Pepperdine University Hosts Katharine Birbalsingh, Headmistress of the Michaela Community School in London

MALIBU, California – Pepperdine University welcomed Katharine Birbalsingh, headmistress and co-founder of Michaela Community School in London, for the latest installment of the 2026–2027 President’s Speaker Series. 

Media assets are available here. A recording to the event is available here. 

President Jim Gash opened the discussion by reflecting on education as more than the transfer of information. 

“At Pepperdine we still believe that intellectual excellence and moral formation belong together—and are indeed inseparable,” said Gash. “Today, we turn to questions that matter to every educator and student in this room and, indeed, at this University: What is true education? What is its end goal? What do we owe the young people entrusted to our care?”

He described Birbalsingh’s work at Michaela as an example of an educational model built on high expectations, academic achievement, and the development of strong habits and values.

The school is presently known for its highly structured approach to teaching and student behavior. Birbalsingh said its philosophy is grounded in the belief that setting high expectations for students is an expression of care.

“Strict means that you love them enough to keep your standards high for them,” Birbalsingh said. “It’s when we don’t love them that we allow our standards to drop.”

Throughout the conversation, Birbalsingh emphasized personal responsibility, hard work, gratitude, and service to others. She argued that educators have a responsibility to help students develop the habits and character needed to navigate challenges rather than shielding them from difficulty.

“Life is hard,” Birbalsingh said. “We need to teach them to jump over the obstacles and give them the skills and the knowledge to be able to do so.”

Birbalsingh described her practice of “ritual formation” which are expectations reinforced through consistent daily practices until positive behaviors become habits. Students are expected to arrive on time, complete their work, speak respectfully, help others, and take responsibility for their actions.

The conversation also highlighted Michaela’s lunch tradition. Students sit in assigned groups, serve one another, eat together, and publicly share things for which they are grateful. Birbalsingh said the practice is designed to teach students gratitude, conversation skills, and the importance of thinking beyond themselves.

“The way in which you find meaning in your life, and the way in which you find dignity, is by living your life for other people,” Birbalsingh said. 

Birbalsingh shared the path that led her to establish Michaela. It began with an anonymous blog she wrote as a teacher about challenges she observed in British schools. After speaking at the Conservative Party Conference in 2010, she drew national attention and eventually left her position before spending more than three years working to open Michaela in Wembley, London.

President Gash and Birbalsingh also discussed themes from her new book, Diversity Is Not Our Strength, including her concept of “multicultural patriotism.” Birbalsingh explained that while societies can embrace differences in culture, religion, and background, she believes successful communities also require a shared identity and common values.

“You need unity for anything to work,” Birbalsingh said. “Anybody who’s ever run a team, anybody who’s ever run anything, knows that you don’t want everybody singing from a different hymn sheet.”

She also connected those values to the Christian tradition and argued that schools play an important role in passing them from one generation to the next.

President Gash then took questions from the audience before presenting Birbalsingh with a Courageous Coin, representing this year’s theme of courage. 

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About Katharine Birbalsingh

Katharine Birbalsingh CBE, is Headmistress and co-founder of Michaela. She is known as “Britain’s Strictest Headmistress.” Michaela’s Progress 8 score places the school top in the country. The National Inspectorate, OFSTED, grades the school as “Outstanding” in every category. Over 1000 guests visit Michaela every year. Katharine read Philosophy & Modern Languages at The University of Oxford and has always taught in inner London.

About Pepperdine University

Pepperdine University is a private Christian university located 30 miles west of Downtown Los Angeles in Malibu, California. Rooted in the Christian tradition, Pepperdine is committed to both the relentless pursuit of truth through academic and scholarly excellence and to embodying Christian faith and values. With students at the heart of the educational enterprise, the University prepares approximately 9,000 scholars for lives of purpose, service, and leadership across its flagship liberal arts school, Seaver College; the Pepperdine College of Health Science; and four graduate schools—the Caruso School of Law; the Pepperdine Graziadio Business School; the Graduate School of Education and Psychology; and the School of Public Policy. Follow Pepperdine on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn.

 

 

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