About Us
Our Mission
To ensure collaboration, communication, cooperation, and creativity, along with high levels of learning for all students in order to prepare them to become responsible and productive community members.
Our Vision
To provide all students at Emma C. Smith Elementary School with:
- a challenging curriculum that is aligned with state standards
- instruction that is engaging, differentiated, and data-driven that meets the needs of every student
- a supportive, caring, safe, respectful, and student-centered climate that fosters positive character, self-esteem, and self-motivation
History of Emma C. Smith School
On April 23, 1965, it was suggested that the Livermore Valley Joint Unified School District name an elementary school Emma C. Smith School. Emma C. Smith was the first regular school teacher in Livermore. Here is some of her story.
Emma’s father, Henry Clay Smith, was friends with William Mendenhall. They were pioneers together and traveled to California in 1845. They arrived at Sutter’s Fort on Christmas Day 1845. He met a married Mary Harlan Van Gorden, a widow who came to California with the Harlan Party. The Harlan Party followed the same route as the Donner Party and was the last group to make it across the Sierra –Nevada that year.
Before coming to Livermore Mr. Smith fought in the Mexican War with Fremont’s Battalion. When gold was found in mines near Coloma the Smith family tried their luck. They returned to Mission San Jose and opened a store. It was here that Emma was born in 1850. In 1852 Mr. Smith was elected to the California Legislature where he introduced the bill to create Alameda County. The Smith family moved a lot but settled in Livermore in 1867.
In 1878 Emma joined the staff of Livermore Grammar School. She taught for 41 years and retired in 1919. She remained an important part of the community. She helped plan many of the annual Livermore picnics. She was a member of the Livermore Presbyterian She was interested in the world around her. She traveled to Europe when she was 75 and at 80 visited Alaska and the Yukon. According to her niece Bessie Drury, her greatest thrill was her first crossing of the Bay Bridge on February 19th, 1937. She lived to be 89 years old. She passed away on March 26, 1939.