"I had the very best education and it has stood me in great stead all my life," she said.
A former head girl of Wanganui Girls' College, Ms Sewell retired from the Ministry of Education in July 2011 after 45 years as an educator.
"For me, it has been immensely satisfying to have served young New Zealanders all my adult life, and I have also considered it a great privilege to be a public servant," she said.
New Zealand delivers a world class education system for most students, she said. "And the challenge for the future is to lift achievement for every student, particularly Maori and Pasifika students, and students with special needs."
The students in our schools today will be living their adult lives in a very different world from the one we live in now, she said. In 2005, Ms Sewell was asked by the board of the New Zealand Qualifications Authority to act as its chief executive at a troubled time for the organisation.
Ms Sewell has taught at schools in New Zealand and the United Kingdom, including Onslow College in Wellington, and was principal of Green Bay High School in Auckland.
Getting a good start at school was the all-important factor for every child.
"And that's where I was very fortunate," she said.
"Wanganui schools were great when I was young and they still are. Wanganui's children are very well served."
