As Matt Havermale starts his new role as the Dean of Students and assistant Activities Director, there are many rising questions about what his job entails and what his goals for this year are.
“One of the things that is big for me is the attachment rate of students; getting them involved in things,” Havermale said.
Assistant AD means that he will be helping Dusty Weiskopf, the new AD this year, with responsibilities regarding sports schedules and student involvement in extracurriculars.
“We see almost a one point increase in students who are involved in some sort of activity versus those who are not,” Havermale said.
While this is a big change for Havermale, he is excited to grow and do better constantly. He is also a dean this year, which means he’s in charge of things like discipline and student behavior.
“I’ve always wanted to be in administration, [because] every day is something different,” Havermale said. “With this role, I get to have something new. I get to see students I didn’t typically get to see in my teaching job in a different kind of capacity as an administrator.”
Teaching history at FHN prior to his new role as dean has allowed Havermale to connect with students in a different way than others in administration. Along with his other roles, Havermale is the class of 2026 principal, where students are looking forward to seeing him lead.
“He’s usually pretty understanding of the students and pretty chill,” senior Moya Jefferson said. “I think it’ll be good to have him as a principal.”
