ABU DHABI // It was 1989 and Mark Leppard had just taken off for Argentina to visit his brother and play for a rugby union team.
Shortly thereafter, he caught the expat bug.
At that time, rugby union was an amateur game, so when Mr Leppard returned to his native England, he studied to become a physical education teacher and set his sights on work overseas.
Three years into his teaching career, he flew to Qatar and ended up staying there for 19 years, working his way up to become principal at Doha College, the 35-year-old British curriculum K-12 school affiliated with the local embassy.
This month, Mr Leppard began a new chapter in his career as headmaster of the British School Al Khubairat in Abu Dhabi.
“I had 19 very happy years in Doha and I thought it was a good time to leave on a high and take on a new challenge,” said Mr Leppard, 46. “The British School Al Khubairat has a very strong reputation in the region, and internationally as well. It’s got a rich history of success and I’d like to contribute to a rich future as well.”
Mr Leppard was appointed to the job last year following the resignation of BSAK’s previous headmaster, Dr Chris Ray, who left nine months into the job for undisclosed reasons. The school’s deputy head, Elaine Rawlings, was acting head until Mr Leppard’s arrival this week.
While in the principal role at Doha College, Mr Leppard led a number of transformational projects. The school opened a primary school building, while plans are under way to create a new campus. Finances were also reorganised.
“As it’s not for profit and we’re restricted on what fees we could charge, we remodelled the finances so that more revenue was coming into the school so that we could get better resources,” Mr Leppard said.
“The thing is, with education, it costs money. You need to support that. But you need to get value for that money as well.”
When talking about his accomplishments and future plans for BSAK, Mr Leppard sounds a little like a team captain – a position he is familiar with, having served in that role for the Doha Rugby Club and other teams – always using the pronoun “we”, not “I.”
He was awarded an honorary life membership of the club, but he no longer plays the sport. “I’m a bit too old now for playing,” he said. “The bones hurt too much.”
In June, Mr Leppard was also included in Queen Elizabeth II’s birthday honours list and honoured with a Member of the Order of the British Empire award.
“I’m very proud,” he said of the honour. “To be honest with you, it is recognition of the team approach. It’s the contribution I gave, but it’s also the contribution Doha College and the staff gave to British education in Qatar, so it was a real team effort. I think there’s many people who can take pride in that.”
As for his visions for BSAK, he said: “What I want to do is engage with the parents, the students and the staff and see what the school means to them, and then look at how we’ll take the school forward.
“As a leader, I like to find out what we want to do, rather than what I want to do.”
Mr Leppard’s three children, aged 11, 13 and 14, will study at BSAK. His wife, an engineer who became a teacher 13 years ago, will continue her teaching career working as the school’s design technology teacher.
Teresa Woulfe, Doha College’s senior vice-principal head of secondary, called Mr Leppard an “inspirational leader,” who “was instrumental in moving the college forward”.
“He will be deeply missed in Qatar but he will take his energy and expertise elsewhere to enhance the lives of many more young people,” Ms Woulfe said.
rpennington@thenational.ae