Director of Guidance Mr Paul Ferner is retiring at the end of this term after 14 years at MAGS, and a 44-year teaching career.
He says he leaves feeling privileged to have been in a position of trust among students, and will miss them and his colleagues the most.
“Students talk to a counsellor in a way they don’t talk to anyone else, including their friends or their parents. It’s a privileged role, and rewarding to be able to help so many over the years.”
Mentoring the school’s Prefect group each year has been among his extra responsibilities, and one he has enjoyed immensely.
“The talent and commitment among the Prefects each year has astounded me. The annual Prefects’ Camp has a been a highlight, and despite some serious attempts to lose staff during the orienteering, they all returned.”
A keen squash player, Mr Ferner has also managed and coached a number of student squash teams, helping 15 win Auckland titles and nine win New Zealand titles.
Looking back through his time at MAGS, Mr Ferner says one of the achievements he is most proud of is helping the overall school culture change for the better.
“When I arrived at Mount Albert Grammar in 2003, the school roll was about 1500, only half its current size, and girls had only been admitted to the school for three years. It was still very much a boys’ school and work had to be done to increase their respect toward girls.”
The MAGS Way set of values was introduced, and a “top down” culture programme fostered that saw Senior students take responsibility for helping Junior students. This led to the current Peer Support and Peer Mediation initiatives.
“Our students are now amazing at how respectfully they interact with each other and the school. Social media has made them more sophisticated, and in tune with their friends and the community because they are so much more connected.”
Helping students deal with the problems that social media can present has been an area that has risen in prominence during Mr Ferner’s time at MAGS, although he says that students come to the Guidance Centre with the same issues they have always had relating to their peers, family or school. “It’s just that social media gives some young people a different tool to create the same kind of problems.”
Mr Ferner initially trained as a Primary teacher, before switching to Secondary and becoming an English and Journalism teacher at a boys’ school. He became interested in counselling after attending a course to help him deal with issues that some of his students were presenting with, and in 1994 retrained to become a Guidance Counsellor. He was Director of Guidance at two other schools before being asked to come to MAGS in 2003.
He is now looking forward to spending more time with his two-year-old granddaughter Zoe, and helping his children Kirsty and Nick with their properties. “My wife Pip and I are going to buy a motorhome and do some travelling.”
“I’ve loved my time at MAGS. I’ve enjoyed the challenges, and interacting with staff. And if you asked me if the future of New Zealand is in good hands, the answer is yes. It’s been an honour and a joy to meet so many wonderful young people.”