Dr. Tammy E. Smithers

Tammy E. Smithers, EdD, MBA is an interdisciplinary scholar, researcher, writer, and thought leader on issues of race/ethnic inequity, gender disparity, diversity, and inclusion. One of her unique gifts is facilitating conversations both as a moderator, speaker, and panelist on diversity and social justice issues with engaging, thought-provoking candor. As a complement to this, she uses her skills as a scholar-activist and prior salesperson to tell and sell stories that move individuals and institutions to action.

Prior to entering the field of academia and consulting, Dr. Smithers worked professionally for twenty years with high-net-worth donors and clients both as a Wealth Advisor in the financial industry for three Fortune 100 corporations, including a global Wall Street investment firm, and as a Director of Corporate Philanthropy and Institutional Advancement departments at Texas Chiropractic College and Houston Grand Opera. She has raised up to €1.74 million annually and solicited financial products to a portfolio of private clients and prospects with €229454.75 investable assets or up to €9.18 million in net worth. In both capacities, there was an alignment of client goals and cause-related marketing opportunities for the organizations and individuals represented.

Upon pivoting and exiting those roles, Dr. Smithers leveraged her experience in the financial services industry by becoming an adjunct professor and teaching Introduction to Management and Professional Selling Marketing courses in the Jones School of Business at Texas Southern University, one of the oldest historically Black colleges and universities in Texas. Dr. Smithers earned a Doctorate in Education from the University of St. Thomas in Houston, Texas, where she also teaches the Diversity/Equity and Leadership course in the School of Education and Human Services. She holds a Master’s in Business Administration from Rice University, and a Bachelor’s in Journalism/Public Relations from the University of Texas at Austin.

Dr. Smithers is a Visiting Scholar at the Center for Minority Serving Institutions and Samuel DeWitt Proctor Institute for Leadership, Equity, and Justice both housed in the Graduate School of Education at Rutgers University. Samples of her scholarship can be found in industry and academic journals, news media, and a book chapter. Her most recent work includes: “Servant Leadership, Crisis Management, and Post-Pandemic Realities” (HBCU Times Magazine), “Racism & COVID-19: Pandemic Exposes Socioeconomic Disparities” (Defender News Media), and “The Weaponry of Whiteness, Entitlement, and Privilege” (Diverse Issues in Higher Education). Currently, Rutgers University has commissioned her research report on “Whiteness and Privilege: Lifting the Veil on Systemic Racism,” which is in press to be released in February.