As the clock ticks to 8:15, students rush to their first-period classes. Some students go down the 800s and notice a teacher holding a coffee cup in hand along with a smile on his face. He greets the students with happiness and passion and wishes them a good day. You may be wondering who this teacher is. Well, that happy teacher is Mr. Smith, a Dowling alum and a wonderful teacher! But there is just more to him than being a teacher… Slide with me to see what drives Mr. Smith to succeed in and out of the classroom.
Mr. Smith was born on November 3rd, 1977, in Des Moines at Lutheran Hospital to his affectionate parents, Craig and Becky Smith. He has an older brother, Michael, a younger brother, Luke, and three younger sisters, Nina, Nickki, and Natalie.
(Courtesy of Mr. Smith)
Mr. Smith started his early education at Sacred Heart from kindergarten to 8th grade and enjoyed his time there. He later attended Dowling and graduated from here in 1996! During high school, he was in the Soda Squad, a group committed to not drinking. He was also a Varsity wrestler and loved the sport a lot. One teacher Mr. Smith remembers having is Mr. Baedke; he taught Mr. Smith science and has been teaching here for a long time.
After graduating from high school, he went to the University of Northern Iowa and graduated with a sociology and criminology degree because he originally wanted to be a cop. He opted out of becoming a police officer because he wanted a family in the future and wanted to take care of his mental health. Mr. Smith was also in a fraternity, Kappa Sigma, and he became involved in many service organizations. He was involved with Habitat for Humanity and Special Olympics, and he felt that helping others was his calling. In his fraternity, the core expectation was service and helping others when you can. Mr. Smith graduated from UNI in 2002, and from there, he began his journey.
Mr. Smith started his career at Catholic Youth Camp and was focused a lot on youth ministry. He helped with a retreat called T.E.C (Teens Encounter Christ) and enjoyed it a lot. After that stint, he got a job at St. Johns in Adel as a youth minister and also got another job at Cornerstone Recovery, working with high school kids who had mental and substance issues. It was essentially a dual diagnosis facility, and he learned to help comfort kids who dealt with trauma and issues. After spending a year in both occupations, he was an intern at St. Thomas More Center for two years and was on staff there. He worked with retreats and helped with other programs going on throughout the year.
After spending time in Iowa, he later got a job in Dana Point, California, as a youth minister for a year. He planned everything for high school kids and worked with a parish out there. There, Mr. Smith found his love for Liverpool F.C. and has been following them ever since. Eventually, he moved back to Des Moines because of family and wanting to be closer to them. He eventually got a job at an insurance company and worked there for three years. After all those endeavors, he eventually went back to school and attended Creighton, where he got his master’s degree in ministry. During that time, he was talking with Dowling about a possible job offer and knew he wanted to work with high school students and have a family.
Mr. Smith came here to Dowling in 2010 and taught freshman religion, and a class called Christology. He started as a cart teacher but eventually graduated to having his own room, room 101. Later, he moved to room 800 permanently and has been teaching religion classes like Old and New Testament, Apologetics, Morality, and Social Justice ever since. On top of teaching, he works a lot with Campus Ministry and leads Terra Livre, Kairos retreats, and the Guatemala service trip. An impact he has gotten from Dowling is the joy from working on service trips and working with the freshman class. Mr. Clark, one of his colleagues, has been his best friend since high school, and they love working with each other. His coworkers, Mr. Metz and Mrs. Thierer, work a lot with Mr. Smith to ensure that they are all on the same page during the school year. He also enjoys doing retreats with Mrs. Sheaff, and painting houses with Mr. O’Niel as well!
Alright, here are the fun facts about Mr. Smith we have all been wondering about!
- Loves the Chicago Cubs
- Loves chips n’ salsa, Crab Rangoons, Dumplings
- Niel Diamond is his favorite artist
- Got hit by a car in fifth grade
- Favorite movie is The Goonies
- Played on an adult league softball team with Mr. Spike
“Always honor the dignity of the other person.”
That is what Mr. Smith said as a piece of advice to the readers. It ties back to the golden rule and he believes the world needs more disciples. He believes that people must focus on others rather than themselves because it will help make our world a better place. Mr. Smith doesn’t want our society to be selfish and understands that helping others will make our way of life better.
(Courtesy of Mr. Smith)
Family is so important to Mr. Smith believes it’s where you can find a lot of euphoria. He has been married to his wife, Lisa, for 10 years. She teaches at St. Augustine and also coaches the Girls’ JV basketball team at Dowling. Together, they have three kids: Brooklyn (8), Kyle (6), and Wyatt (4). An impact he has received is that his wife is always there for him and will always be there for him. His kids also encourage him to become a better person as he becomes a better dad. He wants to create a life for his kids where they have all they need and also maintain a strong relationship with Christ.
My personal experience with Mr. Smith was when I had him for class freshman year. He was the first teacher who left a huge impact on me, both in and out of the classroom. Mr. Smith possesses charisma and passion I’ve never seen before and is willing to go above and beyond for his students. He also enjoys keeping up with the times and learning new things, from slang to the latest trends. I can’t thank Mr. Smith enough for what he has done, and I know he will make the same impact on other students down the road.
“Seek to be a part of something.” That was Mr. Smith’s concluding quote to me and readers alike. His reasoning behind it is that we must be humble and be a part of something where we can find our answers in life. If you ever see Mr. Smith in the halls, never hesitate to say hi or strike up a conversation because I can assure you that he is one of the most friendly and passionate people I have ever met.
