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Four years later, Dr. Bryan Smith, and his daughter, Payge, returned to the Legacy Tower Plaza together.

����Թ� is proud to boast hundreds of legacy families throughout the years. In order to be considered a “legacy,” a family must have at least two generations of ����Թ� students. The family ties at ����Թ� did not start with Payge or Bryan. “My mom worked in the (now) Stoner Health, Counseling and Disabilities Center,” Bryan says, “which obviously drew me to the school and campus.”

Bryan graduated from ����Թ� in 1991, before earning his Ph.D. from the University of Wyoming. Though he has just completed his 12th year teaching chemistry at ����Թ�, higher education was not always the plan for the current dean of The School of Natural Sciences & Allied Health Sciences. “I resisted (education) at first,” he recalls. “Throughout my schooling, I continued to enjoy and appreciate it. All of a sudden it hit me that this was my future.” That path was realized much quicker by his daughter.

Payge arrived on campus for her first year in August 2014. Just like countless others before them, Payge and Bryan took their photo together (right) at the Legacy Tower Plaza in front of the University Commons during Welcome Week. The second of four children, Payge is the first of Bryan’s kids to attend ����Թ�. She says her close family ties kept her in her hometown of Tiffin when choosing a college destination. That decision led to an experiment constructed by her mother, Susan.

“When I first got dropped off for college ...” Payge begins her story. Bryan starts to laugh. “My mom took away my house keys and said I wasn’t allowed to come home for at least three weeks.” Bryan is quick to add that Susan also had her grandmother’s house keys as well. Wanting to make sure she got the full college experience, they removed Payge’s safety net.

Three weeks turned into three months before Payge felt the need to return home. “It wasn’t because I didn’t want to come home,” she explains. “I just met people here and made connections that made me want to stay. (����Թ�) really did feel like home once I got here.” Bryan notes that he was “thrilled” with the experiment and how much Payge embraced the community.

Having a father who is a professor, it seems only natural that Payge would consider teaching. She recalls that she’s dreamed of teaching for as long as she can remember. Wanting children to realize their passion for learning, she plans to teach at the middle school level. “I want to have an impact on them and I think that’s the perfect age group to have them really understand their passion.”

Seeing her father’s Facebook posts, of all things, has shown her some of the appreciation that students have gained for him over the years. Bryan’s posts, which he’s dubs “information celebrations,” quite often are taken over by former students, commenting how they’ve been positively impacted by Bryan’s teaching. “I want to have that same kind of impact on my students,” she says.

Bryan can now watch his daughter head into her career with new confidence. “I think with the liberal arts approach to education at ����Թ�, she found connections here she never imagined possible,” he says. “She matured, became more independent and blossomed in ways not available to many students at other schools.”

And, yes, she got her house keys back.