Tahira Reid Smith, Ph.D., began her journey as an inventor in the third grade, designing a machine to automate double Dutch for a school poster contest. "It was such an 'aha' moment," she said, recalling how the idea resurfaced during her Introduction to Engineering Design course at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI). Encouraged by mentor Burt Swersey, a celebrated inventor and educator, Reid Smith developed a prototype of her invention. "What I created in Burt's course was just proof of concept, but I remember him telling me, 'Start taking orders for it. You need to bootstrap this thing!'"
Her innovative machine, now displayed in the Smithsonian's "Change Your Game" exhibit, highlights 60 groundbreaking sports technologies. Reid Smith, now a professor at Penn State, credits Swersey for inspiring her love of design. "Burt was an incredible mentor to me, and as an inventor himself, he brought an entrepreneurial energy to teaching."
The exhibit is housed in the Jerome and Dorothy Lemelson Hall of Invention, funded by The Lemelson Foundation, which also supports RPI's Inventor's Studio program. "What is unique about Inventor's Studio is that it allows undergraduates to become inventors," said Asish Ghosh, director of the program.
Since graduating, Reid Smith has continued her mission to bring her invention to market. She founded Jump Dreams Inc. in collaboration with product design firms and has gained renewed attention through appearances on NOVA and media outlets. "Stories like mine are still too rare," she said, advocating for more diversity in inventing. According to Invent Together, women make up only 13% of inventors globally, with underrepresented racial groups accounting for less than 8% of U.S. patent-holders.
Reflecting on her upbringing as the child of Jamaican immigrants, Reid Smith shared her guiding philosophy: "There is a Jamaican saying, 'Nothing beats a try but a failure.' This means being persistent, trying until you can't try any more." Her advice to aspiring inventors? "Anything is possible if you don't quit. Keep going."
Link: RPI.EDU
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