Jeffrey R. Smith

Jeff Smith represents the 4th District in the Missouri Senate.  Jeff is an adjunct professor of political science at the University of Missouri-St. Louis and Washington University, after serving as a visiting professor of government at Dartmouth College in New Hampshire during 2004-5. Jeff teaches courses covering Congress, public policy, race in American politics, the immigrant experience, and election campaigns. In 2002, he received the Washington University Dean's Award for Teaching Excellence, and he has presented his research at several national conferences. Jeff ran for Congress in 2004, losing narrowly to Russ Carnahan. His grass roots-oriented campaign emphasized face-to-face voter contact; he and his volunteers canvassed 25,000 homes and held 93 coffees where voters could meet Jeff and discuss his platform. Before that, Jeff served as a political analyst for KMOV-TV and the BBC, and often serves as a lecturer and panelist at local forums. Jeff has advised several Democratic candidates, serving as an aide to Bill Bradley's presidential campaign and a researcher for Charlotte, North Carolina's first black mayor, Harvey Gantt, in his U.S. Senate campaign vs. Jesse Helms.

Improving urban education is Jeff's passion. In spring of 2001, he co-founded The Confluence Academies, two acclaimed public charter schools in the city focusing on math, science and technology. Jeff serves on the academy's Board of Directors. He has consulted for the Vashon Compact, a non-profit group striving to enhance achievement at ten of the city's lowest-performing public schools. Before that, Jeff worked as an evaluator in the St. Louis Public Schools, visiting dozens of schools and helping train district teachers in assessment of student writing. From 1996-2002, Jeff taught evening ACT prep courses for underprivileged area high school students.

If urban education is Jeff's passion, then youth sports are his favorite pastime. He has coached youth basketball at Matthews-Dickey Boys Club, and coached basketball camps for ten summers at various local schools. He has also coached youth soccer and umpired youth baseball.

Jeff graduated Phi Beta Kappa from the University of North Carolina with a double major in African-American Studies and Political Science. He received an M.A. in political science from Washington University in 2001 and a Ph.D. in August 2005.