Sprawling research says the average age for secondary school principals in Australia is around the 50 mark, but Alison McLennan is defying the data.
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The 41-year-old was formally announced as the new Orange High School principal on October 15.
The last full-time principal at OHS was Chad Bliss, with Andrew Jones and more recently Kristie Anderson filling interim roles for the last few years.
In an exclusive interview with the Central Western Daily, the new Sydney-born principal is beaming about landing the new seat.
"We moved to Orange five years ago and I just fell in love with the place, with the pace of it all," she said, "but I've been with OHS since we relocated.
"After a fair bit of leadership change, I think it's such an exciting time to keep building on stability here, continue improving our teaching, and really strengthening all areas of learning."
Mrs McLennan was acting principal in 2023 until the recent promotion, working as head teacher for the school leadership team and deputy principal in the years prior.
She arrived with a Master of Educational Leadership, an 11-year background in Sydney's private education system, and the Catholic school sector subsequently.
Feeling "very passionate" about English following roles as the subject's head teacher, one OHS accomplishment she feels deeply about is linked to the mother of all high school exams.
We moved to Orange five years ago and I just fell in love with the place, with the pace of it all.
- New OHS principal, Alison McLennan on moving to Central West.
"Our percentages in the HSC have significantly improved, in terms of trying to reach the maximum amount of students landing in the Band 5 and 6 brackets, so it's definitely something I feel proud of after being heavily involved there," Mrs McLennan said.
"But I truly believe public education is the cornerstone of everything and I'm extremely passionate about our kids having strong learning experiences, so that's what really motivates me."
Along with hunting down the best vocational pathways to provide students with even further opportunities, Mrs McLennan says she's also "very big on" inclusion.
Determined to maintain "wonderfully diverse" choices for students, she says teaching staff are no exception to the drive in wanting the best outcomes for the entire OHS community.
"There are brilliant teachers here and I'll continue walking alongside them to give them the support they need, while also maintaining our strong focus around learning expectations," she said.
"I tend to be a very reflective leader with a strong focus on how more improvements can be made from year to year and I love working with the families in our community."
Mother of two children herself, Mrs McLennan feels having the perspective of a parent "certainly helps" when engaging with students and their own clans back at home.
"Parents and carers are such a big part of our school," she said, "and listening to them means we're working closely with them, which supports us to learn from them in return."
Part of this positive ally-setting is to also merge forces with other secondary schools in the colour city.
It's a really exciting move forward for everyone; and I think it's really important for kids to see women in leadership roles, as well.
- New OHS principal, Alison McLennan on leadership appointment.
It's something the new honcho believes is a critical key in keeping a positive teaching and learning culture across the board.
"We always want to strengthen numeracy and literacy, and continue to develop our pathways out of school, so our students are finding excellence however they can," Mrs McLennan said.
"We're working closely with Canobolas [Rural Technology High School] to achieve public excellence in Orange, so and we're looking at how we can really support both schools to create the best opportunities for all of our students.
"It's a really exciting move forward for everyone; and I think it's really important for kids to see women in leadership roles, as well."
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