He returned to Kansas City in 1898 in order to lead a youth band on an 18-month tour of Europe and Australia which would include a performance at the 1900 Paris Exposition. After touring, Smith returned and continued forming and leading bands in Chicago and Wichita until 1905. In that year, Teddy Roosevelt convinced him to become the bandleader at the Tuskegee Institute led by Booker T. Washington. To honor his new institution, he composed the "Tuskegee Institute March". After eight years at the Tuskegee Institute, Smith decided to leave because of a rumored disagreement between him and Washington about the number of plantation songs in his orchestral arrangements. Once again, his connection with Teddy Roosevelt, led him to accept a position to head the military and music departments at the Western Baptist University in Kansas City in 1913. His rigorous instruction and strong results led to Smith leaving the university to join the Lincoln High School in Kansas City in 1916. Although his instruction was quite strict, he began encouraging students to experiment with the developing new musical genre of Jazz. He moved again in 1922 to become the bandleader at the Wendell Phillips Academy High School in Chicago. At each place he moved, Smith was noted for organizing many bands in the area including the first African-American symphony orchestra, a number of women's choruses and bands, and youth bands (including the Chicago Defender's Newsboys Band, which included a young Lionel Hampton).