As the next principal of Cache La Poudre Middle School, current CLPM Assistant Principal and Athletic Director Matt Ellis is excited to further his partnership with staff, students, and the community and continue the positive work that earned the school a John Irwin Award for academic excellence earlier this year.
“The CLP community is heavily invested in ensuring all students are valued and are immersed in the rigorous, equitable climate they need to achieve their goals,” Ellis said. “Every day, students and staff come to CLPM to engage in the hard work needed to excel both academically and co-curricularly. I am proud to have the opportunity to continue to serve such a wonderful, student-centered community.”
Julie Chaplain, Poudre School District assistant superintendent who oversees Cache La Poudre schools, said Ellis' previous administrative experience and passion for the CLPM community make him the ideal candidate to take over the helm at the middle school.
“Matt will do a great job serving as the next principal” of CLPM, Chaplain said. “He is a dedicated and reflective instructional leader whom we are lucky to have in PSD.”
Ellis has years of experience impacting school culture, student growth, and achievement. He has been with CLPM since 2020, but he has lived, worked, and attended school in Northern Colorado for the past two decades.
He earned both a bachelor’s in speech communication and a master’s in educational leadership and human resources from Colorado State University and served in teaching, coaching, and administrative roles over the course of a decade in Greeley-Evans School District 6. He taught Language Arts for seven years at Greeley Central High School, where he was also a basketball coach, and served as the assistant principal and athletic director of Greeley’s Franklin Middle School for three years before joining the Cache La Poudre team.
In addition to his experiences in education, Ellis has a background in sports administration and building partnerships with nonprofit organizations.
Although he has called Northern Colorado home for the last 20 years, Ellis hails from the East Bay Area in Northern California. He is a proud father of two girls and husband to a wonderful science teacher in PSD. Outside of school, you can find him in the mountains, on the basketball court, or spending time with his family.
CLPM’s current principal, Alicia Bono, will remain principal of the school through the end of the 2023-24 school year before moving on to another job opportunity.