Matthew Harris has been with the Fox Chapel Area School District since August of 1994 after serving as an intern at Fox Chapel Area High School. Dr. Harris joined the district first as a 6th grade Gifted Education teacher at Dorseyville Middle School. Dr. Harris then served as a 6th Language Arts teacher and 8th grade Language Arts teacher before being asked to serve as assistant to the principal in February of 2001. Dr. Harris continued as assistant principal at Dorseyville Middle School before becoming principal in 2007. In August of 2013, Dr. Harris became the Director of Secondary Education and Instruction at Fox Chapel Area School District.
Matthew Harris received his Bachelor of Arts degree in English Literature followed by a Masters of Arts in Teaching for secondary English at the University of Pittsburgh. His studies continued at the University of Pittsburgh where Dr. Harris was awarded a principal’s certification, curriculum and instruction certification and Superintendent’s Letter of Eligibility. Dr. Harris has successfully defended his dissertation titled The Challenges of Implementing Project-based Learning in Middle Schools and received his Doctor of Education degree (Ed.D.) on December 7, 2014.
As Director of Secondary Education and Instruction, Dr. Harris oversees the curriculum and staff development of grades 6-12. Dr. Harris works closely with the principals and staff of both Dorseyville Middle School and Fox Chapel Area High School as well as the superintendent and assistant superintendent to ensure that the curriculum and instruction promotes achievement and growth for all students.
The Fox Chapel Area School District (FCASD) is involved in many Remake Learning projects. FCASD hosts FabCon, training over 150 regional educators in the curricular implication and practical applications of MIT Fab Labs, certifies regional elementary educators, in partnership with Code.org, in the CS Fundamentals course, participates in the Pittsburgh Agency by Design cohort in collaboration with Researchers from Harvard University’s Project Zero, and offers high quality Maker-Ed opportunities to early childhood students.