After nearly a 35 year career in education, I retired as the Superintendent of Schools in January 2020. While in the role as superintendent, I sat on two national committees, ERDI and C21 and also was an adjunct professor for Gonzaga University. I now work as a leadership consultant supporting the work of school boards, system and school leaders.
Chris Smeaton
Author's posts
Aug 31
From the Desk of the Superintendent- Opening Message to Staff
Today in my opening comments I want to speak only about faith, not innovation or creativity, not common assessments or transformation. There will be other times for that but right now… simply faith. The reason I want to focus on faith is that it is our mission… that is what makes us unique. All school …
Jul 12
Leadership is not about pleasing everyone!
Last week, I received a scathing comment to my blog Giving up control. While I didn’t agree with the comment, I allowed it to be published and thanked the individual for his opinion. Earlier in my leadership, I may have engaged in an argument with the individual trying to convince him that I was right …
Jun 22
From the Desk of the Superintendent- 2015 Year End Message
This past weekend I was in Red Deer with my family, celebrating the marriage of our daughter, Jamieson. It seems like only yesterday when she was a little girl and I was the only man in her life but time does seem to fly by whether we want it to or not. She is now …
Jun 03
Leadership Counts
The following article was provided to the Lethbridge Herald and published on June 03, 2015. Last week, one of my esteemed superintendent colleagues wrote about the importance of teacher quality on student learning. The research on this is very clear and so divisions invest heavily in providing opportunities for teachers to engage in high quality …
Jun 02
From the Desk of the Superintendent- June 2015
June has arrived! Nine months of incredible work has led us to this point. Exams are forthcoming, field trips are in full swing and summer vacation is right around the corner! But before we talk about June though, let’s talk about the history that took place in Alberta in May. Can you believe that after 44 …
May 17
Giving up control
Traditional methods of teaching have long been successful. They are known by parents who “succeeded” in classrooms of this type, they are comfortable for many teachers and some students thrive on this type of instruction. It should come as no surprise then, when there is resistance! It is difficult to argue with a teacher, parent or student who …
May 01
From the Desk of the Superintendent- May 2015
Less than two months to final exams, year-end field trips, closing masses and to saying goodbye to our classes of 2015. For some reason, maybe it is just my age, each year seems to pass more quickly than the previous one. The next two months will see all of us hurdling with break neck speed …
Apr 23
Getting your Thoughts
The following article was written for the Lethbridge Herald and published on April 22, 2015. In the past, schools and school divisions have typically been very good at communicating to parents, students and the general community. This communication, by and large, includes simple information that stakeholders need to know. Events like parent teacher interviews or other special …
Apr 15
Budget 2015
Those who know me well understand that I’m more of a glass half full than half empty person but, I also tend to shoot from the hip as much as possible. So in giving this update I hope to stay true to both of those qualities. I’ll begin by recognizing the government for three positives …
Apr 08
From the Desk of the Superintendent- April 2015
The Easter weekend has come and gone. We’ve passed through a most solemn time where we experienced the crucifixion of Christ and then witnessed the joyous event of the resurrection. The importance of this past weekend is why we define ourselves as a resurrection people and believers of eternal life. With schools closed for the …