This back-to-school season marks the end of our Head of School, Matt Covey’s, third year leading the Denver Christian community. We are so thankful for the Covey family and the role they play in our community! This summer, the Board of Trustees offered Matt a second contract for five years, which he accepted.
To celebrate this milestone, we asked Matt Covey to reflect on his time at Denver Christian so far and what he is most excited about for the next years!
What initially drew you to Denver Christian three years ago? What has continued to make this community home for you and your family?
I mentioned to our staff this fall that what was true in year one of our time year at DC is true in year four: It sounds cliche, but the reason we came to DC was the staff. We loved Sioux Falls, South Dakota and I loved my role at Sioux Falls Christian so it was going to take a lot to get us to move to Denver. Maintaining, growing, and improving a Christian school, is a ton of work and requires many hours well beyond the typical 40 hr work week. I could tell the leadership team understood it was going to take a world-class effort to move DC forward and they continue to step up with that type of effort every year.
Charissa and I are drawn to individuals and groups that understand what it means to hustle, work, and grind when it comes to doing big things for the glory of God. The leadership team, facilities staff, office staff, teaching staff, and volunteers are humble, down to earth and hard-working. It’s inspiring. This “gritty” mentality was well-established before we came and we wanted to be a part of it.
What has surprised you the most in the past three years of leadership?
I may have underestimated the importance of intentionally establishing a world-class workplace culture in parallel with chasing our vision. Covid-19 tested our workplace culture in a significant way. I just can’t underestimate the amount of labor that went into keeping our school open and safe the last two years. We were pushed to the limit from a human capital standpoint. At times, I may have pushed too hard without understanding the importance of stopping at certain points in the year to measure and gauge how everyone was doing.
Culture is like a garden and it needs to be tended to all the time. I am not sure I tended to it as well as I could have. That being said, I am very proud of what we did as a school over the last two years. I think our staff and administrators were just straight-up heroes to our families and kids. They gave so much of themselves to their students and each other. I hope to a degree I modeled that as best I knew how in my commitment to being a caring leader but, at the same time, keeping DC moving forward during difficult times.
In what ways are you most excited to see DC grow over the next 5+ years?
I am excited to see us grow in our ability to deliver “World-Class, Whole-Child, Christian Education” at all levels and to then scaffold and align that growth through the various learning experiences students participate in year to year. We explain and define “Whole Child, Christian Education” by utilizing the “six spheres” language. The “six spheres” of whole child development are Spiritual, Creative/Innovative, Personal, Social-Emotional, Cognitive, and Physical Growth. And while each sphere acts on its own, they work integrated with one another.
When our students grow creatively, they will also grow cognitively and spiritually, etc. I can’t wait to see us as a school 5 years from now. We are building a beautiful narrative. It helps our students and families see exactly where each of the six spheres develop within a child during the school year. Explaining how that growth happens and why it is important. I believe we can be a leader as Christian School in this endeavor.
Reflecting on the Past, Looking toward the Future
What a blessing to have a leadership team that commits yearly to Denver Christian’s growth. Stay tuned for our next blog, where Matt explores our growth in the past three years.
We are excited to see what the next five years hold for Denver Christian!
About our Head of School
Matt Covey serves as the head of school at Denver Christian School. Denver Christian School is a preschool through high school college preparatory Christian school serving the Denver metro area offering excellence in academics, a broad range of extracurricular opportunities, and a supportive learning community through a distinctively Christian lens. Visit our website to learn more about Denver Christian School, and follow along with us on Facebook and Instagram.