A court of appeal has issued its ruling, and Will Smith—Santa Maria mayoral candidate and former Santa Maria-Bonita School District board member—won't be seeing the return of his revoked teaching credential.
Smith, who conceded the mayoral seat to incumbent Alice Patino in November's election, lost his teaching credential in 2009 after four years of work at Santa Maria-Bonita schools. The California Commission on Teacher Credentialing later reconsidered the ruling upon Smith's request, but maintained its decision.
Smith then brought the matter to a trial court, which judged that he was "temperamentally unsuited to continue teaching in public schools" and had "a pattern of escalating every point of conflict, carrying grudges forward, and perceiving every setback as the result of a widening war against him."
Smith appealed that judgment, and on Dec. 7, an appellant court made its decision.
"We conclude that substantial evidence supports the court's findings and that Smith has failed to demonstrate any due process violations," the court opinion stated. "Accordingly, we affirm."
In an email to the Sun, Smith declined to comment on the court's decision.
Education was a major component of Smith's platform during his mayoral campaign. In a previous interview, Smith told the Sun that if elected mayor, he would prioritize the quality of local schools.
"I'm concerned about the quality of education that our students are getting in the city," he said. "The city is responsible to ensure their citizens are getting the best, and I believe that in collaboration with the city and the City Council and everyone involved, we can enhance the community and make this a greater town."
But Patino ended up winning the mayoral race, taking 72 percent of the vote to Smith's 27 percent.
Smith's previous faux pas in the education world—including receiving eight suspensions in nine months from teaching at El Camino Junior High School—followed him through his campaign, even convincing him at one point not to speak with local news outlets.
"I've made a pact with myself that I'm not really speaking with the news agencies here in Santa Maria, because they have distorted the truth," Smith said in his first interview with the Sun after launching his campaign.
The offenses that led to Smith losing his credential, as cited by Administrative Law Judge Mark Harman, included verbal and emotional abuse of students and colleagues, refusal to make changes in his classroom or improve his teaching skills, and continually threatening his superiors with legal charges in a disruptive manner—"all to the detriment of students and teachers."
The court opinion also listed the reasons for Smith's suspensions from El Camino between June 6, 2008, and Feb. 20, 2009. They included trespassing, making threatening statements and gestures, interfering with police investigations, repeated insubordination and dishonesty, attempted extortion, and misuse of the school's laptop computer.
Smith also requested that the school district give false information about his pay to a home loan lender, according to the court opinion. He was on unpaid suspension at the time, and asked the district to provide his lender with pay stubs reflecting what he would have been paid if he was still actively employed. District personnel clerk Christine Arebalo refused.
Smith thereafter emailed the district, saying that if he lost his home purchase because of their "unwillingness to make concessions," he would "use all legal remedies available."
Still, the court opinion stated that the most damaging allegations against Smith came from student interactions. For example, the opinion cited trial court reports that Smith would spit on the food he confiscated from students.
"Mr. Smith admitted that he sometimes spit on food he had thrown in the trash in order to prevent the students from retrieving it," the trial court noted.
Another student testified that Smith claimed his previous work at a prison meant he could get misbehaving students locked up in jail.
"Indeed, the record overwhelmingly supports the commission's decision to revoke his teaching credential," the appellant court concluded. "We have considered Smith's arguments to the contrary and find them unpersuasive."
School Scene was compiled by Staff Writer Brenna Swanston. Contact her at [email protected].
