Staff Profiles
Year 3 – Year 4
Year 3 – Year 4
Graham moved to Penang from Bristo, a city in the United Kingdom. He studied at The University of the West of England and earned a BA (Hons) degree in Primary Education. Graham has taught in a number of state schools in the United Kingdom as well as spending two years working in an international school in Chengdu, China. Graham has worked at SCIPS for three years and he is the Maths Leader at the school, a role and subject he feels very passionate about.
Graham is a keen cyclist and used to race for his local team, Bristol Road Club. On weekends he can be spotted tackling the hills of Penang or going all the way around the island.
Graham is married to Claire, also a teacher at SCIPS, and he has a daughter Florence and a son George. He loves living in Penang and working at SCIPS because of the strong sense of community and friendly welcoming environment for his whole family.
Karen is originally from Dunedin, New Zealand and has a Bachelor of Commerce and a Graduate Diploma in Teaching and Learning from the University of Canterbury, Christchurch, New Zealand. Her love of travel has led to working adventures in the United States, Australia, England, Japan, China most recently Malaysia.
Karen, her husband Nick and eleven-year-old daughter Rilee arrived in Penang in August 2020. This is Karen’s third year as a Year 3 classroom teacher at SCIPS. She is very much looking forward to starting the new school year.
Outside of school, Karen enjoys mountain biking, baking and spending time with her family.
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Ashleigh is from the rural west coast of Scotland and has been teaching for 5 years. She studied at the University of Glasgow for a total of 5 years, graduating first with a BEd (Hons) in Primary Education and later a Master of Science degree. Since then, Ashleigh has taught in a range of schools across Scotland, from large inner-city schools to small rural schools with multi-composite classes and spent a year as Principle of Early Years.
During her studies, Ashleigh spent two summers volunteering in a Primary School in Zambia. This is where she discovered her love of travel and since then she has spent time exploring new places all over Europe as well as Canada and, more recently, Nepal. In her free time, Ashleigh likes to take to the outdoors. She is a keen equestrian and enjoys riding and competing on her horse McCoy as well as hiking and surfing. Ashleigh is excited to discover more of Asia and is thoroughly looking forward to moving to Penang and joining the SCIPS team.
Claire is originally from Bristol in the United Kingdom and has a BA Honours in Initial Teacher Education. After training at the University of the West of England, Claire was an Early Years teacher for 3 years. Her love of travel and exploration took her to Chengdu in China where she taught Year 1 for 2 years. During her time in China, Claire travelled extensively across South East Asia, including spending 3 weeks in Malaysia. Outside of school, Claire’s passions include baking, yoga and exploring different cultures. Claire is married to Graham, a fellow teacher at SCIPS and together they have a daughter and a son. Claire is excited about beginning her 12th year of teaching at SCIPS and looks forward to welcoming another class of fun and friendly Year 2 children.
Chloe comes from Kent in the southeast of England. After A levels, Chloe went to Bath Spa University to study Business management and media communications but soon realised this was not her dream. She decided to change and completed a Teaching English as a Foreign Language course (TEFL) instead. This led to Chloe spending 6 months in Barcelona, Spain teaching English to Spanish children, being an au pair and volunteering at an International school. This was when she realised her love for teaching and travelling. She returned to the UK and completed a 3-year Primary Education BA Hons degree at Canterbury Christchurch University in the historic cathedral city of Canterbury. She spent her free time and summers being a camp monitor in Spanish summer camps, teaching English in Hong Kong and travelling through Asia.
Chloe then taught Year 3 in England before relocating in 2015 to Madrid, Spain to teach Year 2 children in an International School for 3 years. Chloe loves keeping active, exploring, snorkelling, trying new things and eating! She has now been in Penang for 4 years and is entering her fifth. So far, Chloe has taught Year 2 at SCIPS, and Year 3 and is now becoming a Year 4 teacher. Chloe also recently got engaged in April 2022 in Ipoh and is now excitedly planning her wedding for 2023! She has absolutely loved discovering this beautiful country, its people, its food (of course) and being part of the SCIPS family.
Natasha is from Buxton, the highest market town in England. She studied at Sheffield Hallam University where she achieved a first-class Bachelor of Arts degree in Primary Education with QTS. She has worked as a class teacher in Sheffield for 4 years, teaching in a mixed year 5/6 class for three years and a year 4 class for one year. From a young age, Natasha has happily spent most of her summer holidays flying back to the Philippines to visit her grandparents and other family members. She has always loved the culture, diversity and adventures which inspired her to see more of Asia and move to Penang. Natasha loves going to the gym, socialising, running, hiking and exploring new countries and cultures. She has loved exploring Malaysia so far and is happy to be going into her second year at SCIPS alongside amazing staff members.