Past Inductees

Martha "Marty" Smith
Former President, Pearson Curriculum Group
Pearson
2008

Bio | Acceptance Speech | 2008 Inductee Interviews

A woman named Marty was destined to stand out in the crowd!

From her early days as a middle school and high school teacher, throughout over thirty years in educational publishing, Martha "Marty" Smith, to this day, continues to be steadfastly focused on one goal - the achievement of the students and teachers we all serve.

Marty has built up an illustrious track record as a leader in educational publishing -creating award-winning textbooks, innovative technology products, custom solutions for school districts, and professional development support for teachers and administrators. Her passion for excellence was a driving force in Pearson's educational leadership, as was her passion for finding and mentoring the best talent in the industry.

Marty attributes much of her success to her early experience in the classroom. Armed with a Bachelor of Science degree in Education (cum laude) from Bowling Green State University in Ohio, Marty taught United States History, World History, and Contemporary Social Issues at Darien High School in Darien, Connecticut. After receiving her Master of Arts degree in History from Ohio University, Marty gained middle school teaching experience in the Cleveland (OH) Public Schools. Her experience using an innovative American History program, entitled Promise of America, with eighth-grade students in Cleveland led her to apply for an editorial position with the program's publisher, Scott Foresman. Marty joined Scott Foresman in 1973 and worked her way up through the editorial ranks to the position of Executive Editor, Social Studies. While there, she was responsible for producing an industry-leading elementary social studies series and a best-selling eighth-grade American History program. She moved to Prentice Hall in 1986, and from 1992 to 1997 Marty served as Vice President of Product Development and General Manager of Prentice Hall School, again creating best-selling programs for schools in the U.S. - many of which have since made their way around the world.

Under her leadership, Prentice Hall developed a focused middle grades strategy - partnering with the National Middle Schools Association and developing effective products to meet the needs of middle school students and teachers, including the best-selling Prentice Hall Science Explorer program and Prentice Hall Middle Grades Mathematics.

A showcase example of Marty's innovation was the development of Prentice Hall's Mathematics Online Intervention System - a ground-breaking program that linked assessment, analysis, reporting, instruction, and remediation. Independent efficacy research confirmed that the program delivered significant improvements in student performance.

In 1997, when the global publisher Pearson acquired Simon & Schuster's Education division, Marty was named President of the Secondary Education publisher Prentice Hall by Pearson Education Chief Executive Peter Jovanovich. Her accomplishments in that position included the creation of one of the first technology product groups in the industry, anticipating by many years the demand for digital products; and developing Prentice Hall's publishing strategy which set the trajectory for Pearson's market leadership.

Marty's teaching background and product development skills brought a compelling lens to the instructional and visual design of Pearson products, resulting in numerous industry awards.

In 1998, Marty was named President of the Pearson Education Secondary Group, which included Prentice Hall School and Globe Fearon publishers. Under her leadership, Pearson's secondary business saw tremendous growth, and outpaced the industry for years - a trend that continues to this day. One reason for this success is Marty's intuitive ability and insight on what counts - student and teacher success

Promoted in 2002 to President of the Curriculum Group, the combined elementary and secondary basal, supplemental and digital divisions of Pearson, she was now responsible for the development of industry-leading programs in Math, Science, Social Studies, Literacy, and the Humanities from preK through high school. It was under her leadership that Pearson became the premier school publisher in the U.S.

Other "firsts" under Marty included Pearson's movement toward high-performing teams, still an integral part of Pearson's organization, and the establishment of Pearson's independent curriculum efficacy research effort, making Pearson the unquestioned leader in this area. Marty also launched a product and process innovation initiative. That movement blossomed in August 2005 when Pearson launched an innovation training effort involving more than 1,000 employees. This initiative resulted in the in-house development of such ahead-of-the-curve products as enVisionMATH, which launched this year. A first-of-its kind program with a stand-alone digital path, it is the #1 selling elementary math program in the country for 2008.

Marty also helped shape Pearson's employee recognition programs, including the "Way to Go" awards and her own "President's Club" awards, which emphasize individual achievement that supports the larger group.

Throughout her illustrious career, Marty has demonstrated her unique ability to talk business with a tough board member, or state superintendent, but also guide a junior editor or new sales rep with a meaningful, heartfelt conversation. Marty was able to make anyone and everyone feel like she was genuinely interested in what they had to say…because she always was.

As President of Pearson's Curriculum Group, Marty was co-founder of Pearson's Hispanic Leadership Council, and a member of Pearson's Global Diversity Council. She was Founder and Director of Pearson's Instructional Leadership Councils, and served on numerous boards and councils including the Florida's Governor's Council, the Lesson Lab Board of Directors, and the Executive Committee of AAP's School Division. In 1999, she received the TWIN (Tribute to Women and Industry) Award, presented annually by the YMCA of Bergen County (NJ) to outstanding businesswomen who have made significant contributions to their companies in executive, managerial, or professional capacities.

Marty always says she could not have accomplished all that she has without the understanding, encouragement and support of her husband of 38 years, Fred, and their two sons, David and Charles.