Taj Smith
Director Diversity Education
Taj Smith
Director Diversity Education
Bio
Dr. Taj Smith's role at RIT is to help train faculty and staff on their journey to cultural competency and humility. He also partners with staff and students across the university to facilitate high-impact workshops or high-level experiential learning opportunities for students.
He considers himself an educator, curriculum developer and facilitator specializing in intercultural engagement, intergroup dialogue and program assessment. Taj earned his doctorate in Social Justice Education from the University of Massachusetts-Amherst, an M.A. in Africana Studies from Cornell University, and a B.A. in Journalism and Mass Media Studies from Rutgers University.
For fun, Taj enjoys trying out new restaurants, online shopping, fashion, sports and watching the Walking Dead.
Currently Teaching
In the News
-
September 9, 2020
![Graphic of man in gray suit with words: Connections with Evan Dawson.]()
Connections: Addressing hate violence with civil rights expert Eric Ward
WXXI’s “Connections” program features Taj Smith, director of diversity education.
-
August 10, 2020
![statement by Jeremiah Parry-Hill committing to being antiracist.]()
#AntiracismatRIT urges RIT community members to pledge to take action
RIT is launching a social media campaign to urge members of the RIT community to take a stand against racism, demonstrate ways to be antiracist, or explain what steps they will take to become antiracist.
-
July 14, 2020
![collage of 15 RIT employees with the words: What's Your Diversity?]()
RIT community members connect across cultural lines through ‘What’s Your Diversity?’ program
In the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, RIT’s Division of Diversity and Inclusion wanted to create a way for faculty and staff to connect with people from different backgrounds despite the limitations that come with physical distancing. In April, they launched the “What’s Your Diversity” program, a weekly storytelling and dialogue hour held via Zoom that allowed RIT faculty and staff to share how diversity impacts their lives.
