I can confirm that he does not work for FFG in any overt manner. He could be a tester though.If shmitty's prediction comes true, I will have no choice but to assume he actually works for FFG, what with his organization of the Regionals thread. At least I think that is you... edit: yep it is.
You're right - while we may think we know him IRL as a school teacher, we don't really know him all that well. Maybe his teaching career is just something he tells us about, but in reality he has a covert existence as an FFG consultant. Maybe the reason that he is as good as he is is because he helped develop the game to begin with, and has a whole years' worth of experience behind him that we don't have.
I support the theory that shmitty has a hidden side that he keeps under wraps, and that he probbly wears a mask and cape when giving FFG direction on where to go next with Armada.