People
 | Neale Pitches, Chief Executive Officer
Neale taught in numerous New Zealand schools before being appointed deputy principal of Wellington High School and then principal of Wellington’s Onslow College – a position he held for seven years. He served briefly as an inspector and financial advisor to schools in 1989 before being appointed chief executive officer of Learning Media from 1993 until 2002. Over this period, Neale led Learning Media’s growth from a $9-million division of a government department to a $24-million government-owned commercial educational publishing company. He oversaw the establishment of Learning Media’s international products, as well as the growth of Learning Media’s relationship with the New Zealand Ministry of Education. Neale led Learning Media in its mission to publish world-leading classroom literacy and numeracy resources. In 2002, Neale launched PB Learning with Samantha Venning and over the next three years they provided educational consultancy and publishing services to New Zealand and off-shore clients. Neale, Sue Watson and Meryl-Lynn Pluck started South Pacific Press in 2005. South Pacific Press merged with Lift Education in 2006. Neale presents internationally on literacy and school leadership, focusing on how to teach comprehension strategies across the curriculum, especially in years 4–8, and on the alignment of school leadership with effective practice. Neale was made an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to education in the 2003 New Year’s Awards.
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