Joe Lee Smith, former president of what is now Eastern Florida State College, passed away on September 1. He was 89 years old.
Dr. Smith attended Florida A&M University on a baseball scholarship. He received both his bachelor’s degree and master’s degree in education from the historically Black university before earning his doctorate from the University of Florida.
Throughout his lifetime, Dr. Smith spent decades as an educator, administrator, and athletic coach. In 1997, he was named president of Brevard Community College, which has since been renamed to Eastern Florida State College. He retired from the institution in 2000, but later returned to serve as provost of the college’s four campuses until his permanent retirement in 2017.
In addition his academic career, Dr. Smith was elected and re-elected to the Rockledge City Council for 12 consecutive terms. During this time, he had stints as council chairman and deputy mayor.
Dr. Smith received several awards and recognitions for his many contributions to education and his community. He was inducted into both Florida A&M University’s Sports Hall of Fame and the Space Coast Sports Hall of Fame. The Joe Lee Smith Recreation Center in Cocoa, Florida, was named in his honor, as was the Dr. Joe Lee Smith Teaching Center on Brevard Community College’s Melbourne campus.
