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SUNDAY 18 NOVEMBER 2012 • [email protected] • www.thepeninsulaqatar.com • 4455 7741 inside Smoking in pregnancy COMMUNITY • Thousands attend tied to lower ‘This is the Prophet’ conference reading scores P | 4 P | 7 CAMPUS • Qatar Open 2012 championship sees hundred participants P | 5 MARKETPLACE • ICAI hosts seminar on decision making P | 6 CINEMA • Tiger, dinghy, 3-D techniques challenge filmmaker in Life of Pi A school P | 8-9 MOTORING • Lamborghini holds road show for A family new models P | 12 Park House English School was PLUS... started with 27 students. Heather • Comics, Word Puzzles, Brennan’s passion to impart quality Crosswords, Hyper education helped this ‘little school’ Sudoku, Kakuro, TV grow into a 1,000-student institute. listings and more P|2-3 P |13-15 Pic: Qassim Rahmatullah 2 PLUS | SUNDAY 18 NOVEMBER 2012 COVER STORY In the forefront of education Park House English School founder BY ISABEL OVALLE school” has grown into a 1,000 stu- in Park House. Later on two of her sons, Heather Brennan (centre), former dent center. Michael and Niall, joined as director and Director James Brennan, Director lmost two decades have Brennan, a passionate and vocational financial director, respectively. Niall Brennan and Financial Director passed since Heather teacher, first moved to Doha in 1990 with After familiarising with the country Michael Brennan with students at the Brennan decided to her husband and, after working in local and its schools, Brennan felt that she school premises. open her own school. schools, decided to open one. From the could do it differently. “We wanted to This project was con- start she had the support of her fam- provide the same educational excellence Aceived in 1994 and it started out with ily, at first especially her husband’s, who but in a warm and caring family environ- 27 students. With the name of Park after retiring from a career in the Oil ment. We wanted to care for, and develop House English School, this “little and Gas industry became her right hand Park House, which is more than a school, it’s a family”. This teacher, originally from the UK, explained to The Peninsula that “Qatar has always been well developed with regard to the provision of quality educa- tion. When we first arrived, it was one of the few countries in the region to provide a quality British curriculum”, she added. Nevertheless, this British teacher approached the Ministry of Education and the British embassy – “which were very helpful and very interested” – to obtain the British curriculum to teach in her new school. The next step was finding the premises, which at first was a 14 room villa, surrounded by trees, with space for children to play, it was really lovely,” explained the Park House School founder. During this process, she found that honesty, transparency, hard work and forming excellent deep relationships had given her a good reputation and this made dealing with all challenges possible. To get people involved, Brennan, always with the support of her fam- ily, put notices in local newspapers like The Peninsula, to announce the upcom- ing opening of the school and to invite parents to a meeting to let them know what the project was all about. Around 75 people turned up for the initial meet- ing and the first school year began with 27 students and five staff. PLUS | SUNDAY 18 NOVEMBER 2012 3 that the construction was finished in 10 months, “which is amazing, we had to visit the site every day to achieve it. We were supposed to open on the 6th of September, but due to problems with the electricity supply, the school opened on September 10 of 2004”. Brennan insisted that she couldn’t have taken this enterprise forward with- out her husband’s help. She added that during her many years of experience she has worked hard to instruct students in good behaviour, and give them an educa- tion that goes beyond the conventional subjects, offering strong sports, music and art programmes. Science is also very important for this family, as well as edu- cational trips. The former headmistress of Park House explained that a few years back, she and her husband decided to retire and go back to the UK. At that point, their son Niall (former soldier) had been working in the school for four years and took over as director with the support of longtime friend Dougie Smith as headmaster. Being a family The family is currently evaluating all options to open a small branch some- owned school where else. To this end, this week they are meeting to look at future plans and we’re different Brennan is “sure that Park House will remain at the forefront of education in from others which Qatar”. However, the current director of Park are always looking House, Niall Brennan, stated that “one of the biggest challenges we face is the for return on control of our school fees where every school, regardless of type, is controlled investment. People at a different level. We would like to see either this being given to market forces wonder why it’s so or a level playing field introduced so that After a somewhat “hairy-scary start’, which now has over 1,000 students from some schools do not have advantage over this family project became a reality and 67 different nationalities (10 percent are cheap here. others”. they began teaching the basics under the Qataris), with hundreds in waiting list. In this context, Michael Brennan, also Government guidelines. Brennan admit- Before moving to the new location, son of Heather and James and involved ted that “it was difficult to take the com- which was inaugurated in 2004, the in the family business as finance adviser, mitment, but once you take it, there’s school was situated for some time at move to a new location. Construction of added that “being a family owned school absolutely no turning back because you the former Russian Embassy, across the the new building began in Abu Hamour, we’re different from others which are have the responsibility of offering a street from the first villa. That second an area which ten years ago was in the always looking for return on investment”, proper education and continue striving year, there was around 200 students outskirts of the city and now has been whilst his mother joked adding that to make it better.” and Heather Brennan holds enduring absorbed by Doha’s growing urban core. “People wonder why it’s so cheap here”. Back then there were about 1,500 memories of that chapter in a “fantastic The building was designed by About this issue, Niall Brennan stated British nationals, and now there are over house, which had chandeliers in the class renowned Italian architect Domenico that “we provide identical education to 15,000. This growth in numbers somehow rooms”. Negri in a piece of land that belonged to other schools that are 45 percent more applies to the increase in the number of A decade went by and the founder the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. James expensive. Everything else is fantastic”. students at Park House English School, of Park House realised it was time to Brennan, husband of Heather, explained The Peninsula Some old pictures from the school album. 4 PLUS | SUNDAY 18 NOVEMBER 2012 COMMUNITY Thousands attend ‘This is the Prophet’ conference ore than 5,000 expatriates from the southern Indian state of Kerala attended a massive public gather- Ming held here on Friday which sent a peaceful message against attempts to defile Prophet Mohammed (peace be upon him) through offensive films and caricatures. The Minister of Awqaf and Islamic Affairs H E Dr Ghaith bin Mubarak AlKuwari opened the confer- ence that brought together representatives of various Indian expatriate organizations. The event at Omar bin Khatab Educational Complex in Al Sadd was organised by the Indian Islamic Association Qatar under the patronage of Fanar (Islamic Cultural Centre) and the Ministry of Awqaf and Islamic Affairs. Speakers called on Muslims to protest against the hate campaign against the Prophet (PBUH) through peaceful and constructive ways by highlighting the A memento being presented to the Minister of Awqaf and Islamic Affairs H E Dr Ghaith bin Mubarak Al Kuwari contemporary relevance of the Prophets’ message. by Indian Islamic Association Acting President V T Faisal. BELOW: A section of the audience. They said the vicious propaganda was part of a conspiracy to provoke Muslims to violence and tar- nish the image of Islam, while the peaceful Arab revolutions have shattered many stereotyped notions about the religion and its followers. “No one can degrade or defame the great per- sonality Prophet Mohammed (PBUH), who was a guide and saviour of humanity,” said Mohammed Mahmoud Al Mahmoud, the Director of Religious Affairs in his key note address. Dr Ali Mohammadi, who represented Dr Sheikh Yousuf Al Qaradawi, President of the International Union of Muslim Scholars said that the organizers of this event shared the view point of the Union in promoting the great personality of the Prophet. “I don’t agree with the theory that defaming great personalities can be tolerated under the pretext of free- dom of expression,” said P Surendran, a well-known writer and social activist from Kerala, in his speech that touched on the humanistic and ecological relevance of the Prophet’s message in the present world. K N Sulaiman Madani, President, Indian Islahi Fakhroo, Qatar Charity, Jassim Jabor Al Kuwaitir, Muslim Islahi Centre, Abu Backer Al Qasimi, Islamic Centre, Qatar and P Mujeeb Rahman, General renowned Qatari columnist, K M Varghess, Chairman, Cultural Centre, and M A Sajidurahman, President, Secretary of Jamaate Islami, Kerala also spoke high- ICC advisory council, Kareem Abdulla, President, Youth Forum.

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