meet the team

Jan Steel was appointed Principal/CEO of GEMS Royal Dubai School in the summer of 2022, having first joined GEMS Education in 2016. Prior to RDS, Jan held significant senior leadership positions at GEMS Jumeirah Primary School, GEMS Metropole School – Motor City and GEMS Wellington International School.

Jan is a dynamic, strategic and creative education leader with extensive experience of driving school improvement across all age ranges and differing school contexts, in both the UK and UAE. Passionate about the pursuit of excellence within a high-performance culture that delivers positive outcomes, she believes children achieve their very best through a fully inclusive, innovative and stimulating curriculum.

Jenny has been Senior Deputy Principal, and a member of the Executive Leadership Team, at GEMS Royal Dubai School in September 2020. 
 
Originally from the northwest of England, Jenny has been a part of the GEMS family for 14 years where she has had the privilege to hold Assistant Principal and Deputy Headteacher positions in several GEMS schools across both primary and secondary phases. Prior to joining GEMS in 2011, Jenny was Head of Performing Arts at a secondary school in Greater Manchester.  
 
Passionate about school improvement and developing a culture of high-performance, Jenny believes that children learn best through an engaging and creative curriculum. Educating the whole child and ensuring opportunity for children to succeed both within and beyond the core curriculum are critical to her role as a leader.

Michaela has been working with RDS families since September 2019 and is thrilled to live and work in the Middle East. Originally from Milton Keynes, England, she holds degrees in Child Psychology from the University of Durham and Primary Teaching from Milton Keynes De Montfort University. Michaela has over 15 years of experience in education, including 11 years as a SENCO in the UK, supporting families and staff to overcome learning barriers. She has also completed a Masters in Education and SENCO standards. 

Passionate about personalised learning and wellbeing, Michaela is guided by Rita Pierson’s quote, "Every child deserves a champion—an adult who will never give up on them." 

Rachel was appointed as Deputy Principal, and a member of the Executive Leadership Team, in August 2023. Originally from England, Rachel has been teaching since 2012. She previously worked in a prestigious British international school in Poland where she held various leadership positions, including Assistant Head Teacher, and completed a Senior Leadership Programme. In the UK, she also held leadership positions including Maths and Reading Lead, and Data Lead. Rachel has taught every year group from Year 1 to Year 6 with experience teaching and leading in Early Years.

Passionate about providing the very best education for all children, she believes that a high-performance culture comes from having high expectations for all students and supporting them to achieve their potential.