LITTLETON, Colo. — As the principal of Ute Meadows Elementary School in Littleton, Dr. Rick Brewer starts his day with something a little stronger than coffee.
“Your first interaction with the kids, that’s what makes it for me," said Brewer, who was enjoying his 117th day as a first-time principal. "[As] soon as I get that first 'what’s up' or 'hello' from my students, that makes it a great day.”
Fifteen years after he captained the Colorado State football team, Brewer's latest adventure isn't all that dissimilar to playing linebacker for the Rams.
"You're on defense, that's for sure," he said with a laugh.
Staying present through countless meetings, guiding Ute Meadows into the future, and managing students, parents, and staff. The responsibilities of an elementary school principal can be pretty prickly.
“There’s a term of like hugging the cactus," said Brewer. "As a principal, you gotta get really comfortable. I decided to wear long sleeves.”
Skills that made him a tenacious linebacker now push Brewer to be an engaged administrator.
“The biggest thing is what do you do when you miss the tackle?" he said. "Do you jog off the field and say you don’t want to play anymore, or do you strap back up and say, 'Alright, next play.'”
“I spend time in the classroom, I do some of the work with the students, I have one-on-one conversations a lot to find out how kids are doing. I take all of that information and try to build a picture for what our students are going through, and that helps guide the flow of the building," Brewer continued.
During the freezing winter months, some schools choose to do indoor recess, which ends up being a chance for kids to stare at a computer screen. Brewer saw a greater opportunity in the hallways of Ute Meadows.
“I took a risk," he said. "[I] made an executive decision to open up the hallways [for play]. Initially, it came from the idea of that’s what I enjoyed. The more I dug into the research, [it showed] the active body builds a sound mind. So I wanted to really reverse a few of those trends that we see coming from this screen-based age.”
Fueled by a strong belief that happy and engaged students make for a happy and productive school, Brewer is flourishing as both a principal and a leader.
“Leadership comes with a microscope no matter how you look at it," he said. "Follow your passion, be consistent with what you do, and the rest will fall into place.”
Someday, he hopes to apply his influence at his alma mater.
"President of CSU, that's my goal," said Brewer.
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