Ambrose bows out after 20 years in An Grianán NS

It was the end of an era for the local community in Mount Temple when the much-loved Principal of An Grianán National School, Ambrose McGowan, decided to retire earlier this month after decades at the helm of the rural school.

Having been appointed as Principal of An Grianan in October 2001, Ambrose admitted this week that he has been “thoroughly spoiled” since he announced his retirement with the local community organising not one, but two memorable events to mark the special occasion.

“On the day of my official retirement, on October 1, the school gave me a wonderful send-off, and then last Friday night there was another event in Mount Temple which consisted of a special Mass in Corpus Christi Church and refreshments in the local Community Centre, so to say I have been spoiled is an understatement,” he says.

Despite being from county Longford, Ballymahon-born Ambrose McGowan has spent all of of his working life teaching at schools in nearby Westmeath, firstly in Ard Na Grath National School in Walderstown and then in An Grianán .

Having received his secondary school education in the Convent of Mercy in Ballymahon, he completed his teacher training in Carysfort College in Dublin before moving to Athlone to take up a teaching post in Ard na Grath in Walderstown, which was a two-teacher school at the time.

“I often joke about how I started there as an unofficial Deputy Principal because there was only two teachers, but I ended up spending 18 very happy years there before moving to An Grianan in 2001.”

Since making the move to Mount Temple, where he lives with his wife, Bríd O’Flaherty, who hails from Mayo, and their family of four, Ambrose McGowan has immersed himself into all aspects of the local community and among the presentations made to him after last Friday night’s Mass in Corpus Christi Church was one from the local Caulry GAA Club, as well as presentations from the Parents' Association and the Board of Management of An Grianan NS.

GAA has always played a huge part in the life of county Longford man, who is one of only a handful of people who have been able to successfully combine coaching roles on both sides of the Longford/Westmeath border!

The year before he was appointed as Principal of An Grianán NS, he brought the Westmeath Under-21 footballers to victory in the Leinster Minor Final, having coached many of the players at Under-14 level., and he has many other credits to his name in the annals of the GAA, including as a selector for the Longford Senior football team under manager Glenn Ryan in 2008; coaching roles with Maryland Tang; Longford Under-16’s and many other under-age teams on both sides of the Longford/Westmeath border.

A quadruple by-pass operation in 2007 put paid to Ambrose McGowan’s time as a footballing coach, but he is very thankful to enjoy good health since his surgery and still retains a huge interest in his beloved GAA and in all sports.

One of his core philosophies as a teacher has always been to enable his pupils to encounter as many different experiences as possible, both in the world of sport and in other areas as well while, at the same time, maintaining the core school curriculum of literacy and numeracy.

“That’s one of the reasons why pupils in An Grianán can play basketball, golf, do cross-country running as well as hurling and football and we have also had a circus visit the school and an astronomer,” he says, adding that they have also participated in the STEAM education process and have had staff from Elan and Ericsson visit the school over the years.

“I have a huge interest in sport, but not every child likes sport, so we have to make sure as educators that we give each child as rounded an educational experience as possible, and that’s what I have always tried to do,” he says.

As well as being passionate about sports, Ambrose McGowan also loves classical music, movies and travel, which are hobbies he hopes to be able to indulge in a bit more now that he has retired.

However, with four children between the ages of 14 and four, he says his family home is “a very busy one” and he is thankful that he has his health to enjoy the hustle and bustle of his young family. The McGowan’s oldest child,

Hugo, will be 14 in February, their only daughter, Ella, is 13 while the two youngest boys are Simeon (11) and Oscar (4).

Ambrose says he is leaving the school now in the hands of “a very capable principal” in Ann Kearns, and her teaching staff.

Reflecting on the last 20 years, he admits that leadership can be “lonely at times” and the role of an administrative principal is “a challenging one in today’s world, and is becoming more challenging.”

He says many teachers are reluctant to take up roles as teaching principals due to the workload involved. “I think it would be impossible to teach and be a principal at the same time as there is so much paperwork involved.”

While sad to say a final farewell to An Grianán, Ambrose McGowan and his family plan to continue being an integral part of the Mount Temple community for many years to come.