Family friends and lifelong supporters of Tanner Smith have established an endowment in his name with ClemsonLIFE.
Tanner Smith was raised in the small, tight-knit community of Saint Matthews, South Carolina, on his family’s cotton and peanut farm. Fame via a reality show, appearances on nationally televised talk shows, status as an autism advocate, and over one million social media followers were far from anyone’s mind back then.
That all changed with Tanner’s inclusion on “Love on the Spectrum,” a Netflix documentary series that follows the dating lives of individuals with autism. He has since appeared on talk shows and in the media as an advocate for the autism community and amassed an impressive following on social media, where he leads an “open book” life for those curious about what he’s up to and how he lives and works independently in the Clemson community.
He is making a positive impact on innumerable people now, but those people are just having to catch up on what so many in Tanner’s orbit have experienced for so long. William ’92, ’90 and Dawn Robinson have been lifelong friends of the Smith family; they say Tanner’s effect on millions across the country is no surprise, as he had a similar effect on them, albeit nearly 20 years earlier.
The Robinsons have worked with Clemson University to establish the Tanner Smith Endowment for ClemsonLIFE in honor of Tanner Smith. The Robinson family hopes that this gift will further cement Tanner’s legacy and provide the same job skills and independent living tools to other young adults with intellectual disabilities.
“We have followed Tanner his entire life and have seen his heart grow and felt his joy over the years,” William Robinson said. “At a young age, Tanner inspired us to be better, to think differently and to find ‘your joy’ in life in all that you do. He is a remarkable young man who has embraced his diagnosis and made a positive impact on many people.”
Tanner was diagnosed with autism, sensory integration dysfunction and auditory processing disorder when he was four years old. According to his mother, Nicci, Tanner worked tirelessly throughout his life to overcome his challenging circumstances. In school, Tanner received numerous therapies, including Applied Behavior Analysis, occupational therapy and speech therapy in addition to specialized educational settings. Tanner graduated from Glenforest School in Columbia, South Carolina, in 2017.
Tanner went on to complete ClemsonLIFE’s four-year program, graduating in 2022. According to Nicci Smith, Tanner’s mother, the Smith family agrees that the LIFE program was the most pivotal and life-changing intervention in Tanner’s life. After graduating, Tanner was hired by The Shepherd Hotel in Clemson and remains employed there to this day. He lives independently in the Clemson community with minimal help from an assistant. Nicci said Tanner’s life and current circumstances are a testament to the effectiveness of the ClemsonLIFE program.
“The impact that ClemsonLIFE had on Tanner completely changed his life,” Nicci said. “It gave him the chance to be independent and employed, while also giving him a peer group and a social life. We want to see as many young adults with disabilities as possible have the same chances and opportunities that Tanner did to achieve their highest potential.”
Nicci said the LIFE program was valuable because of the life skills and independent living at its core, but Tanner cherishes the friendships he made and continues to this day.
The Robinsons understandably followed Tanner’s journey through the LIFE program and his very active advocacy after graduation. Through this endowment, they seek to expand opportunities for students with intellectual disabilities to pursue post-secondary education, meaningful employment and independent living. The Tanner Smith Endowment will provide long-term student support, giving future students and families experiential learning opportunities within ClemsonLIFE, ensuring the program continues to change lives through education, community and purpose.
William Robinson and Mark Smith, Tanner’s father, were childhood friends and later roommates at Clemson. They never would have considered Clemson an option for Tanner. To Nicci, the fact that Tanner could follow in his father – and his father’s best friend’s – footsteps and attend Clemson is truly one of the “biggest miracles” of the Smith family story. She sees the endowment and the generosity of close friends opening that same door for many other students in the future.
“This is truly a full-circle moment for all of us; when we think of other young adults getting the chance to go to college in Tanner’s name and experience the same success that he did, it is beyond anything we could have ever dreamed possible,” Nicci said. “We are so honored to have Tanner and our family’s names associated with ClemsonLIFE in this way, and we are thrilled to stay informed and follow the journey of the students who will receive this support.”