Essington School announces new principal after Brian Kennelly retires

Just three-and-a-half years after the Essington School was embroiled in drama surrounding the departure of 20-year principal David Cannon, another leader is leaving.

JUST three-and-a-half years after the Essington School was embroiled in drama surrounding the departure of 20-year principal David Cannon, another leader is leaving.

Brian Kennelly was brought in as acting principal at the end of 2018 amid reports of an internal conflict between Mr Cannon and members on the school board.

Mr Cannon then resigned in January 2019 and Mr Kennelly took on the role permanently.

But now, three-and-a-half years on, a new principal has suddenly been announced.

Current deputy principal Karen Rohrs will take on the role in a matter of weeks, school board chairman Nathan Reichstein said in a statement.

It’s understood Mr Kennelly was brought out of retirement to become principal in 2019 and is now planning to return to retire again.

Speaking to the NT News, Mr Reichstein said Mr Kennelly’s time at the helm was “never going to be a long-term thing” and the school had been working with the principal over the past 12 months to “ensure a smooth transition”.

Mr Reichstein said the departing principal had provided “outstanding leadership" and oversaw “a major school improvement process across all areas”.

“During these three-and-a-half years, the turnaround in Essington has been remarkable and is

attributable to the leadership of Brian and the significant Board, Senior Executive, staff, and

community support provided,” Mr Reichstein said.

Ms Rohrs has been a teacher for 31 years, including in Hong Kong, Copenhagen and New South Wales.

The Essington School is one of the most expensive private schools in the Northern Territory, after it raised its fees by 14.9 per cent this year.

Parents planning to send their kids to the school will pay $11,240 annually for transition to Year 6 at monthly instalments of $1124.

Year 7 to 9 students can expect annual fees of $11,770 at monthly instalments of $1177.

Families with students in years 10 to 12 will face $12,830 in fees annually, at monthly repayments of $1283.

It is one of the best scoring schools when it comes to the NT Certificate of Education and Training, with eight of the Territory’s top 20 recipients from the Rapid Creek school.

Originally published as Essington School announces new principal after Brian Kennelly retires