Welcome to Harbour College.

Every child is different. The heterogeneous nature of personal development is perhaps most visible during the adolescent phase of the children. This is the period characterised by discovery, and the other side of the coin – uncertainty. They want independence, but they are dependent. They want capability, but are not yet experts. They desire social acceptance, but are often awkward and unsure of themselves.

These dissonances seem to be more evident with current adolescents than ever, with unprecedented levels of anxiety, learning challenges, and mental and social difficulties that are impacting daily functions of our young adults. For some, traditional school environment (where they spend the majority of their waking hours) does little create positive influence.

We believe that these students need close, consistent, and individual guidance, with same stable adults who are not afraid of creating and maintaining genuine long-term personal connection. Harbour College at Browns Bay offers this in a consolidated environment with the most dedicated teachers, to allow students to find self-centredness, and learn to relate to others in healthy way.

The student-centred learning at Harbour College occurs at both Academic and Personal domains, and is built upon the Student Priorities described below. When our students leave us, we would like them to have acquired those qualities. If your priorities for your children are the same, then you are at the right place.

We are extremely fortunate to have passionate teachers, as well as tight and supportive community of parents. We would love to have you on board.

Francis Joung - Principal

Student Priorities at Harbour College

  1. Being kind and caring towards yourself and others

  2. Learning to meet adversity with resilience

  3. Developing a strong work ethic

The Mission of Harbour College is to create an environment and opportunities for our students to learn above qualities and skills.

If you hold similar priorities for your child, please don’t hesitate to contact us to make an enquiry.

Who we are

Just like you and your adolescents, we are from a wide range of backgrounds and are committed to the individual success of each student and family who becomes part of the Harbour College community.

Harbour College was established by Montessori teachers who wanted to offer alternative option for adolescents. They form the current Governance Board, with absolute passion for adolescent development and community betterment.

Scroll down to meet our team.

Meet the Teachers - we are learners too

  • We are a team aligned in embodiment and demonstration of school values, beginning every day with observation of our students and answering the question “what does this person need?”

    Please swipe to know more about us :)

  • Francis Joung

    PRINCIPAL

    Francis comes from 21 years of experience as a health clinician, 10 of which were also on providing tertiary- and postgraduate-level education nationally and internationally, as well as running a successful business. He brings strong organisational and teaching skills and is tasked with the general management of the school and its members as well as some teaching.

  • Kara Douglas

    TEACHER

    Kara is an experienced teacher having taught on the North Shore for over 10 years. She comes to us from Northern Health School and with a teaching background in psychology and social studies, with English being her main teaching subject area. In her spare time, she enjoys being outdoors, especially at the beach or going for bushwalks.

  • Matthew Leavitt

    TEACHER

    Matthew brings us his extensive experience in outdoor and health education, including Scouts, backcountry activities, water rescue as well as NCEA-level health and sports science. He has always been passionate about youth work, having worked as a counsellor in Canada as well. Our students often need and truly appreciate his genuine care and connection.

  • Nirvana Singh

    BOARD MEMBER

    Nirvana has been a Montessori teacher for ten years. She feels that education should provide an appropriate balance of freedom with responsibility while also nurturing happy, confident and critical thinking young adults who turn into active members of the community and the world.

  • Paul Manson

    BOARD MEMPER

    Paul has a depth of expertise and experience in assisting schools with change management, strengthening organisational systems, and achieving sustainable school improvement in learning and teaching.

    Paul was a principal for twenty years in Integrated state schools in Southland,Franklin and Auckland, and from 2011 to 2017 held various leadership positions in the Ministry of Education. He currently works as an educational leadership consultant.