I am so excited to become a part of the Viking community and wanted to take this opportunity to share a little about myself. I have officially started in my new role of Assistant to the Superintendent for Curriculum & Instruction. I’m looking forward to meeting everyone and learning about Perkiomen Valley. I’ve only heard wonderful things so far about the community and our staff.

In terms of my professional background, I started my career at Parkland School District as a Physics and Mathematics teacher in the High School. I’ve always loved math and knew from a young age that I wanted to be a teacher. Physics became my way of having fun with math! After teaching, I became the Assistant Principal at Northwestern Lehigh Middle School in Lehigh County. I found that I absolutely love the craziness of middle school! In 2008, I became their Principal, a role which I truly enjoyed. For the past three years, I’ve been the Middle School Principal at Upper Perkiomen Middle School, working to build teaching teams and a positive school culture. Over my years in education, I’ve found that I have a passion for curriculum and instruction and working with staff toward continuous improvement in our classrooms and engaging students in learning. I’m excited for my new role as I believe it is a great fit for my skills and interests. I recognize that there will be many new tasks for me to learn and I am up for the challenge.

On a personal note, I am married and have two children. My husband, Arnold, and I live in Emmaus. Our son, Dakota, just turned 12 and attends Eyer Middle School and our daughter, Natalie, is 9 and attends Macungie Elementary School. As I’m sure you can relate, they keep us busy with activities. Our family enjoys being outdoors together, biking or hiking. This past summer we vacationed to the Adirondacks and enjoyed our first whitewater rafting adventure. And thankfully no one went overboard!

Thank you for the warm welcome that I have already received from many of you. I’m eager to meet everyone. I hope to be visiting your schools and classrooms in the first few weeks. I know that I am going to miss the daily connection with students and staff, so please feel free to invite me into your classrooms or for any special events. I’ve been taped to the wall, sumo wrestled, and turned into a human sundae, so if you need someone to dress up or participate in an event, just call!

I know this is going to be a great year at Perkiomen Valley under the leadership of Superintendent Dr. Barbara Russell. Please let me know how I can support you in meeting the needs of your students. I hope you have a terrific start to your school year!

Yours truly,

Laurie Smith

Assistant to the Superintendent for Curriculum & Instruction