Jeff Decker never planned to become head of school at Gatewood in Eatonton.
In fact, because he was more comfortable on the sidelines of a football field, Decker said he never intended to lead from the front office of any school.
But after joining Gatewood in 2013 as an assistant to then-Head of School Chris Charles, Decker took over in 2017 and led the now 450-student-strong private school to renewed prosperity, presence, and stability.
However, the 40-year private education veteran will retire at the end of this school year. After four decades as an educator and nine years as Gatewood’s headmaster, Decker said he feels it’s time to step away from a career he has loved.
“Nine years is a long tenure for a head of school,” he pointed out. “I’ve heard the average is something like four years. I’ve also seen people stay too long, and I don’t want to be that guy.”
Starting this summer, Decker said he plans to split his time between Lake Country, Atlanta, and the North Georgia mountains, all while hoping to improve his golf game. He also intends to travel with his wife, Margaret, a successful local real estate agent, and to spend plenty of time with the rest of his family.
“I’ve done what I wanted to do here,” Decker said of his 13 years at Gatewood. “I’m proud of the people I’ve hired and promoted; I’m proud of the changes and improvements we’ve made; and I’m grateful to our board of directors for its loyal support.”
Born and raised in Brookhaven, a North Atlanta suburb, Decker attended St. Pius High School before being recruited to play football at East Tennessee State.
“I was probably the smallest linebacker in the conference,” he recalled with a laugh. “I think I weighed 190 pounds. I was just fast enough to keep from getting killed.”
Decker eventually returned to Atlanta to finish a journalism degree, a background that later served him well in the classroom.
He recalled his professor, George Griff, “always found something wrong with everything I wrote. But I learned more about writing from him than anyone else in my life."
Upon graduating, Decker worked several years for an Atlanta freight company, but said he always knew it would not be his “forever” job. When a friend suggested he help coach a local football team, that’s when everything changed.
“It was an epiphany for me. I knew that very day I was supposed to work with kids," he said.
So, in 1988, Decker joined the staff at Marist School in Atlanta and spent the next 25 years there, coaching football and teaching English.
“I’m still friends with all the coaches and still in touch with lots of former players, manynow in their 40s and 50s,” Decker said.
He jokingly added his claim to fame lies with former Marist student Sean McVay, who led the school to the 2003 state championship. McVay is now a Super Bowl-winning head coach with the Los Angeles Rams.
Gatewood entered Decker’s life almost by accident. He and his wife bought a Lake Sinclair home in 1999 and split their time between lake living and the big city. In 2013, Charles reached out to Decker and eventually offered him the job of assistant headmaster at Gatewood.
Decker worked with Charles until his retirement four years later.
“Chris was great to work with,” Decker recalled. “Whenever I made suggestions or recommendations, he was always open-minded and always wanted what wasbest for the school.”
Current Gatewood Development Director Tracy Stickley said that when Decker took over in 2018, the school was still recovering from the 2008 recession.
“Chris Charles became head of school in 2011, and he excelled at tightening our resources and refining our identity,” Stickley said. “He restored the Christian community, chapel, and Bible classes.
“Jeff was focused on improvements and expansion,” she continued. “One of our families approached him early in his first year about renovating the football stadium, and as it turned out, that project became the first of many major campus improvements he led.”
Gatewood opened a new gym in 2019, renovated the existing classroom buildings, and most recently opened a new high school building in August 2024, totaling 40,000 square feet of new construction. All of Gatewood’s athletic facilities have been renovated, and all temporary buildings that used to be classrooms have been removed.
“New buildings are great, and we are all proud of the changes to our campus, but at the end of the day, it’s all about the kids,” Decker stressed during a recent interview. “That’s where our teachers, coaches, administrators, and even board members come into play. We want to give our kids the very best.”
As for what comes next, Decker said he’s leaving the door wide open.
“If something interesting came along with some flexibility, I’d consider it,” he said. “But right now, I’m just ready to move on and take it easy.”