Staff
The members of our team or “staff members” as the English call it, are the core of every successful language camp stay. Besides the comprehensive course programme that awaits our students, we are very aware that it is, in the end, our staff who make the difference between a good and an excellent language trip. Our organization has always been marked out by the selection of our team and by their collaboration, and this is what our clients value most highly.
Do please take a quick look at our team below. We have always nurtured a family-like collaboration and we distinguish ourselves with the best-qualified staff members in the broadest range of fields. Everyone who knows us knows that Benenden is different – Benenden is more than just a language trip.
Dipl. Päd. Heidi und Mag. Phil. Gottfried Obermair
Gottfried Obermair founded the Obermair private school in 1974. He and his wife Heidi have successfully supervised more than 20,000 students in the last 40 years. They still look forward to working with the children again every year.
Mag. Nikolaus Obermair
„Niki“ has a master’s degree in sport and training science. As a trainer he supervises professional athletes at the Olympic base at Salzburg/Rif. He grew up on Benenden courses and has taken over with great passion the management of the Obermair language camps.
Teacher Team
Our trademark is the excellent quality of our teachers – the clear majoriy of them native speakers. Our “native teachers” mainly come from England, Ireland, Australia or the USA. They are prepared for the lessons by Austrian specialists. With their help you will completely rediscover England and the English language. They are always available for you even outside the classrooms and during leisure time!
Activity Team
Our activity team is solely responsible for the entertainment, the fun and the events during leisure time. The team is distinctive for its international composition, as well as for having specialists in the broadest range of fields including sport, art, music and theatre.
Multimedia Team
Our multimedia team makes it possible for you to follow from home the happenings on the course. Each day, many pictures and daily reports will be uploaded to the Internet. They also make it possible for us, in cooperation with the activity team and our students, to put on extraordinary stage and evening shows. You can get an impression of their amazing work on our homepage, under “Media”.
Kitchen helpers
Of course a different country means different eating habits. Since English cuisine is not for everyone, we bring our own kitchen chef from Austria to Benenden. She brings a welcome Austrian touch to the English kitchen with the support of her helpers. They are an important part of our team even beyond the dining rooms, and participate significantly in course activities.
Office Team
The office is the only place in Benenden where speaking German is “allowed”. This is the central contact point for the students throughout the course, whether it is about pocket money, organizational matters, illness or injuries. Many students just pop in to have a chat on the popular office couch – our office team is there for everyone 24 hours a day!
Bus drivers
Our bus drivers, too, have been selected with great care. One of our top priorities is safety on the buses and we therefore only employ bus companies and drivers who have many years’ experience inland and abroad.
Stephan Lindner
Stephan (“Steve”) is a systems engineer in the video and television area and has been the team leader of the Benenden multimedia team for 14 years. He and two students of photography and multimedia graphic design respectively make the perfect trio.
Mag. Nikolaus Hofmüller
Niki is one of many musical specialists in our team. He is the bandleader of the Viennese cult band “Likewise”. He is a guitar specialist and also a heartthrob for the girls because of his singing voice ;) In Benenden, our team makes it possible for you to make music on the big stage – we put no limits on your creativity!
Dr. Pugh
Are you interested in the theatre? Leighton is an actor in the London theatre – a true professional. He has been working with us every summer at Bendenden with huge enthusiasm for many years now. In his workshops, you can learn a great deal by watching him and also perform on the stage if you want to.
Mag. Edith Retzl
Edith Retzl has been our principle teacher at Bendenden for many years. She is also particularly responsible for the optimal preparation of seniors for the new “Zentralmatura”. She gives our teachers the best possible preparatory coaching for their lessons.