Headquarters:
43 Kenthurst Road, Kenthurst 2156, NSW
Year founded:
1982
Number of employees:
200+
Phone:
02 9654 2111
Email:
hg.reception@hillsgrammar.nsw.edu.au
Website:
hillsgrammar.nsw.edu.au
LinkedIn:
linkedin.com/school/hills-grammar
Karen Yager
Principal
David Hamper
Deputy Principal and Head of Senior School
Sarah Black
Head of Junior School
Leadership
A progressive and creative leader, Karen Yager brings more than 26 years of experience to Hills Grammar School after her most recent role as deputy headmaster K–12 at Knox Grammar. Her work in the education and academic world has been recognised with numerous awards, including the 2019 NSW Professional Teachers’ Council Award for Outstanding Service to Education.
With an emphasis on developing each student’s unique strengths, agency and voice, Yager will continue to nurture, grow and inspire the Hills Originals to achieve their potential for greatness. She commenced as Hills Grammar’s fifth principal in January 2022 and is enjoying meeting the Hills Grammar community – students, staff and families.
Principal
Karen Yager
David Hamper joined Hills Grammar in May 2022, bringing 25 years of experience to the school. He has held a number of senior roles in diverse independent schools across Sydney, with portfolios including teaching and learning, wellbeing, innovation, staff development, human resources and school operations.
Hamper has also held a number of special advisory appointments, including in curriculum design and assessment with state and national curriculum authorities, teacher education with universities in Australia and the United States, and teacher professional learning with a number of professional associations. He is a prolific writer, having authored, edited and contributed to numerous books, journal articles and atlases across diverse topics in the humanities and within professional domains.
Deputy Principal and Head of Senior School
David Hamper
Sarah Black is a specialist in inclusive education and has worked in pre-K–12 since joining the staff of Hills Grammar in 2010. Prior to this, she worked in a range of settings, including educational consultancy, as a positive behaviour support specialist, and as a leader of professional development across a number of key areas.
Black believes strongly in the importance of building genuine and meaningful connections with students, families, staff and the wider community and understands the importance of the individual in the pre-K–12 journey. As a staff member, parent and alumna, she is well placed to understand the value of the “original” student, both past, present and future.
Head of Junior School
Sarah Black
Geoff Gates
Director of Learning and Teaching
As director of learning and teaching from pre-K to 12, Geoff Gates works closely with the heads of ECEC, junior school and senior school to ensure a high-quality curriculum is in place across the school. He also works closely with both curriculum leaders and teachers on projects such as cultures of thinking and deep learning, where the aim is to develop innovative, 21st-century approaches to learning and teaching.
Gates started teaching at Hills Grammar in 2004. Prior to Hills, he worked in Sydney, London and Hamburg and has taught HSC, GCSE, IGCSE and IB diploma courses. His past leadership roles have included literacy coordinator, student services coordinator and head of English. He has presented at education and university conferences on pedagogy, literature and creative writing practice.
Gates completed a Master of Arts (Creative Writing) in 2007, a Master of Education (Leadership) in 2013 and a Doctor of Creative Arts degree in 2023. He is the author of two novels and has written for both professional publications and literary journals.
Director of Learning and Teaching
Geoff Gates
Yass Sidaros
Director of Co-curricular Programs
Yass Sidaros has spent over 16 years at Hills Grammar, which has enabled him to see that what works for one student may be different for another. In his role as director of the co-curricular program, he oversees the operation and strategic development of the school’s co-curricular program, ensuring it can maximise the opportunities for all students in their areas of interest. The program has six core areas: music, leadership and service, sport, outdoor education, STEM and the creative, spoken and performing arts.
Director of Co-curricular Programs
Yass Sidaros
Christine Furner
Director of Professional Learning
Claire Napoli
Director of Advancement and Engagement
Adam Wollins
Director of ICT
David Sexton
Director Business Services
Chris Furner has held a number of teaching and leadership positions across state and independent schools. A career highlight has been the completion of a PhD on how to boost teacher learning across all career stages to improve practice and accelerate student learning outcomes. She enjoys developing whole-school staff development initiatives and professional learning programs that inspire and encourage teachers and leaders and coaching them towards “outstanding teaching”.
Director of Professional Learning
Christine Furner
As director of advancement and engagement, Claire Napoli’s role encompasses internal and external communications, enrolment, branding, school events, community relations, alumni, archiving and reception. She has a degree in business and over 20 years of marketing and business development experience. Napoli started her career in public relations and event management before moving into marketing and business development roles in the professional services sector, particularly corporate law firms.
Director of Advancement and Engagement
Claire Napoli
Adam Wollins joined Hills Grammar in July 2023. He has over 20 years of experience in the education sector, including in schools, TAFEs, universities and the NSW Department of Education. He has a proven track record in the effective creation, development and leadership of high-performing ICT transformational and operational support teams.
Director of ICT
Adam Wollins
As director of business services, David Sexton oversees the financial, operational and commercial aspects of the School. In this role, he contributes to shaping and implementing strategic initiatives, supports business sustainability and enables the next phase of campus development, including the 10-year Master Plan and Strategic Plan (2026–28).
He is an accomplished executive leader with over 25 years of experience at C-suite and board level spanning diverse sectors including education, not-for-profit, disability, sport and professional services. He has extensive experience shaping and executing strategic plans, driving income growth and diversification, master planning and major capital projects, stakeholder engagement, leading high-performing teams and managing complex budgets.
Director Business Services
David Sexton
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Award Winner
Hills Grammar
SPECIAL REPORT
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Bio
Adam Basaldella
Manager – Claims
Stephen McMillan first entered the financial services Industry when he joined GE Capital as a finance analyst in 2008, from which he progressed through roles working both onshore and offshore. From there, he moved into Pacific Premium Funding as a financial planning and analysis leader in 2012 and was a key resource in the evolution of the business, first with the successful sale to Macquarie Pacific Funding and then the following progression into IQumulate Premium Funding, where he is now the commercial manager.
As commercial manager, McMillan leads a team that is responsible for commercial analysis and business support, identifying and reporting improvement initiatives, and the securitization and treasury functions of the business.
Product Manager
Claire Watson
Stephen McMillan first entered the financial services Industry when he joined GE Capital as a finance analyst in 2008, from which he progressed through roles working both onshore and offshore. From there, he moved into Pacific Premium Funding as a financial planning and analysis leader in 2012 and was a key resource in the evolution of the business, first with the successful sale to Macquarie Pacific Funding and then the following progression into IQumulate Premium Funding, where he is now the commercial manager.
As commercial manager, McMillan leads a team that is responsible for commercial analysis and business support, identifying and reporting improvement initiatives, and the securitization and treasury functions of the business.
Commercial Manager
Stephen McMillan
“Having close connections with our parents, staff and community, is integral to a rich learning environment. When we work together, we can achieve amazing things”
Karen Yager,
Hills Grammar
“I believe that students learn in a supportive environment with passionate and inspiring teachers and staff. We surround our students with positive creative and inspiring people, enthusiastic about their own learning and keen to immerse students in the spirit of life-long learning across the whole community”
Karen Yager,
Hills Grammar
The educational model at Hills Grammar is built on the premise that academic development, co-curricular engagement and student wellbeing are inseparable, a philosophy applied consistently across its pre-Kindergarten to Year 12 community. This thinking shapes every aspect of school life, from how classrooms are structured to how students are supported and how staff develop.
The setting reinforces the approach. Nestled within 53 acres of bushland in Sydney’s Hills District, Hills Grammar draws on its natural environment as a deliberate educational resource. Student learning and co-curricular take advantage of the campus environment as a context for inquiry, resilience and interdisciplinary thinking, giving students learning experiences that a conventional metropolitan school environment rarely offers. The school’s values of respect, integrity, service and excellence are not simply stated; they are lived through the rhythms of daily school life on a campus built for exploration.
A structured co-curricular connect period is embedded in the weekly timetable, which is augmented by programs that run before and after school plus on weekends to keep participation accessible for all students. Sport, creative and performing arts, music, leadership and service learning, STEM and outdoor education each offer students a way to discover and develop their strengths outside the classroom. The Hills Education Passport for the Future formally validates the skills and passions students develop through these experiences, recognising achievement outside the curriculum, in modern technologies and real-world capabilities as credentials that travel with them beyond school.
Personalised support runs through every year level. Intentionally small class sizes allow teachers to know each student well, and heads of year and house mentors provide continuity of care across both academic progress and personal development. A cross-grade peer mentoring program builds connection and community across year groups.
Technology sits within that integrated model rather than apart from it. Staff serve as innovation leaders, guiding the adoption of generative AI across year levels, while regular parent and community seminars, including the annual May Media Mentor Month, extend AI literacy beyond the school gates. The inaugural Inspire Her Future Event brought together 80 students and leaders from CSIRO, Women in AI and industry to work through a design sprint on real-world AI problems, a concrete example of how Hills Grammar connects students with the world they are preparing to enter.
Professional learning is treated with the same importance as student learning. The Learning Centre Staff Program is designed around adult learning pedagogies and career-stage development, offering mentoring, leadership development and action research. The school’s belief is direct: when staff are genuinely supported and inspired, students experience the difference in every classroom.
