Take a Break with Tiffany Taylor Smith

All roads led back home for Tiffany Taylor Smith, a Dayton native who spent much of her professional career on the East Coast before coming to UD in 2017 to join the Office of Diversity and Inclusion. Taylor Smith now leads that office as vice president of diversity and inclusion.

Q: How did you get involved with diversity and inclusion work?
A: I don’t have a traditional career path, and I’m proud of that. When I was in second grade, my teacher told my parents that I was the class social worker, and that’s been a running family joke because I’ve always wanted to figure out how to help people get along better. I studied psychology at University of Rochester and completed internships at General Motors, Xerox and Procter & Gamble. P&G offered me a job the next year, and I worked at P&G offices in Cincinnati, Boston, New York and New Jersey for 10 years. During that time, I earned a master’s degree in education from Fordham University. I started in sales and marketing, was promoted to recruiting and training, and completed my career at P&G in diversity training and recruiting in Cincinnati. That was the first time “diversity” was in my title officially even though I had been doing this kind of work all my life. I knew then I wanted to do diversity work more than I wanted to sell Tide, so I decided to create my own consulting company focused on diversity training.

Q: How did that work out?
A: My parents thought I’d lost my mind, but I knew my internal light would no longer shine if I kept doing something I wasn’t passionate about. I also liked the flexibility in having my own company, as I was able to be a mom who worked but still could go on the field trip, sell cookies or go to a 10 a.m. meeting at my children’s school. For 15 years, I was a consultant and an adjunct professor at Kean University.  

Q: What brought you back to Dayton?
A: In 2012, I was sitting in a Starbucks in New York City and reading the New York Times. I happened to see an article in the front section about the University of Dayton and its inclusive practices for Muslim students. I thought, “Really? Look at UD!” I was proud to see my hometown university represented this way. At that time, I had also been expanding my consulting work with international students who wanted to study in the U.S., so I reached out to Amy Anderson who was quoted in the article. We stayed in touch, and I met her and other UD professors at a conference in Seattle. In January 2017, I met with Amy when I was in town and mentioned I was looking to return to higher education. Amy told me about a new position that would be opening in the Office of Diversity and Inclusion and asked if I’d be interested.

Q: And the rest was history?
A: Well, as a woman of faith, I had put out in prayer that I was looking for a full-time position in higher education where I could work on diversity efforts and earn a doctorate. When I received the UD job description, I didn’t even look at it, I sent it to my mom. My mom read it and said, “Everything you’ve done, from being one of the few Black students at Alter [High School] to all of your professional work, has prepared you to be the right person for this position.” After I visited campus and met others at UD, I knew I wanted this job. I said a prayer and said if it was meant to be, it was meant to be. I always tell Amy she’s the reason I’m here, doing the work I’m passionate about.

Q: How does it feel to be a vice president, and the first woman of color to serve as a vice president at UD?
A: It dawned on me that more and more people were referring to me as “madame vice president,” which is also how many refer to the vice president of the United States, Kamala Harris. That reference is amazing because of the reality that the U.S. has a “madame vice president.” I know I haven’t gotten tired of hearing that title yet. At UD, I’m glad to have that distinction. It’s an awesome responsibility and I don’t take it lightly.

Q: You’re also a UD student. Tell us why you wanted to pursue a doctorate.
A: Thanks to the mentorship of my dean of students when I was an undergraduate, I saw the possibility that I could earn a Ph.D. Once I completed my master's I knew I wanted to move forward, I just wasn't sure when, where and in what area. I knew I wanted to further understand human development, and use this knowledge to enhance my practice as an educator and coach to create environments for people of all ages to experience cultural awareness, healing of the spirit and full understanding in ways that build true cross-cultural relationships. For my dissertation, I'm exploring what motivates faculty to increase their cultural competence and skill development. I expect to earn my doctorate in educational leadership in 2023. 

Q: You’ve been part of UD’s diversity and inclusion efforts since your hire as executive director for inclusive excellence education and your promotion to assistant vice president. How do you hope to continue that work leading the Office of Diversity and Inclusion?
A: The Office of Diversity and Inclusion belongs to all of us. I see myself as a collaborative leader, and I want to leverage the expertise of others across academic units and University offices as we continue to work on the Flyers Plan for Community Excellence. We’re also continuing our Greater West Dayton conversations and partnerships with the Dayton community at large. We want to be an anchor institution for the city and that happens by continuing to build strong community partnerships.

Q: As a Dayton native and Alter High School graduate, you’re very familiar with the region. How does that influence your work?
A: I grew up in northwest Dayton, and I’ve seen how much the city has changed. Places I’ve lived and visited in the 1980s, like the Salem Mall, are all gone now. The area is a much different place, and so is UD. Before working here, my only experiences at UD were coming for a soccer camp or for tutoring when I was in elementary and middle school. After spending 4 1/2 years here watching, listening and learning, I’m always thinking about how we can make UD a place where people want to come and then keep building on that. It’s important to understand that there are people in our community who haven’t had a good experience with UD, and I want us to think collaboratively about how to address that and influence the city of Dayton in a positive, impactful way.