KSHB 41 reporter Fe Silva covers education stories involving K-12. Share your story idea with Fe.
The principal of Arrowhead Middle School in Kansas City, Kan., Lawrence Smith, was selected to work as an NFL umpire during the upcoming season.
Smith knows all about making the calls and making sure the rules are being followed. That's easy to see when he’s guiding students to their buses at the end of the school day.
He's been working in education for years.
His jobs included classroom teacher, dean of students, and assistant principal.
This school year, he began his job as principal of a middle school.
He also will be a rookie in the NFL when he works as an umpire.
"It's been a heck of a year,” Smith said.
He says the two professions are similar in many ways.
"The problem is brought to you," Smith said. "You have to know the rules. You have to know the district policy. You have to satisfy one or both parties."
As an umpire, Smith will primarily be in the offensive backfield, just outside the normal tight end position.
Smith is familiar with the pressure of officiating high-profile games. He was chosen to lead the officiating crew for the United States Football League (USFL) Championship Game in 2023.
He also worked the 2022 Sugar Bowl between Alabama and Kansas State, along with nearly a decade of officiating in the Big Ten Conference.
His game plan includes continuing to work as a principal.
He said students have already been asking for his autograph.
But he knows he’ll be getting extra attention all season long in different ways.
“I want to make sure that he’s making the right calls when he’s out there,” Arrowhead Middle School football coach Rufus Parker said as he laughed about the “hard time” he plans to give his co-worker. “I don’t want to have to criticize him when he returns to the building, so we’ll be watching him closely while he’s on TV.”
But his staff also supports Smith.
“I’m confident that he’ll enter the NFL as a first-year veteran, not a rookie,” Parker said.
From the school bell to the game whistle, Smith says he's ready to take on the NFL.
