After living here, working here and soaking in all things Morgan
Hill, Superintendent Dr. Wesley Smith boiled down his first year as
Morgan Hill Unified School District’s leader boiled down to two
words: a whirlwind.
After living here, working here and soaking in all things Morgan Hill, Superintendent Dr. Wesley Smith boiled down his first year as Morgan Hill Unified School District’s leader boiled down to two words: a whirlwind.
“Things have happened at a rapid pace,” Smith, 41, said. The height of hectic came May 5 when Live Oak High School made national headlines after four students were asked to go home because they wore red, white and blue on Cinco de Mayo. Their dress was called “incendiary” by the Live Oak administrators who sent him home.
Then, came the unearthing of problems at Jackson Elementary School, which faced Program Improvement year five and 18 separate accusations against its ex-principal Garry Dudley, who resigned in September. Eleven of the formal complaints were found to have some merit after investigation by the district office.
“He’s done a pretty spectacular job, especially the stuff he had to deal with. He stepped up and met those challenges,” school board Trustee Don Moody said. Following the Cinco de Mayo incident, Smith held a press conference that was picked up by every major Bay Area TV news station that made it clear the district did not condone the decision to send the students home for wearing red, white and blue. Smith was most pleased that students were kept safe when more than 100 walked out of Live Oak High School to protest through downtown. A police caravan escorted them through town. He and former police chief Bruce Cumming developed a fast friendship and he credits their safety to the police force’s willingness to work together and protect the students.
Despite the heavy load Smith has taken on since Nov. 16, 2009, he’s kept his goal of communication and collaboration consistent.
“Relationships are a two-way street, but they’re going stronger than I had hoped,” Smith said. In his first 90 days on the job, Smith created a list of more than 20 goals for himself, titled “Relationships, Relationships, Relationships.” After the 90 days, he had completed them all. He met with dozens of community groups, visited every school site and every classroom at the district’s 16 schools that teaches 9,200 students.
“He’s really active in the community and that’s something people really notice. I hear that all the time. They see him, he’s accessible,” school board Trustee Kathy Sullivan said.
Though his yearly evaluation has not been completed by the board of trustees, its completion is expected before the end of the year. The school board’s goals are identical to Smith’s: a detailed list seven pages long that includes five goals of student achievement, employing highly qualified and dedicated employees, responsible financial practices, safe, healthy and sustainable environment and partnership through communication.
Smith, along his wife and three children who attend MHUSD schools, came to MHUSD from Cascade Union Elementary School District in Anderson, a small town south of Redding, where he was superintendent. Some community members took issue with the smaller size of Cascade Union (five schools) and that a more ethnically diverse candidate was not chosen.
Julian Mancias, a member of the Coalition for Latino Education Achievement Defense, said the Latino community would like to see school leaders who reflect the student population more closely. More than 50 percent of MHUSD’s student population are white and 41 percent of the student population are Hispanic; every other ethnic population total fewer than 5 percent combined.
“It’s not enough, the three that we do have,” Mancias said about the three principals who are non-white. “They all want quality people from what I’m hearing. First thing they tell me. We don’t want to hire a Latino just hire a Latino. Of course. We expect them to have the academic credentials, the traits to lead a school in Morgan Hill.”
When Smith arrived, MHUSD had entered PI year one because of how many schools in the district are also in PI. This spring’s test results moved MHUSD into PI year two, with English language learners falling further behind. Smith said he’s working to “help kids who need the most help;” and that his goals for the district reflect that end. Before Smith, the superintendent was Dr. Alan Nishino, 64, who was criticized as a divisive, unapproachable leader by parents and teachers. He retired in 2008 after four years on the job.
Following Nishino’s retirement, a 41-page report compiled by 40 community groups detailed what was wanted in the district’s new leader. A theme of collaboration and better communication were the centerpiece of what they were seeking.
“His leadership is a big reason I sought re-election. I like the direction and he’s a big part of that,” Moody said. “One of our goals is hiring highly-qualified, dedicated employees. He has gone a long way to making the district employees feel like they’re part of the whole education process.”
After several years of decreasing state test scores, this year, every school improved except for Jackson Elementary. After Dudley resigned, Smith hired an interim principal, a PI consultant and two other longtime educators to work with Jackson on improving its test scores and out of PI.
Smith said the increase isn’t because of him, but it’s an outstanding sign of how capable the district’s students are.
“From what I hear, a lot of people are pleased with what he’s done the first year,” Mancias said. “You really cannot give him credit for the increase on test scores throughout the district because he came in when all those things were already in motion. If they go up again, sure. But, he has done a good job of communicating with the unions … and with the community. That was one of the criteria, someone who would reach out and get input from everyone.”
It’s Smith’s communication skills that are often referred to as a welcomed change.
“Speaking and listening. He’s good at both. I like that he’s asking for input, that’s a real plus for me. He’s exceeding my expectations … His old district and ours were really quite different … but no (concerns) have been found,” Moody said.
Since Smith has stepped into the job, the district has avoided any major layoffs and instead offered an early retirement incentive; hired several key leadership positions, including three new principals; initiated collective bargaining training (not done in about 30 years); started a new teacher evaluation system and a local assessment system to monitor student progress.
To close a $2.8 million deficit, the district did increase class sizes in kindergarten through third-grade classrooms this year to 24 students to one teacher. Initial predictions describe a similar budget deficit for MHUSD this year with the possibility for another class-size increase.
A Student Achievement Leadership Team was conceived by Smith and Assistant Superintendent Socorro Shiels, whom he hired earlier this year, that joins about 60 MHUSD stakeholders to discuss student achievement.
This year, collaboration time for teachers has been built into the schedules at Sobrato and Live Oak high schools and the district office is seeking bilingual liaisons for school front offices to bridge the language barriers found between Hispanic parents and employees.
The Morgan Hill Federation of Teachers’ president Theresa Sage said the union’s relationship with Smith is the best it’s ever been.
“What we know is that leadership by polarization doesn’t work. Taking sides, we’ve never seen that work,” Smith said. “I’m concerned about my employees and making sure we have good teachers in our classrooms.”
Before becoming superintendent, Smith taught English, Spanish and leadership at Anderson High School for three years. While there, he got his first taste in administration as director of student activities and also coached football and baseball. Smith then spent six years as principal at Anderson Middle School, then promoted to assistant superintendent under John Almond, who spent the bulk of his career in Morgan Hill. Almond was principal of Live Oak High School for six years before moving north.
As Smith takes on year two at MHUSD, he’s working on focused, mananagble goals that will need some time before change can occur. Though, Smith is always thinking, always working.
“I’m responsible for the safety of 9,000 students. I have to make sure they get a solid education, make sure they’re good citizens,” Smith said.
