NJ Superintendent Of The Year Smith Honored At Point Pleasant Beach Council Meeting

POINT PLEASANT BEACH, NJ — Local leaders are celebrating the chief education officer at Point Pleasant Beach Schools, who recently was named New Jersey Superintendent of the Year.

Dr. William T. Smith is now a candidate for the National Superintendent of the Year award, given by the American Association of School Administrators.

In September, the New Jersey Association of School Administrators (NJASA) selected Smith as one of three regional Superintendents of the Year, and he was selected as the state award recipient in November.

The Point Pleasant Beach Council honored Smith on Wednesday night at their meeting.

Mayor Paul M. Kanitra said Smith was his high school English teacher, and added Smith "was a very relatable individual and somebody that always paid attention to the details."

"He's still young enough to be relatable — barely," Kanitra joked, "but old enough to have some perspective."

Former Board of Education president and current councilman Mike Ramos said Smith is a great communicator and an engaged staff leader.

"I think the town is blessed to have you at the helm of our schools, Dr. Smith," Ramos said.

"Our strong school district also encourages our home values to remain high and the quality of life for the families in our town to remain high," Ramos said.

Mayor Kanitra read a proclamation thanking and congratulating Smith, who was at the meeting to receive it.

Borough council also honored the Point Beach girls' soccer team for advancing to the Group I State Final for the first time in school history. Council also gave Life Saving Awards to four police officers and presented two Certificates of Merit.

Smith was appointed Chief Education Officer of Point Pleasant Beach School District in 2016. The NJASA highlighted how the district expanded its AP course offerings, developed the "Gull Flight School" early-college degree partnership with Ocean County Community College, and created a staff health and wellness initiative under his leadership.

Smith is the past president of the Ocean County Association of School Administrators (OCASA) and served as president for four consecutive years. The OCASA named him Ocean County Educator of the Year in 2020, 2021, and 2022.

Smith is also Ocean County representative to the NJASA Executive Committee.

In comments to the New Jersey Association of School Administrators, Smith thanked the board of education, administrators, faculty and staff, students, and parents as well as the NJASA itself.

“My philosophy on teaching and learning has evolved around a core set of principles - Our students succeed when their schools prioritize access and opportunity and encourage creativity and exploration," said Smith.

“As the district leader, I aspire to promote growth and success in every classroom. Schools and students are facing unprecedented challenges from a world that is evolving rapidly, unpredictably. That world is demanding from our students advanced collaboration and content-literacy skills, and it is offering unprecedented opportunities to bring innovative ideas to a ‘flat world’ of hungry consumers of information.”

Smith will be formally acknowledged by the New Jersey State Board of Education at their Annual Recognition Ceremony this winter.