In 1996 — the dawn of the Internet and the first bulky Macintosh computer — Alumni Adam Smoler sat in the computer room on the third floor experiencing, first hand, the birth of the iconic Parker website. Although the software has updated, paper printers have developed into 3D printers, and the Macintosh has undergone dramatic changes in order to become the lightweight MacBook Air, fwparker.org has endured the test of time.

A majority of Parker students can say, proudly, that they are familiar with the myths of legendary artists, musicians, and actors to have walked through these very halls. Yet, as students flip through yearbooks, it is a rarity to see images of Parker alumni who have become successful in the Math and Science sectors of business. “It’s interesting to hear a success story for someone who has based their entire life around technology — something you have only been able to witness in this new generation,” junior and Computer and Technology Committee head Andy Wessman said. “It helps us to see what you can do as a Parker student.”

As Parker students have been given unique opportunities to grow and develop alongside new technologies, it comes as no surprise that a Parker graduate, nonetheless the original creator of the Parker website, has returned as an employee for one of the largest growing tech companies in the world: Google.

Smoler is a former Parker student who, after graduating in 1997, went to college at Brandeis University and, thereafter, worked for Doubleclick, a startup which has since been acquired by his current employer — Google. Smoler, one of the youngest managers at Google to have held the position of Head of Industry, is gaining traction in the tech community. “At the end of the day if you were to ask me: what do you do? I try to help people tell better stories,” Smoler said. “I think stories are important so that we can have a better understanding of new ideas in the world. My job is to make sure that stories are free and accessible to everyone.”

Smoler accredits Parker for his ability to problem solve and think creatively. “Sometimes I wonder, what were the things that led me to work at a tech start-up?” Smoler said. He claims the launch point to be his AP European History class in 12th grade with Mr. American and John Leary. Each student in the classroom was asked to choose a topic that interested them about the industrial revolution and read about it. “We had to think about what’s interesting as a compliment to learning dense textbook information,” Smoler said. The book he chose was “The lever of riches: Technology, Creativity, and Economic Progress.”

“One of the themes that I took away from reading that book was the change in people’s behaviors and the notion of large societal change. At Google, we ask ourselves: how do we change with that?” Smoler said. “Working at a tech startup, as people are using media and understanding and talking with each other very differently, how do we create products that get ahead of those changes?”

According to Smoler, the theme of choice, creativity and following his passion fostered in this building. “In my senior year I did an independent study, as Parker was trying to start getting on the internet,” Smoler said. “I had a passion, I had a curiosity for computers, so I was like, hey, let’s do an independent study with that.”

Smoler can recall entering Dr. Dan Frank’s office with trepidation, nervous to pitch his idea. After Frank agreed and approved this proposal for an independent study, Smoler began work alongside the computer teacher to determine how the birth of the Internet could help Parker to expand its horizons. “The first thing I thought was, well, we have to register a domain name for Parker,” Smoler said. The Francis Parker school in San Diego had already registered Francisparker.org, thus, the next best thing was Fwparker.org. Smoler sat on the third floor in the computer room working to figure out external factors and determining the seemingly endless list of rules, and before the end of his senior year independent study, he was able to witness the launch of Parker’s first website.

Although Smoler got the ball rolling with the Internet connection and the Parker website, Wessman believes that Parker must continue to take great strides in order remain up-to-date with modern technologies. “While we are a place where we like to say that we are very technologically advanced, and we do a lot of spending in terms of that, there are a lot of ways in which we are deficient,” Wessman said. “For example, there is only one coding teacher, who can only do so much. Coding is a language. There are multiple language teachers for every other language at Parker so, with coding soon being at the forefront of all jobs, Parker should be increasing the number of coding teachers.”

Smoler, along with actors and musicians who ignited their career on the Parker stage, began to develop passion and drive early on in high school — virtues he was able to utilize in his career. “He [Smoler] got me thinking about how Parker sets each student up to experience life unconventionally. You know, it’s not always one path,” sophomore Alex Shapiro said. “It’s also interesting to think that the impact I have on the classroom and on my community as a teenager, has the potential to alter the rest of my life.”

“One of the things I am very fortunate to have had at Parker was the ability to find something that I was curious about, and was allowed the freedom to keep running with it,” Smoler said. “That’s what got me in the door at Google.”