Hailing from TIDE Academy, M-A’s new administrative vice principal, Tina Smith, has made a notable impression on the District, even before settling into her position. While teaching AP Biology at Carlmont, she implemented biotechnology programs throughout the District, pioneered the Biotechnology Institute within Carlmont, and launched three AP science classes at Carlmont.
Smith attended Aragon High School in San Mateo, where she played soccer, tennis, and softball. She eventually committed to UC Davis to play Division I soccer. “There was never a time during the school year that I wasn’t playing sports,” Smith said.
Throughout high school and college, Smith interned for San Mateo County as a Wildlife Vet Assistant. “I loved helping and saving animals, but it still haunts me to this day the things that people have done to animals,” she said.
In her junior year of college, Smith decided to pivot from her veterinary focus to pediatric psychology. Because the field required some prior experience, she took a job as a biology teacher at Carlmont after graduating. Although she planned to do it for just one year, Smith quickly developed a passion for teaching. “I got the job at Carlmont, and as soon as I started, I knew it was for me. I loved it,” she said.
After her first year teaching, Smith obtained her masters in education and her National Board Certification from Stanford. “I wanted to focus on becoming a better educator.”
While teaching AP Biology at Carlmont, Smith surveyed her students at the end of each year to gauge opinions on the class. “What they really said was that they loved the biotech unit,” Smith said.
During this time, Smith also began seeing local news publications chiding local high schools for lacking biotechnology programs—at the time, biotechnology was emerging as one of the most lucrative industries in the Bay Area. Prompted by positive reception to the biotech unit and such criticisms toward local schools, Smith decided to create a program of her own.
“Mercury News had just put out a big front page article claiming that high schools in our area weren’t preparing students for the ‘biggest job at the time,’ biotech,” Smith said.
“I wanted to help students build their lab skills for college or go straight into industry,” Smith said. After a successful pitch to the Carlmont principal, Smith instituted a biotechnology class at Carlmont.
After years of substantial enrollment and active participation in the biotechnology class, Smith developed it into a biotechnology-oriented institute within Carlmont, where students were placed into cohorts that took classes together.
Following the success of Carlmont’s Biotechnology Institute, Smith began working alongside the state to launch biotech programs in schools across California, all while continuing to teach at Carlmont. “They called me ‘a demonstration site.’ I would go and help other schools,” Smith said.
After implementing biotech programs throughout the state, Smith became Career and Technical Education Coordinator at the San Mateo District Office of Education in 2018. “So many people think CTE is fruitless, but it’s not—it’s skills that you need in industry.”
After working at the District Office for two years, Smith longed to work on a campus again. “The hum of being on a school campus is different from being in a district office, and I realized it’s not my thing,” Smith said.
Following her work at the District Office, Smith helped open TIDE Academy in 2019, where she became Vice Principal for four years.
M-A is Smith’s next pursuit after working for TIDE. She will focus on CTE and Visual and Performing Arts programs at M-A. Smith will also oversee athletics, facilities, and transportation at M-A. She will center her attention on 11th and 12th graders.
When she’s not on campus, Smith spends her time outdoors and with family. “I’m a super proud science geek. I like learning about nature and I hike a lot,” she said. Smith also has two sons. “Both of my kids are hitting the age where they’re starting to make club teams. We have club soccer, club basketball, club swimming and club baseball going—there are a lot of sports in my family.”
Smith intends on assisting M-A students in every way she can. “I really love being an educator, and I know that M-A has a very strong community, so I’m excited about integrating myself into that community and seeing how I can help,” Smith said. “I am also a very positive person, and I want to see how I can help students learn, grow, and become the best versions of themselves.”
