Prayerful superintendent leaves public schools behind to become headmaster at growing private Christian school

Prayer, and public schools being “past the tipping point,” led an Ohio public school superintendent to leave his position to become headmaster of a private Christian school.

Matt Baker announced his resignation from Clinton-Massie Local Schools on April 17, to become head of Dayton Christian in July.

In a letter to the Clinton-Massie community Baker expressed his gratitude for the seven years they’ve worked alongside him and gave his farewells.

“It is with bittersweet emotions that I write this letter to you today. I want to let the parents and guardians of our fine students know that the ’22-’23 school year will be my last as the Superintendent of Clinton-Massie Local Schools.”

“I have enjoyed my time leading one of the best school districts in Ohio. I am very proud of the work we have done over the last seven years. I hope many of you will feel like I have left it a little better than I found it,” Baker wrote.

As Baker embarks on the new chapter in his career, he expressed his faith was the reason for the change.

Baker asked the Lord, “What more can I give?” The answer became clear to him after prayer.

“I felt like the Lord was showing me a change was coming,” Baker told The Lion. “He wasn’t really clear on what the change was, but over about six months’ worth of prayer, it started to be a little bit clearer to me.”

After teaching in public schools for 23 years, Baker said there are constraints and laws you must obey, as Peter calls on us to obey the laws of the land unless they go against God. He said he feels public education is now past that point.

“I just feel like we’re past the tipping point, and in public education you’re just headed into this dark place – and honestly, it was hard to support any longer,” he said.

Baker is excited for his new calling, but most of all he’s excited to see other souls get saved.

“I had a meeting already with the staff and said, ‘If you take nothing else from this meeting with me, we’re going to see souls saved.’ That’s the work that we do to create the missionaries that are going to go out and do the work, meaning either they’re going into other countries or they’re going into their local communities. We’re going to see that turn into souls for the Kingdom.”  

In the last five years Dayton Christian has experienced immense growth in enrollment. In 2021, it opened a new preschool and kindergarten wing at its Miamisburg campus. That year it welcomed 110 preschoolers and over 70 kindergarteners. 

Since then, Dayton Christian has only continued to grow, now having the highest enrollment rate of any other private school in the area, according to Dayton 247 Now.