Celebrating our St Margaret's alumnae

As we look forward to welcoming back many of our Old Girls for their Reunion Weekend, we are proud to celebrate and honour just some of our wāhine toa - trailblazers in their fields and inspiring role models for our current students.

We would love to share your story too. Please contact us via smcoga@stmargarets.school.nz. 

Alice Mew
Leading the global private market fund investments team at the New Zealand Super Fund, a fund with $83 billion under management, Alice Mew plays a key role in shaping New Zealanders long-term financial future.

She began her studies with a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry at the University of Otago, before pivoting to Economics at Victoria University. An internship at the Reserve Bank of New Zealand led to a full-time role, including Secretary of the Monetary Policy Committee.

Alice moved to London in time to witness the 2008 Global Financial Crisis from inside Barclays Global Investors. When the firm became part of BlackRock, the world's largest asset manager, she took on the role of European Sovereign Credit Analyst, assessing the creditworthiness of countries during the eurozone debt crisis.

On returning to New Zealand, Alice joined the NZ Super Fund, initially as an Investment Strategist and then chairing the Fund's Investment Committee. In addition to her work at the Fund, she also serves on the boards of several companies and charities where she contributes her investment, governance, strategy and leadership skills.

Arihia Bennett CNZM
Arihia Bennett started her career in social work and worked for the government agency Child, Youth and Family and the non-governmental agency Barnardos. A career dedicated to service, governance and her community was recognised with her appointment as a Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit in 2024.

Roles as a director and then Chair for Ngãi Tahu Development Corporation led to Arihia's role as Chief Executive Officer of He Oranga Pounamu, the iwi (tribe) organisation responsible for health and social services on the South Island. In 2012 she was appointed the Iwi CEO, becoming the first female to hold the position, and its longest-serving CEO to date.

Arihia has also served as Chair of the Ministerial Advisory Group on the Government's Response to the Royal Commission of Inquiry into the 2019 Christchruch terrorist attack, and Commissioner to the Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Commission (CERC).

She is currently a Board Trustee of the St Margaret's College Foundation, and has also served on the boards of Barnardos NZ and the Christchurch Women's Refuge (now known as Aviva).

Charlotte Bellis
Charlotte Bellis is a journalist known internationally for her fearless reporting from conflict zones. She began her reporting career in the United States before returning to Christchurch, where she covered the 2011 earthquakes for TVNZ. Over the following 15 years, she pursued her dream of reporting internationally. She made her first documentary for 60 Minutes on the Ebola crisis in West Africa, before gaining experience in New York, London and the Middle East with the BBC and Al Jazeera.

In 2021, while stationed as a correspondent in Kabul for Al Jazeera, she gained global recognition for her reporting on the United States withdrawal from Afghanistan and the Taliban's takeover. At the Taliban's first press conference, she made international headlines by challenging the group on their policies towards women and girls. She later secured the first interview with the Taliban— holding firm to her commitment to accountability and truth-and remained in Afghanistan in the months following their return to power.

As of 2025, Bellis resides in Belgium with her partner, war photographer Jim Huylebroek, and their two children. Together, they have launched their own media business to ensure global stories continue to be told with courage and clarity.

Dame Ngaio Marsh
Ngaio Marsh was one of the first students of St Margaret's College, later studying painting at Canterbury College School of Art.

Her love of performance then led her to the stage, touring New Zealand as an actress.

Internationally renowned as a writer, Ngaio published 32 detective novels between 1934 and 1982, earning her place alongside Agatha Christie, Dorothy L. Sayers, and Margery Allingham as one of the "Queens of Crime" who defined the Golden Age of crime fiction. Agatha Christie herself praised Ngaio's talent for storytelling.

While her books won her global acclaim, Ngaio's lifelong passion remained the theatre. She was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire, for services in connection with drama and literature in the 1948 King's Birthday Honours.

Ngaio lived most of her life in Christchurch, where she died in 1982, and she is buried at the Church of the Holy Innocents in Mount Peel. The St Margaret's College Ngaio Marsh Theatre celebrates her legacy.

Emma Taylor
Emma Taylor is an emerging leader in sustainable finance. She currently works in carbon trading at a leading London investment bank with the largest dedicated team in the field. Her work sits at the intersection of markets, climate action, and development, and is underpinned by a long-standing commitment to human rights and global equity.

Emma recently completed a degree in economics at the University of Cambridge, specialising in corporate finance and development.

Her long-term ambition is to work with the World Bank on development initiatives that promote sustainable growth and human rights.

To that end, she is undertaking the required professional experience in financial markets before pursuing a Master's degree in development economics.

Emma's work reflects a unique blend of academic rigour, moral purpose, and strategic thinking. Her trajectory marks her as part of a new generation of economists working to align capital with climate and social outcomes on a global scale.

Isobel Matson
As the first woman to graduate from the University of Canterbury Law School and the first woman admitted to the New Zealand Bar, Isobel Matson was a trailblazer for women in the legal profession.

She began her education at St Margaret's College before studying law at Canterbury University College. Awarded the prestigious Wurt William Law Scholarship, she went on to earn a Masters in Law from Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford, where she also represented both New Zealand and Oxford as a Tennis Blue, the highest honour granted to Oxford student athletes.

Isobel lectured in law in both New Zealand and the UK, before moving to the Gold Coast, Africa (now Ghana) during its transition to independence. There, she lived with her husband, John Nicholson Matson, a judicial advisor with the Colonial Administration Service.

Throughout her life, Isobel opened doors for women in law and contributed to legal education and development across multiple continents.

Jane Cartwright MNZM
Jane Cartwright comes from a family of health professionals - her father was a GP, and her mother a medical lab technologist.

After leaving St Margaret's, her career began with a degree in dietetics, followed by leadership roles in mental health and strategic planning, advocating for those on the margins who find it difficult to access health services.

Jane was appointed Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit in the 2024 King's Honours for her services to Health Governance.

She oversaw the closure of Sunnyside and Templeton Hospitals in the 1990s, supporting the transition to community-based care, including the establishment of Brackenridge Estate. As Board Chair of Brackenridge, she has driven significant service improvements for people with intellectual disabilities. Jane has championed equity for Mãori, Pacific, and Culturally and Linguistically Diverse communities. She has also led the Primary Health Organisation merger as CEO of Partnership Health Canterbury and supported post-quake recovery and equity in education as a director at Ara.

Jessica McCormack
Founder of her eponymous jewellery line, with stores in London and New York, Jessica McCormack grew up immersed in a world of art, antiques, and curiosities collected by her father, John, a local auctioneer. This creative upbringing sparked a lifelong passion for storytelling through objects.

Jessica began her career in jewellery, drawn to the centuries-old craftsmanship that brings meaning and beauty to wearable art.

After an internship at Sotheby's, one of the world's largest brokers of fine jewellery, Jessica launched her first store, in London's Mayfair, in 2008. A store on Madison Avenue, New York has since followed, and a concession in the iconic Harrods department store also in London.

Jessica's designs, often inspired by antique Mãori carvings, Japanese fairy tales, and historical motifs, fuse tradition with a distinctly modern edge. Her collections quickly caught international attention, and today, her work is celebrated globally for its artistry, authenticity, and ability to transcend trends.

Katharine Tapley
Katharine Tapley is Global Head of Sustainable Finance at ANZ. She leads a team across Australia, New Zealand, Asia, Europe, and the US, supporting ANZ's customers to finance their Environmental, Social Governance strategies, net-zero transition and nature-positive outcomes.

Katharine's passion is supporting customers and the financial services industry to accelerate net-zero transition and sustainable development. She is currently serving on the Australian Government's Nature Finance Council and is an inaugural Board member of the Australian Sustainable Finance Institute, which is overseeing the development of a sustainable finance taxonomy for the Australian market. She served on the Board of Australia's Carbon Market Institute from July 2016 to July 2022.

In recognition of her contribution to the industry, Katharine was included in Financial Standard's inaugural ESG Power50 in 2023, and in The Australian 'Green List' in 2021, 2022, and 2023. In 2020, she won Australia's inaugural Women in Banking and Finance Award for Excellence in Institutional Banking and is a 2019 Kanga News Person of the Year.

Maia Lewis MNZM
Maia Lewis MNZM is a pioneering figure in New Zealand sport, celebrated for her leadership, athleticism and commitment to women's cricket. A former national Whiteferns cricket captain, Maia played nine Test matches, 78 One Day Internationals and one Twenty20 International for New Zealand between 1992 and 2005.

A right-handed batter, she represented four domestic teams-Southern Districts, Canterbury, North Harbour and Wellington-and led the White Ferns in 1997 and again from 2003 to 2005. Remarkably, Maia also represented New Zealand in both indoor cricket and hockey, making her a rare triple international representitive.

Appointed a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit in 2006 for services to women's cricket, Maia's impact continued off the pitch. She managed women's cricket in Auckland and coached the Auckland Hearts from 2006 to 2012. Since then, she has taken on various governance and community roles, especially in the Disability space, including the Halberg Disability Sport Foundation, Blind Sport New Zealand, and, more recently, National Manager for Achilles New Zealand.

Maia's legacy lies in her trailblazing path across codes and her tireless work creating opportunities for future generations of athletes.

Marianne Hargreaves MNZM
Marianne Hargreaves is a celebrated champion of the arts in tautahi Christchurch, awarded the Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit in 2022.

A former school dental nurse, Marianne's passion for crafts, particularly textiles, has led her work to be exhibited internationally, including her contributions to the renowned Shakespeare's Globe theatre hangings in London.

A founding force behind the Christchurch Arts Festival's visual arts programme and, later, WORD Christchurch, Marianne helped build both into nationally significant events. As the Arts Advisor to the Arts Centre of Christchurch, she established one of the region's few Artist in Residence programmes in 2004, and served two terms as president of the Friends of the Christchurch Art Gallery. In 1993, she coordinated the Women's Suffrage Commemorative Wall Hanging for the Embroiderers' Guild, now hanging in the Christchurch Town Hall, for the centennial year of women winning the right to vote in New Zealand.

Marianne's purpose lies in making space for others, enabling artists, telling untold stories, and stitching together the people and resources to make great things happen.

Melissa Jebson
Passion, resilience, and community spirit have shaped Melissa Jebson's life. A committed volunteer, she has contributed to agriculture, education, and the arts. Melissa's interest in music was sparked at St Margaret's College under teacher Jill Kerr and she successfully auditioned for the NZ Youth Choir in 1979. Her love for horses began at 14, and she excelled across all disciplines.

A near-fatal car accident in 1993 changed everything. Told shed never ride again, Melissa defied the odds, becoming a respected national equestrian judge, officiating at premier events including NZ Horse of the Year and Royal Shows in Australia and the United Kingdom.

Since 2016, Melissa served as Chairperson of the Central Districts of the Royal Agricultural Society she sat on the New Zealand Royal Agricultural Society National Executive for four years and is the NZ RAS National Equestrian Judges Convenor. She has been involved with the Malvern A&P Show for over a quarter of a century.

Melissa has also conducted the Malvern Primary Schools Massed Choir, served as Secretary of Young Farmers in both Christchurch and Mid Canterbury, and has served on the Darfield High School Board of Trustees and as a member of the Malvern Plunket Committee for over 10 years.

In 2018 Melissa was given the honour of receiving a QSM in the New Zealand Honours list for service to agriculture and the community.

Olivia Harrison
Dr Olivia Harrison is a neuroscientist whose research focuses on mental health and anxiety. Specifically, she focuses on how the brain perceives signals from within our body (interoception) and how this may be altered with anxiety, with a strong focus on breathing.

In 2025, she was awarded the Te Puiaki Kaiputaiao Maea, the Prime Minister's MacDiarmid Emerging Scientist Prize for outstanding emerging scientists.

Olivia completed her Doctor of Philosophy at the University of Oxford in 2015 and then undertook a postdoctoral role at Oxford for a further two years. She then moved to a Computational Psychiatry laboratory at the University of Zurich and ETH Zurich in Switzerland to take up a prestigious Marie Sktodowska-Curie Postdoctoral Fellowship, where she applied predictive coding models to better understand how the brain interprets and learns from changes in our breathing. In 2020, she then returned to the University of Otago in New Zealand to take up a Rutherford Discovery Fellowship, one of the country's most competitive and prestigious research awards, to continue advancing this innovative field.

Sally Arnold
Sally Arnold is a bold reinvention specialist and founder of Creating Encores, a global coaching practice that brings together her rich, unconventional background in professional music, corporate leadership, psychotherapy, and now, comedy. After an early career as a professional flautist performing with the NZ Symphony Training Orchestra and in the original cast of Jesus Christ Superstar, Sally's musical journey took her from the BBC Northern Ireland Symphony Orchestra to the Sydney Opera House.

She later leapt into business before returning to the arts as Head of Corporate Development at The Australian Ballet, where she helped orchestrate a Royal Gala with Diana, Princess of Wales.

Driven by a passion for reinvention, Sally trained in psychotherapy and launched Creating Encores, helping high-performing individuals and organisations reignite creativity and purpose during career or life transitions. Her first book, Creating Encores, was launched at the Australian Consulate in New York in 2014, her second is "INtoxicating Executives" — a guide for leaders who refuse to settle for a beige life.

From flautist to fringe performer, boardroom strategist to on-the-floor scene partner, Sally is living proof that the encore can be more intoxicating than the opening act.

Ursula Tehaylakian
As a founding pupil of St Margaret's College, Ursula Tchaylakian's wartime service earned her the prestigious King's Medal for Services in the Cause of Freedom in 1951.

Married to Armenian businessman Aschod Tehaylakian, Ursula lived in a large family compound in Cairo during World War II.

There, she opened her home to New Zealand servicemen stationed in Egypt, offering comfort, food and friendship to those far from home. Her hospitality became legendary, with soldiers calling her compound a "home away from home."

Recognising the emotional and practical needs of troops, she established a Red Cross outpost, ran a canteen, organised entertainment, and arranged excursions and care packages. She also comforted the wounded, visiting hospital tents and supporting soldiers suffering from shell shock.

Ursula's legacy lives on through her descendants and a deep family connection to St Margaret's. In 2015, her daughters donated her King's Medal to the College, ensuring her service and spirit will continue to inspire future generations.