Mr Iain Taylor, of Auckland, ONZM for services to education
Iain Taylor has been a school principal for more than 30 years, beginning at Lake Rotoma School in the Bay of Plenty, moving to Ponsonby Intermediate School, and then becoming Foundation Principal for the United College of Southeast Asia Elementary School in Singapore. In 2008 he became Principal of Manurewa Intermediate School in South Auckland, which had high rates of absenteeism, vandalism and poor facilities. He led transformational change, upgrading learning spaces, increasing staff and student engagement and emphasising achievement. The school now has one of the highest attendance rates nationally. He has been President of several Auckland and national Principals’ Associations and was an executive member for Oceania-Pacific on the International Confederation of Principals. Mr Taylor is a current member of several Ministry of Education advisory groups.