Mount Paran Christian School (MPCS), a private Christian school in Cobb County, is pleased to announce Kevin Smith as the school’s new Chief Financial Officer, beginning June 1, 2024.
An internal search committee identified Smith as the sole finalist for the CFO role after recognizing that his extensive financial and IT experience, coupled with his strong Christian faith, would be the best fit for the school’s community.
Smith’s vast experience as a senior finance, procurement, and IT executive includes 22 years spent with Home Depot, where he led teams as large as 1,000 associates. Smith also spent more than a decade as CFO in the private equity sector and has managed multi-billion-dollar, multi-site operations. As an operationally focused CFO with a history of responsibility for all aspects of finance/accounting and procurement, Smith is well-versed in managing cross-functional relationships in complex matrix organizations. As an accounting major, Smith earned a Bachelor of Business Administration degree from Kennesaw State University.
Smith and his wife have three children and are alumni parents, as their youngest son Matthew is a 2013 MPCS graduate. The couple attends Burnt Hickory Baptist Church, where Smith has taught second grade Sunday School for more than a decade.
The appointment of Smith to the CFO role replaces retiring CFO Julie Ray, a steadfast and faith-filled leader within the MPCS community for the past 20 years. Highly regarded nationally as a strong business leader in independent school education, Ray served as Board President of MISBO and has presented numerous online and in-person training sessions. Her accomplishments in this position have been innumerable.
About: Mount Paran Christian School, the largest private Christian school in Cobb County, is a non-denominational, college-preparatory school for students in preschool age three through grade 12. MPCS is committed to excellence in academics, award-winning arts, and championship athletics, all within a Christian environment with small class sizes. Founded in 1976, MPCS is fully accredited (SAIS/Cognia) and located near Kennesaw Mountain on a 68-acre collegiate-like campus. Providing academic excellence in a Christ-centered environment, MPCS unites with home and church to prepare servant-leaders to honor God, love others, and walk in Truth.
