Our Leadership Team

DIRECTOR

Martin Van Rijswijk originally from New Zealand, Martin is married to Zuriana and is the father of three teenage children, all of whom attend the school. Martin began his career as a primary school teacher in New Zealand, but has spent the last twenty years working in and leading international schools in Malaysia, Thailand and Egypt before taking up his current post as Director in August 2012.

Martin is a keen advocate of student centered learning and strongly believes that schools should expose students to a wide range of learning activities and interests, engaging them to become well balanced life-long learners and responsible citizens in an increasingly globalized world. 

Martin’s interests include a wide range of sporting activities, outdoor pursuits, reading, cultures and travel. He is currently studying for a doctorate in education.

BUSINESS DIRECTOR

Marco Dahl joined BIS in July 2006 relocating from northern Germany’s Düsseldorf region. He studied Economics and gathered work experience all over Germany until he found his home with BIS.

Starting to support the Accounting/Controlling Department at BIS he established a strong relationship with the schools at BIS and became a responsible team member together with the Principals in planning the whole school Timetable. He also became the contact person for all government related issues and got involved in most areas around and within the school. In 2009 Marco joined the BIS Leadership Team as Financial & Educational Services Controller.

Marco enjoys travelling around the world and is proud member of a small social project running a Kindergarten/Pre-School in the Gambia, West Africa.

HEAD OF HUMAN RESOURCES

Veronika Maerkl is a native of Munich, a city that she has never grown tired of. She is a real Munich fan who loves the lifestyle, traditions, and cultural offerings of the city, as well as the proximity to Austria, Italy, and Switzerland.

During her training for a career in the hotel industry she concentrated on the area of Human Resources and Labour Law. Upon completing her studies, she went to work for the Arabella/Sheraton Hotels, where she spent 15 years, and was promoted to the position of Area Personnel Manager for eight Bavarian hotels. In 2002 Veronika Märkl joined BIS, where she assumed the role of Head of Human Resources.

In her rare moments of spare time she enjoys reading, cooking, skiing and inline skating. Travelling is her passion, and she aspires to visit all continents of the world in her lifetime.

HEAD OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

Kevin Skidmore has been working with the IT Department at BIS since November of 2005. In 2012 he joined the BIS leadership team with responsibilty for the Campus infrastructure and instructional technology.

Kevin is an American who has found a new home in Germany along with his wife Maureen who teaches at BIS, and their two children Anna and Julie who were both born in Munich.

Prior to joining BIS Kevin has held technology leadership roles at a variety of both large and small companies and most recently at a financial services startup in Atlanta Georgia. In his spare time Kevin enjoys travelling around Europe, biking, and playing guitar and bass.

SECONDARY SCHOOL DEPUTY PRINCIPAL / MYP CO-ORDINATOR

Brett Meuli joined the BIS leadership team in 2010 as Middle School Assistant Principal and MYP Coordinator having previously held a variety of leadership and teaching posts in New Zealand, Singapore and I
ndonesia.

Brett has a Bachelor of Arts in History and an Associate Degree in Social Sciences. He has worked extensively for the IBO in the Asia Pacific region as a workshop leader, moderator and schools visitor.

Originally from New Plymouth in New Zealand, Brett is happily married to Julie and away from school he enjoys football, biking, reading, distance running, travel and anything to do with consumer electronics.

Adrian von Wrede-Jervis is the Assistant Principal and IB Diploma Coordinator in the Upper School. In his capacity as Assistant Principal, he is in charge of the large structure whole school timetabling process. He also oversees the Upper School reporting process and produces the data for the close monitoring of student performance in the Upper School. His main role as IB Diploma Coordinator involves the support and mentoring of all IB Diploma students, to this end he works to ensure that they have a balanced set of subjects which reflect their strengths, with a view to their future careers. He also administers the International Baccalaureate Diploma programme as a whole. 

Originally from the UK, a chemistry graduate from Leeds University, he has built most of his teaching experience in the Essex and Southend-on-Sea area where latterly he was Director of the Science Faculty in a grammar school, he has also taught in Estonia and South Africa. He is married to Ulrike (who is a German Namibian), and has two young sons, Danik and Xander. In his free time he loves camping, hill walking and bird watching (though he is more of a birder than a twitcher).

SECONDARY SCHOOL ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL / IGCSE CO-ORDINATOR

Rohan Skene joined BIS in August 2009 as a teacher of economics and took over the IGCSE Coordinator role in October of that year. In 2012 he was appointed to the BIS Leadership team as Secondary Assistant Principal/IGCSE Coordinator with responsibility for the secondary pastoral programme. 

Rohan has Bachelors in Economics and Commerce, a Graduate Diploma in Education, a Masters of Arts and a total of 18 years experience as an educator in Australia, the UK and Germany. He is presently undertaking research into student voice as the focus for his Doctor of Education studies. Rohan is married to Julia (a native German) has a daughter Holly and appreciates the cultural, sporting and festive aspects of Munich life.

PRIMARY SCHOOL PRINCIPAL

Kathy Slocombe joined the BIS leadership team at the start of the 2008/2009 academic year when she was appointed as the Lower School Principal.

Kathy originally comes from the south of England and studied her Bachelor of Education with Honours degree for primary teaching in London, qualifying in 1990. She joined us from Tanzania where her position was Head of Primary at the International School Moshi. Kathy has also taught in the UK, New Zealand, The Netherlands and Spain before joining us in Germany. This is her third primary principal position.

Kathy is married to Chris and their daughter Emily recently gained a place at the BRIT School in London where she is studying Musical Theatre alongside her GCSE’s. Kathy enjoys playing tennis, reading, music and travel and has a house on the Costa Blanca in Spain so that she can enjoy her holidays in the sun in her own house.

PRIMARY SCHOOL ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL

Angela Hoelzl was appointed Assistant Principal and Curriculum Coordinator of the Lower School in 2006. She first joined BIS in 2004 as a Grade 3 classroom teacher and has been actively involved in the Lower School curriculum development ever since. In 2004 she became an official IBPYP workshop leader. Angela has gone on to facilitate in-school workshops, regional workshops and participate in school visits throughout the Europe region.

Angela is well accustomed to living in Munich having previously worked at Munich International School and being married to Hubert, who is a native Bavarian. She has two children, Laura and Alexander and both children are bilingual. Originally Angela comes from Manchester in England and first came to live in the Munich area in 2001. She studied for her Bachelor of Education with Honours in Liverpool and went on to teach in an inner city school in Manchester before moving to Germany.