Neil Schmidt, 63; Santa Monica and Malibu Schools Chief for 9 Years

Neil C. Schmidt, an innovative longtime educator and school administrator who spent nine years as superintendent of the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District, died Wednesday. He was 63.

The educator died of a heart attack at Ventura County Medical Center. He had been flown there by helicopter after suffering the attack while tending his avocado orchard at his hillside home in Fillmore.

According to friends, he had been stung by a bee just before the attack. Last summer, Schmidt recovered from a bee sting that had caused a severe allergic reaction.

Friends said Monday that Schmidt was a devoted child advocate who in retirement had continued to serve as a consultant for school programs and community groups, while finding time to care for his land.

Most recently, he had served as a consultant to the Los Angeles Unified School District and as a member of the advisory board of LA’s Best, an after-school enrichment program run by L.A. Unified and the city.

“He was really the educator’s educator,” said Carla Sanger, president and chief executive of LA’s Best. “He was one of the few [superintendents] who knew how to balance regulation with the autonomy of teachers and the needs of kids.”

Schmidt was born on March 28, 1941, in King City, Calif., where his family had a ranch. He earned a bachelor’s degree from UC Berkeley in 1964 and a master’s degree from San Jose State University in 1968. He taught physical education in New Jersey, then returned to California, where he became a first-grade teacher in Cupertino and then an assistant principal in San Leandro.

Pupils in his classroom could always find an abundance of old radios, clocks and other machines with which to tinker. He believed in turning classrooms into exploratory museums, friends said.

While in San Leandro, he met his future wife, Julie Kraas, who also was a teacher.

In 1972, Schmidt began his doctoral studies at UCLA, where he contributed to a landmark educational study called “A Study of Schooling.” After getting his doctorate in 1975, he and his wife moved to Merced, where he became principal of an elementary school that served a low-income community.

His first superintendent’s job was in Live Oak, a small district in Santa Cruz. There he established a partnership among UC Santa Cruz, the farming community and the school district called the Life Lab/School Farm program, which taught science through gardening. The program still exists in several California districts.

The 6-foot-5-inch Schmidt also served as superintendent in three other districts: Fillmore, Lodi and Santa Monica-Malibu. Along the way, he established the first community library in Piru and encouraged teachers to explore innovative projects.

“He was probably the finest administrator and human being that I ever worked with,” said Bob Kernen, a longtime friend and colleague from Fillmore.

In 1992, Schmidt was hired as the superintendent in Santa Monica-Malibu after resigning his position with the Lodi district, where a recently elected school board advocated a science curriculum that emphasized the biblical account of creation over evolution. Schmidt said he could not accept that approach.

He retired nine years later, but briefly became interim superintendent of the Conejo Valley Unified School District before resuming his retirement in 2002.

This fall, he co-chaired a successful campaign for a $10-million school bond in Fillmore and most recently had been involved in an effort to build a community swimming pool.

He was president-elect of the Fillmore-Piru Boys and Girls Club.

In addition to his wife, he is survived by two daughters, Corrie, of Davis, and Sarah, of Fillmore.

Contributions may be made to a Neil Schmidt fund to benefit the children and youth of Fillmore at the Ventura County Community Foundation, 1317 Del Norte Road, Suite 150, Camarillo, CA 93010. A memorial will be held at his family’s home on Jan. 15. For information, call Lynn Edmonds at (805) 524-4839.