Born in Fort Polk to a father in the military who left soon after his birth, Coach Jered Smiley was a military brat who moved to Wautoma, Wisconsin, about eight months after his birth. Wanting always to be a Badger, he decided to pursue a college education at the University of Wisconsin Madison. At his time there, he majored in biochemistry, focusing on forensic science, but he decided that doing forensic science was not for him. Coach Smiley chose to pursue his education at the University of Winona for their education program. Coach Smiley said, “The advice I give to everybody seeking a place to go if they want to go to college, is to find a place that feels right for you.” 

Starting his career at Folwell Elementary School and having to be connected with a few different schools, Coach Smiley has taught in many different locations. At Folwell, the school was too small for him to be a full-time teacher, so Coach Smiley had to be connected with Gage Elementary School during his first year. He was also associated with Bamber Valley Elementary School for a couple of years and then linked with Gibbs Elementary School for a year. After that, he went to Right Fit, Phoenix, and then Willow Creek Middle School for three years. This is his first year at Mayo High School. Although he has taught for many years and loves it, when COVID hit and everything was shut down he had doubts if teaching was the best fit for him. Now that everything is returning to how it was before the pandemic, school is starting to feel like the place he used to love. 

Coach Smiley says, “we’re still in the honeymoon phase of school right now,” and everyone is still adjusting, but one thing he does like is that everyone here is a young adult, and their mindsets show it. He says that every conversation is a lot more mature. If he were able to say one thing to the entire Spartan community it would be “to take some time every single day, and be nice to somebody. Say something nice to somebody. You don’t know because you never know what a person is going through; everybody has their struggles, and you never know what that can mean to somebody. Even some of your best friends might not tell you what they’re going through, and you being nice could mean the world to them.”

Away from school, during his spare time, Coach Smiley can be found outside. As a coach for Mayo football, he likes to be out on the field or in the weight room. When he’s not with the team he loves to haul his camper all around the country, especially during the summer. Some of the recent places he has traveled to are Yellowstone and The Grand Tetons. He notes that they are some of the most beautiful things he has ever seen.  If you know of any free music festivals or concerts, let Smiley know, since he is such a huge music buff. If there is a music festival at the Civic Center, you can find him with his wife, sitting in the grass, jamming out.