D. Venice Smith

Smithde4@pres.msu.edu - (517) 432-0663

A graduate of MSU, D. Venice Smith returned to the University as the Multicultural Development Coordinator in 1992; she presently leads the I3 educational and development efforts. Her diversity education classes are provided for both academic and support areas, and are available through this office, Human Resources Development, and other MSU departments and units. In addition to her work designing and implementing workshops that address a variety of diversity and inclusion related topics, Ms. Smith also does consulting and coaching on diversity and inclusion matters for the MSU community.

A CIC-Academic Leadership Program Fellow (1994-1995) Smith several times has been a presenter at the National Conference on Race and Ethnicity (NCORE), in American Higher Education.  After graduation she served as the Contract Compliance Officer for the Southeastern Michigan Transportation Authority for twelve years. 

After a long hiatus from the classroom, Ms. Smith became a non-traditional student taking graduate classes in the School of Labor and Industrial Relations upon her return to MSU.  Most recently (2008) she received certification as a Certified Human Resources Specialist (CHRS).

In addition to her work at MSU, Ms. Smith works as a private diversity consultant providing educational opportunities for the employees of numerous corporations. For the past seven years she has served as one of the official advanced diversity trainers for the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). In recent years, she has presented diversity-education workshops for Parke-Davis, the DaimlerChrysler-UAW National Training Center, the U.S. Army Tank Command, and the U.S. Postal Service.  Closer to home, she has conducted diversity workshops for the Michigan Education Association (MEA), Michigan Educational Supplemental Services Association (MESSA), and Capital Area Transportation Authority (CATA).

Her continuing passion for her work stems from the connections she sees between her job and her core values. She shares: "Being a person of color, a woman, and a single mom has many challenges not only on our campus but most everywhere in American society. I grew up believing that being different did not mean being less, it actually meant that I had something unique and of value to offer those who were not like me. And for those like me, it meant I could work to build and support bridges of understanding."