Staff Profile: Ellie Zindilis, Receptionist

Staff Profile: Ellie Zindilis, Receptionist BIS Abu Dhabi is like a second home for us.  My husband (Andy Zindilis, Head of Year 4) and I joined the school nearly 8 years ago. Each week we will feature a member of staff across all areas of the school including teachers, admin staff, support staff and more, to get to know members of our school family a little better. Our profile this week is Ellie Zindilis, our receptionist.

BIS Abu Dhabi is like a second home for us.  My husband (Andy Zindilis, Head of Year 4) and I joined the school nearly 8 years ago.  We were only supposed to be here for 3 years as we weren’t sure that we could live so far from our family for too long.  As it turns out, we could!  As a family we fell in love with Abu Dhabi and the school.  There is such a wonderful sense of community here and this current ‘Year of Tolerance’ seems like a perfect way to reflect everything that I love about our wonderful international school.  

Andy and I are from Greek Cypriot heritage and although we didn’t meet until we were 21, we grew up a few streets away from each other, and our grandmothers were in the same class at school in Cyprus.  We grew up in a very multi-cultural suburb of North London.  

As a foodie (that’s what we call people that eat anything and everything, right?) I enjoyed the choice of international supermarkets and restaurants available in our neighbourhood.  Food is my great passion.  I love cooking and baking for my family and getting the children involved in the kitchen is one of my favourite pastimes.  If you want to be my friend, bring me food.  

It was so easy for me to settle here in Abu Dhabi because I felt the same sense of all-inclusiveness that I felt back home, but it’s much better weather here!  My family like to spend our holidays experiencing all that the UAE has to offer, whether we are relaxing by the pool at a 5* hotel, camping on the beaches in Fujairah or kayaking through lush mangroves and wadis.  We are looking forward to our next adventure, skiing in Georgia.  

Although my role is now as receptionist alongside the lovely, Jay-Ann, I began as a teaching assistant in both FS1 and Year 3 before taking a break to have our two children Zack and Phoebe.  I went on to work in a nursery here in Abu Dhabi, for 4 years, before returning to BIS Abu Dhabi.  The school has changed so much over the last 8 years but the core values remain the same.  I am looking forward to getting to know everyone that comes through the doors here.  Please come and say hello if you have the time!