When new Royal Oak superintendent John Tafelski needed a tour of the district’s middle school, Derek Smith was a proper guide for the job.

After all, who better than someone who walked the halls as a student?

Smith, a Dondero High School grad, isn’t just walking around faculty, though. As of July 1, he’s returned to his hometown as the district’s activities and athletic director.

And he’s ready to ensure the Ravens fly as high as can be.

“I’m super excited to come back to Royal Oak,” Smith said. “The opportunity opened up, and I’d love to finish my career here. I said in my interview, truly when i look back, to get to where I am now, and how it all unfolded, it goes back to Dondero and those teachers and coaches that really shaped and guided me in the right direction. I didn’t know it then, but I know it now.”

A varsity baseball and football player for the Oaks, the Class of 1996 graduate attended Grand Valley State University for his teaching degree in social studies and was essentially hired right out of college at Shelby Junior High School, part of the Utica Community Schools.

The following year, Smith became an athletic director at the junior high, a job he held for 23 years — with responsibilities that included programming, organizing tournaments and fundraising — on top of coaching the sports he played at Dondero at various levels in Utica. It took a special opening to leave that position and the district, which has operated athletics under Robin Dilday for over three decades.

“In my interview, I said that I’m leaving a really good job with a great staff, work with great people and have great students,” Smith said, “but I want to return home. Rob has been the AD there and has been my mentor. I’ve learned a ton from him, and he’s extremely knowledgeable. When I called and I was going to apply for the Royal Oak job, he couldn’t have been happier for me.”

His wife, Kristin, graduated from and now teaches in Royal Oak, while both their sons, Jackson and Tyler, are student-athletes in the district.

Now, having returned, Derek’s aim is to try and streamline some processes, build from the levels below the high school and help its athletics reach the ceiling of potential he believes it has.

“I love working with the community, and (have) just a lot of connections from being born here and still living here,” said Smith, also a member of the Royal Oak Sandlot baseball league board. “I think that’s gonna be really helpful in navigating this job … I’d love to finish my career here. I’d like to really develop the youth programs to help the high school programs. There’s a tremendous opportunity in Royal Oak that hasn’t really been leveraged in the past.”

When Smith says that, it’s not intended as a slight of any who have come before him. He credited outgoing athletic director Daniel Russell, who held the position the past two years (and departed to become assistant AD for Jenison Public Schools), for installing a part-time strength and conditioning coach that works with all the programs, for example. In some cases, it’s a matter of expanding on what’s already in place.

“It’s not that people haven’t done a good job, but there’s a lot of people in the city hungry to see Royal Oak succeed in athletics and activities in general. There’s some opportunities here to develop. We’ve struggled a bit since we combined Dondero and Kimball back in ’06. I think we’ve already done a spectacular job. Our art, theater, choir; we have really special teachers here doing special things. That makes me proud and I can’t wait to work with those people. As for athletics, I think there’s a tremendous opportunity that just needs communication, hard work, connections to link up elementaries to the middle school to the high school. We have one middle school and one high school, so you have an opportunity there to streamline some things.

“It takes time. You can’t show up in ninth grade expecting kids to just be a Raven. It’s not a pit stop, it’s something that has to be built in the culture of Royal Oak. I’m a culture guy in that sense. We have a really strong community here with tons of giveback. People want to be connected. That’s really one of my main goals.”

Smith said he looks forward to working with Tafelski, who he believes was a home-run hire for the district.

“We’ve met a lot and I think (Dr. Tafelski is) going to do great things for academics, activities and athletics,” Smith said. “I think the school board really nailed this one. I’ve interacted with a lot of educators and you just get kind of a gut feeling. I think he’s going to kill it and I can’t wait to be on the ride with him.”