS across institutions.

She has chaired and sat on Academic Boards and Academic Standards and Programme Approval committees to monitor the quality and compliance of programmes, academic standards, quality assurance practices and self-assessment reviews. Tay-Marie’s extensive teaching and compliance background makes her an asset to the TTI team.

Mary-Jayne (MJ) Bethell

Trust Coordinator

Mary-Jayne (MJ) brings a diverse background from the film and tourism industries to her role at The Teachers’ Institute. Since returning to New Zealand in 2019, MJ has been passionate about supporting initiatives that help create better futures for rangitahi (youth). As the coordinator at The Teachers’ Institute, she has an eye for detail and strong support for our mission. Contact MJ with any administrative or recruitment inquiries.