Kieran Golden is the current principal of Mayfield Community School and past president of the National Association of Principals and Deputy Principals. He has a wealth of knowledge and experience which he shares with us openly, and it was an absolute pleasure to join him at Mayfield Community School to chat about all things leadership. We speak about Kieran’s journey to leadership, the joys of his role as school principal, and the importance of feeding and being fed by the system. We also discuss the challenges to the sustainability of school leaders and ways in which this could be addressed. We loved this conversation and we hope you do too!

This week’s episode is with the wonderful Thomas McCormack. Speaking with Thomas is like a breath of fresh air! He has an incredible way of opening up a conversation and creating a real sense of connection in a room. We took so much away from this conversation about presence and connection and we really hope that you do too. Enjoy!

Chatting to Dr. Denise Mifsud about her experiences in leadership was an absolute treat. Denise is currently Associate Professor of Educational Leadership at the University of Bath, and has over two decades of practitioner experience in education settings in both teaching and high-level leadership roles within the Maltese Ministry for Education. Denise brings a unique viewpoint through her experiences working in research, policy, and practice and is extremely generous in sharing her knowledge about this “triage”. She speaks about the importance of choosing the good, leading from the ground, and the need to work towards social justice and equity in schools.

We chat to Professor Giles Warrington, current Head of Department at the Physical Education and Sport Sciences (PESS) Department at the University of Limerick and Professor of Sport and Exercise Physiology. We chat about Giles’ career in high performance sports and academia, his insights into coaching, and his research on sleep. Giles shares insights into his humanistic approach to leadership and provides practical tips for those at any stage of their career. This is a must listen! 

In this episode, we speak with Professor Jim Spillane. Jim’s work on educational leadership and policy has had a profound influence on of research, policy, and practice. It was a privilege to speak to Jim about his developing insights on distributed leadership, which we are currently researching within the Irish context, as well as an insider’s perspective on his new book, with co-author Rebecca Lowenhaupt, entitled “Navigating the Principalship: : Key Insights for New and Aspiring School Leaders”. This book is a must-read for any newly appointed or aspiring school leader as it speaks to many of the dilemmas that you will likely face in a practical and insightful manner. We hope you enjoy this episode as much as we did!

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On this episode of Leadership Unwrapped, we speak to Dr. Paul Campbell. Paul is Vice Principal at an international school in Hong Kong and scholar-practitioner fellow at the Asia Pacific Centre for Leadership and Change at the Education University of Hong Kong. He recently completed his PhD and is very active in research as well as practice. We speak to Paul about his doctoral studies exploring collaboration in education which shines a light on the importance of conceptual clarity. Paul is incredibly knowledgeable and authentic in his approach to teaching, research and leadership and we just loved chatting to him. Lots of food for thought…

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“I believe so strongly that we all have gifts. We are all so worthy of so much.”

In Episode 10, we speak with Aimée McKenzie, Secretary General of the Postgraduate Students’ Union. Aimée discusses the importance of supporting our students at third level, the supervision process, and the need to ask questions! Aimée brings such energy and care to all of her work and it comes through so strongly in everything from her career in ice-skating to her current role. We hope you enjoy!

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“It’s all about growing yourself initially, but once you become a leader, it’s all about growing others.”

We are delighted to be back with our first episode of Season 2 and what a brilliant start it was to speak with Anna Mai Rooney from the Centre for School Leadership (CSL). Anna Mai is the Deputy Director for Primary in the CSL and has a wealth of knowledge on leadership from her experiences as a principal herself, from working with the CSL and from her current doctoral research on educational leadership with the University of Glasgow. We speak about the challenges that school leaders are facing and the need to support them in order to ensure the sustainability of the role. Enjoy!

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In this week’s episode, we chat to Dr. Berni Moreno. Berni is an expert on principal integration in schools. She gives practical insights from her research including the importance of professional development, building trust, and increasing visibility. Berni is hugely passionate about all things educational leadership and there is always so much to learn from her! Happy listening!!

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This week we chat to Dr Teresa Shiels, expert in neurodiversity and education. Teresa gives a first hand account of living with Traumatic Brain Injury. Her story of triumph and refusing to be limited by TBI never ceases to inspire. You won’t be disappointed.