WELCOME TO OUR NEW STAFF

Welcome to Mr Alex Kim! Mr Kim is our new Head of Music at Trident and students and staff alike are already enjoying having him on our staff.

"I'm originally from South Korea, but I came to New Zealand in 1994 and went to Mt Maunganui College. I studied Music and Teaching in Victoria University of Wellington, and I spent around 7 years teaching in a number of schools in Auckland.

I was also working in a different Music Industry - KBB Music and Rockshop around the country, working closely with schools and churches.

My family moved to Whakatane at the beginning of 2020, when I started teaching Music in Edgecumbe College until the middle of this year when I started at Trident.

I play piano, flute, guitar, bass, saxophone, percussions, and ukulele. My passion for Music heavily lies in composing and arranging, but I played piano and percussions for West City Concert Band for years and I would like to develop a band program at Trident High School.

I also played keys and bass for a number of cover bands, and I am eager to work with students who wishes to enter RockQuest and PlayItStrange."

Mrs Tracey Greenwood has joined our Trident staff post lockdown and we welcome her to Trident in an academic mentoring support role with some Year 12 learners until November.

Mrs Greenwood's teaching journey began in 2002 and over the years she has taught at both primary and secondary schools in NZ and the UK. She left her most recent job as a Curriculum Learning Designer and Literacy Coach at Ormiston Junior College in Auckland to support her husband (Mr Greenwood) with his new role as Deputy Principal at Trident High School.

If you are interested in any overseas exchanges in the future (when travel resumes) it might be a good idea to talk to Mrs Greenwood who in her Year 13 year was an exchange student in Switzerland. Mrs Greenwood says she is inspired and motivated by "family, having a purpose and knowing who you are." We look forward to getting to know Mrs Greenwood and hope you will show her a warm Trident welcome.

Welcome to Jo McGowan who will be helping out in the Careers and Futures Academy departments.

Prior to starting at Trident this term Mrs McGowan was at a High School in Regional Western Australia - Newman Senior High School - Newman is a small mining town about 1200 km's north of Perth where it is always warm and sunny! Mrs McGowan moved to Whakatane as her husband's family all live around this area and "we wanted to be closer to them, doesn't everyone want to live near their Mother In Law?? haha" Something that many of our students who are animal lovers might like to know about Mrs McGowan is that when she lived in Australia she helped run an animal rescue group and had 17 foster dogs, 6 foster cats and five foster kangaroos at one stage! Isn't that impressive!

Please extend a big Trident welcome to Mrs McGowan and give her a wave as you pass the Careers office.