Cameron Smith

Cameron was inspired to create Bennett Day School after the birth of his first son in 2010. As a new parent, he recognized that there are very few options for progressive independent schooling in Chicago. Many parents resort to moving to the suburbs when they would prefer to continue to live, work, and learn downtown. Both the motivation to innovate and a commitment to the city inspired the creation of Bennett Day School. Cameron was thrilled that his oldest son was a member of the first JK class in 2014; his younger son will soon be in PreK as well.

Cameron served on the Board of the Namaste Charter School where he was the Treasurer and Chair of the Investment Committee. A licensed attorney in Illinois, he is a member of the Education Law Committee of the Chicago Bar Association. As a member of the North American Reggio Emilia Alliance, Cameron is energized by the ideas and best practices he observes as a regular participant at educational conferences and gatherings.

Cameron was previously a Vice President at private equity firm CHS Capital LLC in Chicago where he focused on investing in education and healthcare services companies. While at CHS, he served on the Board of Royall & Company, the leading provider of strategic enrollment marketing services to traditional colleges and universities. He currently serves on two external boards, and previously served on the non-profit Neighborhood Parent Network of Chicago (NPN) board. Cameron is also a member of the Chicago Chapter of Conscious Capitalism. He holds a B.S. degree from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania as well as J.D. and M.B.A. degrees from Northwestern University.

Cameron is fascinated with outer space, and as a lifelong learner, is currently pursuing a Master’s Degree in Space Resources while studying Astrophysics with the Colorado School of Mines. He will be the first licensed attorney in the United States to earn this degree and is excited to share what he learns about space with the K-12 students at Bennett Day.