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At Eleanor Roosevelt High School, English teacher and English Learner Coordinator Carrie Smith believes that one of the most important things for students is feeling a true sense of belonging. Whether working with her AP English students or helping newcomer students navigate a new environment, Carrie leads with empathy, optimism, and a belief that every student deserves to feel supported and connected.
Although her journey to the classroom was anything but traditional, Carrie gained invaluable life experiences that shaped her as an educator. Inspired by her honors English teacher, Mrs. Sepulveda, Carrie knew she wanted to be in the classroom. However, having graduated during the recession, Carrie didn’t go into a teaching program right away and went down a different path first.
After college, she moved to London and joined a graduate recruitment program focused on international business where she worked at a law firm. She then moved back to California and worked in Los Angeles in digital marketing, event planning, and the American Heart Association before ultimately realizing her passion for education had never left her.
“When I was 25, I decided I was going to go into teaching,” she shared. “I had done a lot of different things and although I started my educational journey later on, these experiences reassured me that education is what I wanted to do.”
As a former student-athlete herself, Carrie grew up in Brea and earned a Division I basketball scholarship to Loyola Marymount University before an injury changed the course of her athletic career. That experience, she said, helps her connect with many of her own students today, especially student-athletes who are balancing academics, athletics, and other responsibilites. Her optimistic “it’ll all work out” mindset is something that she intentionally brings into her classroom each day, especially when working with English Learners and newcomer students adjusting to life in a new country.
“I try to not make it just about the grades but rather make it about the learning,” Carrie said. “I tell them the AP test isn’t the biggest part of their lives. Grades don’t define who you are.”
For the past eight years, Carrie has been Roosevelt’s English Learner Coordinator, supporting more than 100 newcomers and English Learner students each year alongside a dedicated team of educators and administrative support.
One initiative she is especially proud of is the creation of B.E.S.T Leadership, a program that empowers bilingual students to support newcomer students by helping bridge language and cultural barriers on campus. The program, which earned Roosevelt High School a Golden Bell Award, has become one of her favorite parts of the school’s EL program.
She shares a recent experience of a new student from Guatemala who arrived at Roosevelt unsure of what to expect. Through the school’s B.E.S.T. Leadership program, Carrie was able to connect him with a Spanish-speaking English Learner student who showed him around campus, helping him feel welcomed, supported, and reassured that he belonged.
“That personal connection makes such a difference,” she explains. “It helps students feel that they’re going to be okay.”
Her belief in connection was shaped early in her teaching career. During her first year teaching EL, she recognized that connection and trust would be the foundation for student success. Rather than jumping immediately into the curriculum, she focused first on building relationships through something so simple, yet meaningful: sharing a meal. Students brought their favorite snacks from their home countries, and they spent the first week bonding over food, conversation, and shared experiences.
“That was when I knew this wasn’t going to be a traditional classroom,” she said. “Building relationships and making students feel connected had to come before the curriculum because the language learning would come naturally through those connections.”
That relationship-centered philosophy has continued to guide her work today. The EL Team initiated a Reclassification Banquet for students who have been in the EL program for a couple of years, celebrating students progress and helping shift the narrative around being multilingual.
“Sometimes the kids feel negativity about being in the EL program but we try to change it into a positive one,” Carrie said. “I tell them they should be very proud of their bilingualism!”
Being an English teacher, she remains deeply passionate about literacy and ensuring her students become thoughtful readers and critical thinkers in an age of fast information and social media. Whether her students are new to the country or enrolled in her AP English class, she just wants her students to have the tools to read, reflect, and think deeply.
“If my students read just one book this year, that will be a win for me!” she said.
As an avid reader herself, Carrie sets a personal goal of reading 100 books every year and often shares her excitement for books with her students. She hopes that by modeling her own love of reading, students may reconnect with the joy of it too.
Outside of the classroom, Carrie enjoys spending time with her husband, a firefighter, and her two young children. Together they share a life that is rooted in public service.
When asked what advice she would give to someone entering education, Carrie reflects on the the values that have guided her throughout her career.
“You have to put the students first,” she shares. “You have to be adaptable, and your heart has to be in it. Every day is different, but showing up for the kids and making those connections is what matters most.”
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