Former British Army nursing officer and now educator, Joanna Fox, the daughter of the former British Army soldier with Fijian links, Jonasa Jang who was part of the 212 soldiers who first enlisted in the British Army, has a unique background which has taken her to the front line in the first Gulf War, and then into a 20-year career in education.
She now leads one of Yorkshire’s top independent schools as they embark on a new co-educational era for 2026.
In 1961, 212 Fijian men and women embarked on a journey halfway across the world to enlist in the British Army, making a significant contribution to the Crown and to Fiji’s history and among the 212 loyal Fijians was Joanna’s father, Jonasa Jang.
Fox says her father didn’t want to tell his own father that he had enlisted, because he thought he’d be angry with him and refuse him permission to go.
She says when the names were announced on the radio, her grandfather heard her father’s name being read out and actually chased him down the road with a cleaver.
As an 18-year-old, Fox followed in her father’s footsteps, joining the British Army and qualifying as a staff nurse before being commissioned as a Nursing Officer in 1989.
Fox adds when she was 16, her father was in hospital for a routine operation at the Queen Elizabeth Military Hospital in Woolwich.
She says she visited her dad and began talking to a staff nurse on the ward and that was the moment she knew she wanted to be a military nurse as the environment felt so familiar and the role had real purpose.
Fox career took her to the front line, serving in the resuscitation and pre-op department in the First Gulf War.
She says it was a sobering experience, but it was where her training and values really came together.
Fox will march in London’s Remembrance Parade at Whitehall this year as she represents both her late father’s time in the 212 and her own time in the British Army.
She adds it will be a very emotional and proud moment for her.
Fox adds her dad passed away a year ago, so to have the opportunity to represent him and the 212 on such an important day for military families everywhere feels very special.
The individuality and inclusion Fox mentions are key elements of her tenure at the helm of Harrogate Ladies’ College, with the school’s community one of its greatest strengths.
As Harrogate Ladies’ College embarks on its new era of extending its co-ed provision and changing its name to Duchy College, Fox military background and values have helped her lead through what has been a significant evolution for the community.
Throughout its history, Harrogate Ladies’ College has always been forward-thinking, and this is the next step in its evolution.”
From her father’s journey in the 212, to her own years of military service and leadership in education, Fox embodies the very values she seeks to instill in her pupils: resilience, individuality and authenticity.
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