Ruston Pierce is the Head of School at highly regarded Mount Pisgah Christian School just outside of Atlanta, Georgia. He was hired at Mount Pisgah in January of 2017. Ruston has created an innovative leadership development program for his staff. The RISE (Reach, Inspire, Serve, Equip) program accepts only a limited number of staff per year. Staff members have to complete an application process with the goal of finding the right staff members each year to go through the program. The program helps staff members develop their leadership skills so that they can be better in their current positions but also be more prepared for future advancement opportunities. Before coming to Mount Pisgah, Ruston spent time as the Head of School at Concord Christian School in Knoxville, TN. Concord Christian was recognized as the fastest growing private school in the city, moving from 11th to a 2nd overall ranking among private schools in Knoxville over a 3-year span as ranked by the Knoxville Business Journal. During his tenure, the school completed a strategic marketing plan, successfully renewed dual accreditation, initiated a recent capital campaign, expanded marketing and social media plans while doubling enrollment to approximately 1,200 students across all divisions. Ruston also served as the Director of Dual Enrollment at Bryan College, Director of Development and Assistant Principal at Grace Baptist Academy, Dean of Student Affairs at Silverdale Baptist Academy and as a member of the Young Life staff.
In today’s episode, we discuss:
- Building a winning team of faculty and staff members
- How he helped build his school’s incredible social media following
- His innovative leadership development and mentorship program for his faculty and staff