Promotes 5 key distinctives of Santa Clarita Christian School

4. The halls and rooms of Santa Clarita Christian School
are full of the handiwork of the Lord and his workmen. While
the entire faculty and staff is working toward educating and
showing students the love of Christ, it is the teachers that have
the greatest opportunity to be an example of vessels of Christ
following his footsteps.
Matt Brown is the Academic Dean and Chairman of
the English Department. His laid-back personality belies the
amount of projects with which he is involved. In addition to
teaching ninth grade Honors Intro to Literature, eleventh grade
American Literature, twelfth grade AP Literature, and Yearbook
at our school, he teaches a Methods Course at California State
University Northridge (CSUN) for potential teachers seeking their
credentials in English. He is Co-Director at CSUN’s California
Writing Project, where he is involved in Improving Students’
Academic Writing (ISAW). Matt recently returned from a
conference in Orlando with the Gates Educational Foundation,
through the National Writing Project. During the summer he
teaches conferences at the Young Writers Camp for fourth
through twelfth grades. He has written for the English Journal,
California English, contributing ideas to the Folger Shakespeare
Library based in Washington D.C.. He has also taken on the
task with teachers across America to be an AP Reader, which
involves him grading AP Literature exam essays. While it is a
difficult task and a huge endeavor he says he does it in order to
help our AP students improve their writing technique and better
approach the AP test.
In response to all his commitments and projects he is
involved with Matt chuckles and jokes saying, “I’m certifiable,
I say yes to everything.” But it is clear that the only thing about
him that is “certifiable” is his love for writing and for helping
others improve their writing. Humbly, Matt is clear that his over
active involvement outside of SCCS does not make him any
greater than his fellow teachers. He is quick to share that what
makes SCCS great is the team of teachers who are like-minded
and working together. He is surely not alone as a teacher when
he claims that his favorite part is discovering that a struggling
student has succeeded.
While Matt has been with SCCS for sixteen years, it was
his wife Darcy who first worked at the school. Darcy is now
the varsity volleyball coach and teaches photography. They
have been married eighteen years after meeting at The Master’s
College where they both attended. When choosing a college

5. to attend, Matt says the Lord directed him to
The Master’s College and it was there that he
realized his faith was no longer his parents’
but his own. One of the things that sticks
out to him that he learned and overcame
was that a “[good] reputation could allow
you to get away with things unless there
are people holding you accountable.” The
dedication to the truth of Scripture and
commitment to accountability at such a
school helped him become who he is.
Matt was originally from Nome,
Alaska. And lived in Minnesota then
again in Alaska in the small town of Glenallen. After
attending college here in our valley he has stayed and
chose to raise his three children with his wife in Santa
Clarita. His three children can be found attending school
on the same campus where he and his wife teach. Kylie is
in seventh grade, Cameron is in fifth grade and Kaysa is in
Kindergarten. He is a family man and when he is not busy
at work or one of his many activities within the writing
world family time is spent in Disneyland and RV camping
with his parents.
It is exciting to see how the Lord has worked and
continues to work in the lives of teachers like Matt Brown
to strengthen the pillar of Academic Excellence upon
the foundation of God’s Word. We are thankful for Matt
Brown, just one of the many great teachers at SCCS. n