Matt Harr school brochure

For K-12 schools & districts · 8 pages, US Letter · Back to mattharrspeaker.com

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Matt Harr

Motivational & School Culture Speaker

For K-12 schools & districts

What does your staff need most right now?

Keynotes, workshops, and professional development built to fit your staff.

  • School Culture & Classrooms
  • School Leadership
  • Motivation & Resilience
Matt Harr speaking about school culture to athletic administrators at a conference
mattharrspeaker.com Based in Twin Falls, Idaho · Travels nationwide

Before you plan your next PD day

Sound familiar?

  • Classrooms & students

    Students quit when it gets hard, and adults rush in to rescue them.

    They graduate without learning to handle struggle or consequences.

    School Culture & Classrooms · page 3

  • Culture & leadership

    Everyone works hard, just not in the same direction.

    Expectations change from room to room, and students notice.

    School Leadership · page 4

  • Staff energy

    Teachers start the year lit up and run out of gas by January.

    Every new initiative spends energy that belongs to students.

    Motivation & Resilience · page 5

  • AI in schools

    AI reached every classroom before anyone agreed on the rules.

    Work gets turned in, but the thinking behind it never happens.

    Specialist support · page 6

Left alone, these problems harden into the culture. Matt spent 35 years inside schools learning to fix them.

Three ways Matt helps schools

  1. 1

    School Culture & Classrooms

    For teachers & staff

    Stronger schools. Clearer expectations. Better relationships. Cultures students carry with them.

    Page 3

  2. 2

    School Leadership

    For school & district leaders

    Build cultures where people take ownership, communicate honestly, and lead regardless of title.

    Page 4

  3. 3

    Motivation & Resilience

    For kickoffs, conventions & students

    Real stories of adversity, responsibility, and making the next choice when life doesn’t go according to plan.

    Page 5

It starts with one question

When your people walk out of the room, what should they be thinking, feeling, or doing differently?

Tell Matt. He will build the session around your answer.

2

1 of 3 · For teachers & staff

School Culture & Classrooms

Stronger schools. Clearer expectations. Better relationships. Cultures students carry with them.

Sound familiar?

Students quit when it gets hard, and adults rush in to rescue them.

They graduate without learning to handle struggle or consequences.

Talks

  • Culture: The Climate Students Carry Home

    How the daily environment adults create becomes part of what students carry into the rest of their lives.

  • Back When Consequences Weren’t Optional

    Helping young people develop responsibility and resilience without confusing support with rescue.

  • Teaching Should Feel More Like Coaching

    Using relationships, clear expectations, feedback, practice, and accountability to improve learning.

  • Culture Before Curriculum

    Creating the classroom environment that allows teaching and learning to work.

  • Routines, Relationships & Responsibility

    Practical strategies for classrooms where students know what to do, know they matter, and understand that their choices count.

  • Resilience Before Rescue for Educators

    Supporting students while still allowing them to struggle, solve problems, and develop independence.

Best for Teachers and classified staff · Whole-staff PD and back-to-school days · Coaches and athletic departments · Parent nights and parent groups

Themes Culture · Student accountability · Teacher-student relationships · Resilience · Classroom expectations · School climate · Parent-school relationships · Leadership development

Matt Harr presenting the three pillars of culture to school educators and staff
“Matt Harr consistently built programs centered on accountability, relationships, and high standards. His ability to connect through real stories and a touch of humor made his message resonate with both students and staff. The culture he created had a lasting impact on our school and community.”
Portrait of Bill Hicks Bill Hicks Superintendent, Hagerman School District, Hagerman, Idaho
QR code for a video of Matt Harr speaking Watch Matt speak School culture, relationships, and expectations

Matt Harr · For K-12 schools & districts3

2 of 3 · For school & district leaders

School Leadership

Build cultures where people take ownership, communicate honestly, and lead regardless of title.

Sound familiar?

Everyone works hard, just not in the same direction.

Expectations change from room to room, and students notice.

Talks

  • When No One’s Watching

    Leadership, accountability, and the choices that matter most when nobody is checking.

  • Strong Cultures Don’t Wait for Leaders

    Everyone influences culture regardless of title.

  • Toughness Isn’t Toxic

    Building people who can handle pressure, difficult conversations, and adversity without losing empathy or perspective.

  • Alignment, Accountability & Relationships

    The three leadership principles Matt believes every strong school needs.

  • The Culture You Tolerate

    Repeated exceptions eventually become the culture.

  • Leading Through Initiative Fatigue

    Helping schools simplify priorities and protect the work that matters.

  • Difficult Conversations

    Addressing performance, behavior, conflict, and expectations clearly and professionally.

Best for Principals and building leaders · Superintendents and district leadership teams · School boards · Athletic directors and coaches · Administrator and school board associations

Themes Leadership · Organizational culture · Accountability · Team building · Communication · Relationships · Handling conflict · Ownership · Performance under pressure

“Our Idaho Athletic Administrators Association conference was privileged to host Matt Harr, whose presentation was both highly informative and thoroughly engaging. He brought clarity to complex coaching topics and offered practical strategies athletic administrators could apply immediately, and did so with humor that kept the room genuinely attentive. Attendees left better equipped and inspired to uplevel their programs. I would highly recommend Matt to present at any conference.”
Portrait of Cass Herbst, CMAA Cass Herbst, CMAA Professional Development Coordinator, Idaho Athletic Administrators Association
QR code for Matt Harr's interview on The Eduleadership Show Listen Matt on The Eduleadership Show with Dr. Justin Baeder

Matt Harr · For K-12 schools & districts4

3 of 3 · For kickoffs, conventions & students

Motivation & Resilience

Real stories of adversity, responsibility, and making the next choice when life doesn’t go according to plan.

Sound familiar?

Teachers start the year lit up and run out of gas by January.

Every new initiative spends energy that belongs to students.

Signature keynote

From a 10% Chance of Survival to a Different Life

Matt became critically ill and spent about three weeks in intensive care at the University of Utah. Multiple organs were shutting down, and he was given roughly a 10% chance of surviving. Surviving was only part of the story. Afterward he had to change the way he approached his health, his priorities, and his life.

A personal keynote about perspective, adversity, gratitude, personal responsibility, and what we do after life forces us to reevaluate everything.

More talks

  • Own the Next Choice

    You can’t always control what happened. You can control what you choose next.

  • Resilience Before Rescue

    Adversity and struggle can develop capability when we learn how to respond instead of immediately looking for escape.

When No One’s Watching and Toughness Isn’t Toxic also work as motivational keynotes.

Best for Back-to-school kickoffs and convocations · Education conventions and conferences · Student assemblies · Athletic programs and banquets

Themes Resilience · Adversity · Personal responsibility · Perspective · Motivation · Handling setbacks · Mental toughness · Leadership · Making the next choice

“Matt really set the tone for our school year. We are a smaller school district, and he was able to reach all levels from Kindergarten through Secondary. His message of relationships and expectations in the classroom is something that every teacher needs to hear. He was the perfect person to get our staff fired up to start teaching after a summer break.”
Portrait of Ty Jones Ty Jones Superintendent, Valley School District, Eden, Idaho
QR code for Matt Harr's writing on resilience Read Matt’s stories on resilience, pressure, and setbacks

Matt Harr · For K-12 schools & districts5

Formats & specialist support

“Rather than asking your staff to fit my workshop, I build the workshop to fit your staff.”

Matt Harr

Formats

  • Workshop

    Half-day to multi-day

    Practical, interactive working sessions for staff, administrators, or coaches.

  • Keynote

    45–75 minutes

    District PD days, leadership days, and conferences.

  • Motivational keynote

    30–60 minutes

    Back-to-school kickoffs, education conventions, and athletic banquets.

  • Student assembly

    Single session or series

    Resilience, responsibility, teamwork, and the small decisions that shape reputation and opportunity.

Customized programs + specialist support

Every program is built around your staff, and Matt leads every one. For full-day and multi-day work, specialists are available in three areas:

  • Leadership & team building

    For leadership teams and whole staffs that need to pull in the same direction.

  • AI in education

    For hands-on AI training, teacher productivity, and practical classroom use.

  • Trust & discipline

    For building trust between adults and students, and discipline that holds steady from room to room.

How it works

  1. 1

    Start with one question

    When your people walk out of the room, what should they be thinking, feeling, or doing differently?

  2. 2

    Matt builds the session

    Stories, examples, and takeaways shaped around your answer and your staff.

  3. 3

    Add support if you need it

    Specialists join full-day and multi-day programs when they make the work stronger.

Matt Harr · For K-12 schools & districts6

Portrait of Matt Harr from the Lighthouse Christian School coaching staff

Meet Matt

Thirty-five years inside schools, teams, and hard decisions.

Matt Harr is a teacher, coach, and author based in Twin Falls, Idaho. For more than 35 years he built classrooms and teams where high standards and real relationships work together, coaching four generations of students along the way.

Almost all of his presentations are built the same way: real stories followed by practical takeaways people can use the next day.

  • 35+ years in education and coaching
  • 400+ career basketball wins
  • 6 state championships in basketball and baseball
  • 15 state tournament appearances
  • 7x State Coach of the Year
  • 1989 San Francisco Giants draft pick

Background

  • College All-American second baseman
  • Author of Back When Consequences Weren’t Optional
  • About 25 years teaching online
  • Behavior intervention experience
Matt Harr talking to the Twin Falls boys basketball team during practice in 2012
A baseball dugout bench with a glove, ball, and bat overlooking the field at sunset
Cover of Back When Consequences Weren't Optional by Matt Harr

The book

Back When Consequences Weren’t Optional

A coach’s journey through sports, teaching, and raising resilient young people, told with the same humor, honesty, and practical lessons Matt brings to the stage.

QR code for Matt Harr's book on Amazon Find it on Amazon

Matt Harr · For K-12 schools & districts7

In their words

How educators talk about Matt

“Coach Harr was an exceptional teacher and coach in our district who dedicated his life to serving students. Through his passion, mentorship, and unwavering commitment, he impacted countless young people and built a legacy that extends far beyond wins and championships. His influence will continue to be felt for years to come, and I am incredibly grateful for the positive difference he made in the lives of so many students and student-athletes.”
Portrait of Dr. Brady D. Dickinson, Ph.D Dr. Brady D. Dickinson, Ph.D Superintendent of Schools, Twin Falls School District #411
“Matt has a rare ability to balance high expectations with genuine care for people. His storytelling and humor make the message memorable and useful.”
Portrait of Michael Van Loon Michael Van Loon Math Teacher & Assistant Coach, Lighthouse Christian School

Heard on & presented at

  • The Eduleadership ShowInterview with Dr. Justin Baeder, 2026
  • Idaho Athletic Administrators Association ConferenceBoise, 2026

Start the conversation.

Call, text, or email Matt about your next PD day, kickoff, or workshop. Tell him what you want your people thinking, feeling, or doing differently, and he will build the session around your answer.

Matt Harr logo

Matt Harr

Motivational & School Culture Speaker

Call or text

208-308-8391
matt@mattharrspeaker.com mattharrspeaker.com

Based in Twin Falls, Idaho · Travels nationwide

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