Dean of Faculty Biography

Kevin Mattingly joined the Lawrenceville School faculty in 1993 as a teacher of science and interdisciplinary studies on the Aldo Leopold Distinguished Teaching Chair in Environmental Science and Ethics. From 1997 to 2002, Mattingly chaired the Science Department and was appointed Dean of Faculty in the spring of 2004. His current duties include faculty recruiting and hiring, oversight of all faculty personnel issues and professional development, and he shares with the assistant Head Master responsibility for curriculum design, development, and implementation. In addition, Mattingly teaches in the Science Department, coaches softball, and is an advisor in the Lower School.

Mattingly holds a Ph.D. in Zoology (Ecology and Evolutionary Biology) and a B.A. in Biological Sciences from Indiana University, where he was a Teaching Fellow from 1975-80. He began his secondary school career as a biology teacher and coach at the Hawken School (Ohio). In 1984, he began a nine-year tenure as a founding faculty member and Academic Dean at The Mountain School Program of Milton Academy, a one-semester program academic program in Vermont drawing talented students from around the country, and focused on issues of sustainable living and environmental science. In addition to his administrative duties at the Mountain School, Mattingly taught environmental science, chemistry, and directed the school's outdoor programs.

Mattingly has been involved over the years with a variety of summer academic programs for students including the New Jersey Scholars, Vermont Governor's Institute on Science and Technology, and a number of summer enrichment programs for students from New York City, including Central Park East School, the Bronx Regional High School, and the Bronx Lab School. In addition, he has led students and faculty on trips around the world including West Africa, Siberia, Central America, and various wilderness areas in North America.

A "teacher of teachers," Mattingly is an adjunct professor in the Department of Organization and Leadership at Columbia University Teachers College, where he teaches courses on learning theory and its implications for curriculum design and instruction. He was a master teacher in science for 17 years in its Klingenstein Summer Institute for young teachers and now teaches in the Leadership Academy, a Columbia University degree program in educational leadership. Mattingly has presented numerous workshops and training sessions for public and private high schools on interdisciplinary curriculum development, classroom teaching strategies linked to learning theory, and student assessment methods.

His wife Kristi is a first grade public school teacher and their sons, Benjamin and Daniel, are graduates of Lawrenceville School.

Getting Personal with Kevin Mattingly

Why did you decide to pursue a career in education?

Because of the impact my teachers had on me. You know, I had a teacher in high school who was the only teacher who suggested I go to college. I went to a big public high school and for many of the kids going to college wasn't really on the radar screen. What that teacher said made an impression on me and it was one of the primary reasons I decided to try college. Not that he was the only reason but he had a profound impact on me. And then in college I was fortunate to have some key professors who really ignited a passion and love of learning in me that's fueled me ever since.

What do you like best about your job?

The camaraderie of the administrative team, the intellectual challenges, and the critical feedback ... I feel like I'm growing in important ways, professionally.

What are some of the goals you've set for yourself and the School?

Well, one is that this is a school where teachers learn. That we create ways for teachers to get better at their craft, as teachers, coaches, and housemasters. We're trying to be very intentional about how we go about creating conditions that support and encourage teacher learning. A second goal is to keep good people here, to keep them happy and growing professionally, and to recruit the best teachers I can find.

What do you tell prospective faculty members about Lawrenceville?

Some of it is obvious: the beautiful campus, the remarkable kids, a strong faculty, a commitment to teacher learning, both monetarily and time-wise. We are trying to be creative about how we provide professional development opportunities for teachers in ways that meets their needs and interests. Our location is also interesting situated between two major urban centers — Philadelphia and New York City — and two pretty special natural areas — the Delaware Water Gap and the million-acre Pinelands.

What advice would you have for a prospective student coming to Lawrenceville?

I'd tell them what I tell faculty: identify those things in your life that renew you, that nourish you, that are important. And on a daily, weekly, and monthly basis, build your time around that. Don't let those things be the last that happens — protect them. If you build from that core of important things, you've got a good shot at being happy no matter where you're at.