UAE school group GEMS Education hires 1,800 teachers ahead of new term
Recruits, mainly from UK, USA and India, to teach at 43 schools across country
Dubai: GEMS Education has hired 1,800 new teachers from around the world across its 43 schools in the UAE. The education provider announced this on Thursday at its annual induction event titled ‘GEMS Awareness Day’.
At the event, held at Atlantis, The Palm, GEMS said it will be educating more than 127,000 students of 176 nationalities in total who will attend its 43 schools in the UAE, staffed by 17,000 qualified and experienced teachers from 115 countries.
Many of the new teachers have been recruited from abroad, chiefly from the UK, the US and India. Among the new joiners are five new principals who will be taking the helm at schools in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Sharjah, and Fujairah. The new intake of teachers spans the full range of year groups from kindergarten to post-16, and cover British, IB, US and Indian curricula.
‘Teachers bring hope’
Sunny Varkey, Founder of GEMS Education, said: “I am so excited to meet all of you – the new teachers of GEMS Education who are a cornerstone of our organisation. And right now, your role could not be more important. It is teachers that build a bridge from the present to the future, taking us from where we are to where we want to be, turning our dreams into reality. It is teachers who bring hope. It is teachers who bring opportunity. It is teachers who bring self-respect.”
Dino Varkey, GEMS Education Group CEO, said: “At GEMS, we employ some of the world’s most highly skilled, passionate, and forward-thinking education professionals. Our teachers are motivated by the GEMS vision to ensure that every student reaches their full potential, and every one of the 1,800 new hires is totally committed to that goal. I wish all our new joiners an excellent start to the new academic year starting on Monday [August 29].”
GEMS Awareness Day completed a week of school-based engagement activities, as well as cultural awareness training.
Jade Collinson, a foundation stage teacher who has relocated from the UK and joined GEMS Wellington Academy – Al Khail (WEK), said: “The start of my career at GEMS has been brilliant. The process from being successful at interview in October to arriving in Dubai last week has been outstanding. Nothing has been too much trouble for the team at WEK, and I’ve felt very much at ease around the whole transition. The school holds very similar values and beliefs about a child’s education as I do, and I’m excited to delve deeper into this and continue my professional development in such a supportive environment.”