Sandra Smith Clements was born in 1949 in Huntington, the second child and daughter of the late Clairous E. Smith and Fannie Allen Smith. She attended and graduated from St. Joseph High School in 1967 and Marshall University in 1971 and 1986, respectively, with bachelor's and master's degrees in Rehabilitation Education and Counseling.
She is the mother of Jacques, Lesley and Bradford Clements and volunteered with the Head Start Program and at Spring Hill Elementary School. She served as president of the Head Start parent group, Spring Hill PTA president and was 4-H Leader of the Year in 1977. She worked as the parent resource coordinator for Head Start, was the West Virginia field coordinator for the Save the Children Federation and retired from Marshall University as the director of disability services. She has been a member of and volunteered for many community organizations including the A.D. Lewis Advisory Committee, Children's Place, Contact of Huntington, Huntington Area Habitat for Humanity, J.W. Scott Community Center, Marshall University's Black Alumni Inc., Mountain State Centers for Independent Living, Time Out Youth Services and the WV Developmental Disabilities Council.
Smith Clements has mentored students with the MU Center for African-American Students and served on numerous university committees including the Admission Committee for the Joan C. Edwards School of Medicine. She was appointed to Huntington City Council in 2007 and elected in 2008 and 2012. She was the recipient of the Pete Goodson Humanitarian Award and inducted into the All-Black Schools Sports and Academic Hall of Fame in 2014.
Smith Clements is a member of St. Peter Claver Catholic Church and the co-founder of the Piecemakers Quilting Group.
