Leadership Matters Summer 2015

escalator. Some kids are born in situations where you know it’s work and they go ‘Oh, there’s a staircase’ to get to the next level. Some kids are born where there’s nothing, there’s no connection, no route to that other place. The college-going gene isn’t only in “She was really a thoughtful and wonderful person who listened to the things that were on my mind. She said, ‘Tony, remember how you helped your teammates? I don’t know why you don’t see this: You’re an educator.’

--Smith returned to Cal after injuries ended his NFL dreams. He credits the head of Cal’s Athletic Studies center, Jo Baker, with helping him find his career path as an educator.

those kids that are born where there’s an escalator. It’s in our communities’, our state’s and our country’s best interest to educate all of our children well. And when we don’t, shame on us. So that’s the thing that drives me.” Before Governor Bruce Rauner and the Illinois State Board of Education tapped Smith to become State Superintendent, Smith had served four years as superintendent of the Oakland Unified School District in California. He previously had been superintendent in Emeryville (California) and deputy superintendent in San Francisco. His wife, Kathleen, is a native of Oak Park and two years ago they moved back to the Chicago suburbs because of her father’s illness. Smith became the executive director of the W. Clement and Jessie V. Stone Foundation, which gives millions to support children’s development and education. Asked why he would take on the job of schools chief in Illinois -- where the budget deficit is among the largest in the nation, the school funding formula is outdated and the political infighting is legendary -- Smith reflected for a moment before answering. When he spoke it was about the state’s potential, but also maybe about his personal competitiveness when it comes to tackling a really good challenge. “The core reason I said yes when I was approached by (ISBE) Chairman (James) Meeks is that there is an incredible opportunity to serve in the moment that we’re in and to help figure out how to support school districts in meeting the needs of so

many different parts of their communities. It’s an incredible diversity of needs and districts are stretched. Figuring out how to be a good support and service organization for those districts is important to me. “There are some really extraordinary leaders, amazing practices and some phenomenal programs in Illinois. I mean we are leading the country in some early childhood work, some community development work and engagement with youth. The work that Illinois has taken up around Common Core and the new Illinois Learning Standards also puts us in a position to support children and families for the world that’s coming. So there’s much to build on.” Smith’s career path to becoming the schools chief in the fifth largest state in the nation not only defied the odds, but also his own boyhood plans to play in the NFL – ambitions that almost were realized but for a series of injuries. He was named the Most Improved Lineman at Cal in 1987 and in 1989 was named the Golden Bears’ Most Valuable Lineman and Most Outstanding Senior. He signed with the Green Bay Packers, but suffered a shoulder injury that required surgery. Later, he was traded to the San Francisco 49ers, but suffered other injuries. After three surgeries in 14 months, the finality that his NFL dream was over hit Smith hard, a feeling he once described as “vertigo.”

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