Martin Stephen | |
|---|---|
 Stephen atSt Paul's School's Apposition | |
| Born | George Martin Stephen 1949 |
| Employer | self employed |
| Title | High Master |
George Martin Stephen (born 1949) is the former High Master ofSt Paul's School in London until 1 January 2011.[1] He is an author and has been described as "one of Britain's highest profile heads".[2]
Stephen was educated atUppingham School, theUniversity of Leeds in West Yorkshire, where he obtained his BA degree, and theUniversity of Sheffield (inSouth Yorkshire), where he obtained a distinction for his PhD while also working full-time atHaileybury College.[3]
After working in remand homes while still a teenager, Stephen returned briefly toUppingham as a teacher of English. For ten years atHaileybury College he also taught English, and became a housemaster. He moved for four years to be second master ofSedbergh School, then became headmaster ofThe Perse School, an independent school inCambridge, then High Master ofManchester Grammar School, an independent school inManchester. He served as chairman ofThe Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference, a group of 250 independent schools.[2][4] In 2004 he moved from Manchester toSt Paul's.
On 29 June 2010, he announced his decision to stand down as High Master of St Paul's in August 2011.[5] In the days following his announcement,The Times reported that there had been an "apparent confrontation" with governors over Stephen's ability to raise funds for the school's redevelopment.[6] This claim was rebutted by the school in a letter sent toThe Times, in which the chairman of the governors stated there was "no lack of confidence in [Stephen's] fundraising abilities", but rather Stephen had chosen not to seek renewal of his contract in 2011 to allow a new head to provide continuity of oversight throughout the multimillion-pound redevelopment.[7] Stephen had in fact led a campaign that had raised over £30m for St Paul's School, and had previously raised over £10m for bursaries at Manchester Grammar School. In November 2010, he announced that he was to take sabbatical leave from 1 January 2011 until July 2011, when his tenure as High Master was due to end. He was succeeded byMark Bailey, who agreed to "give some of his time" to St Paul's for the first half of 2011.[1] Stephen was the Director of Education for GEMS (UK) and Chairman of the Clarendon Academies Group.
Stephen went on to found the National Mathematics and Science College withGeoffrey Robinson which opened in 2016.[8]
Stephen is the governor of Hartland International School-Dubai and also heads the school's “Gifted and Talented Education” program. In summer 2020 Stephen was appointed as Chair of Governors at Regent High School, Camden.
Stephen is an author of several academic titles on English literature, modern naval history and war poetry. The five Henry Gresham novels are crime thrillers set in the London and Cambridge ofElizabeth I andJames I. He writes under the name of "Martin Stephen".
Stephen suffered a stroke towards the end of 2005, and wrote about his experiences in a work titledDiary of a Stroke. He followed US research that states that if there is a clot in the brain but no bleed into the brain, the brain can be reprogrammed so that speech, writing and physical movement can return nearly to their previous levels.[9]
| Academic offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | High Master ofSt Paul's School 2004–2011 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | High Master ofManchester Grammar School 1994–2004 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by A. E. Melville | Headmaster ofThe Perse School 1987–1994 | Succeeded by Nigel P. V. Richardson |
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Artists | |
| Other | |
