GREENEVILLE – Multiple sectors of the Tusculum University family gathered recently to share fond memories and celebrate the legacy of Dr. Nancy Moody as they bestowed a special honor on the higher education institution’s former president, who passed away in December.
Mykel Johnson, left, and Adam Moody stand behind the plaque marking the name of the Dr. Nancy B. Moody Lecture Hall. Johnson and Moody, who are the children of Dr. Moody, are also standing by a lantern provided as part of the dedication.
Left to right, Dr. Scott Hummel, Mykel Johnson and Adam Moody unveil the plaque. Johnson and Moody are Dr. Moody’s children.
Members of the Board of Trustees joined Tusculum faculty, staff and alumni and Dr. Moody’s family for a ceremony to rename the Meen Center lecture hall. One of the larger spaces on campus and home to classes, faith-based activities and events, that room is now known as the Dr. Nancy B. Moody Lecture Hall. The new name reflects the university’s affection for its first female president, who served from 2009-2017.
“I appreciate Dr. Moody’s leadership,” said Dr. Hummel, Tusculum’s president. “Completing the projects that come to my desk has been made easier by her stewardship and the progress she made at the university. Knowing the challenges that can arise in this position and all that is involved in being president gives me that much greater appreciation for her leadership and her contributions. We are extremely grateful that Dr. Moody served as Tusculum’s president and are thankful we are able to memorialize her today.”
Dr. Hummel said it has been heartwarming to hear people talk about Dr. Moody’s community engagement and the imprint she left. But he also noted her impact on the campus, including the Meen Center, which she guided from initial approval to funding to oversight of construction. The Meen Center is home to the university’s science, mathematics and computer science programs, and it houses the business faculty and courses and Tusculum’s TRIO program staff.
Professor’s story
Dr. Suzanne Byrd, professor of sport science, was hired as a faculty member during Dr. Moody’s presidency. She asked some fellow professors to share insights about the former president, and one faculty member commended Dr. Moody for her decisive leadership.
Dr. Suzanne Byrd addresses the audience.
“One thing kept recurring in the comments I received – Dr. Moody believed in educating the residents of Appalachia,” Dr. Byrd said. “She was passionate about that. She wanted to give everyone that opportunity to advance in life and saw education as a way to make that happen.”
Dr. Byrd then turned personal and highlighted Dr. Moody’s impact on her. She said Dr. Moody took a chance on hiring her and encouraged her to pursue her doctorate. Later, the two had lunch, and Dr. Byrd expressed a desire to have opportunities in leadership roles. Dr. Moody proceeded to involve her in the university’s work with the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges, the primary accrediting body for Tusculum. Dr. Byrd began serving on peer review committees to evaluate higher education institutions.
“She was pivotal in my joining that SACS community,” Dr. Byrd said. “Having that experience was critical in my ability to help Tusculum, which I love very much. I never would have had that opportunity to serve without her.”
Among the memories Dr. Byrd will carry about Dr. Moody are the former president’s warm smile, her friendly demeanor and her concern on others. She said she will always appreciate what Dr. Moody did for her and Tusculum.
An alumnus’ viewpoint
Ryan Barker, who earned bachelor’s degrees in English and history from Tusculum in 2015, highlighted how Dr. Moody asked to speak a couple of times at university functions when he was a student. He said she insisted that he begin his remarks by sharing that he was the first person in his family to graduate from high school and that Tusculum was creating his entire journey.
Ryan Barker speaks about Dr. Nancy Moody.
Barker served as Student Government Association president and a work-study in the Office of Institutional Advancement. Both roles put him in fairly regular contact with Dr. Moody. But he also shared a more personal interaction – the day in the winter when she saw Barker hustling between two buildings on campus in the snow without a coat. She assigned four staff members to be sure Barker had a coat to wear. He said she realized her students have major, but fixable, problems that can become a full-fledged crisis if they are not addressed.
He also remembered sharing with Dr. Moody his aspiration to be president of a small college someday. She teasingly responded by telling donors that Barker was after her job.
“I saw someone in Dr. Moody who, in her own words, wanted her students to not only do well but to do good,” Barker said. “As a humanities kid, I could not be prouder to see this science hall dedicated to someone who worked to bring light to campus.”
View from the board chair
Dr. Greg Nelson, Tusculum’s board chair, remembered his first lunch with Dr. Moody and the warmth she exhibited.
Dr. Scott Hummel speaks at the ceremony.
Dr. Greg Nelson delivers remarks.
“First, she started by telling me about Tusculum and Verna June Meen,” he said of the woman who made a substantial donation that helped the building move forward. “She told me how she came to know Verna June and how that relationship had developed, and it became apparent to me very quickly that she saw more in Verna June than just a potential donor to Tusculum. It had gone even farther.”
When he became a board member, Dr. Nelson attended dinners where Mrs. Meen was present. He noticed how Dr. Moody would look at Mrs. Meen like a daughter would her mother. He said Mrs. Meen’s donation was a major boost to Tusculum, but he said Dr. Moody showed that the university’s approach is to treat donors as Tusculum family members.
Dr. Nelson also talked about the many stories he heard from Dr. Moody about Tusculum students who had financial challenges in achieving their academic dreams. He recalled her talking about a student one time who was the first in his family to go to college. Tears came to her eyes as she shared how Tusculum was able to assist this student and how that Pioneer was now working in her office, was a leader on campus and was becoming part of the community.
“That was not the only time I heard a story like that,” Dr. Nelson said. “Nancy was always watching for that student who had overcome, and she was lifting that student up because she wanted us to see that example that this is what we are doing at Tusculum. We are lifting up students to overcome whatever circumstances they face and become whatever their full potential is.
“It is fitting that this particular hall in this particular building be named the Nancy Moody Lecture Hall because her legacy for the next 50-100 years of Tusculum is to continue to do that core mission that she so loved and that all of you here today love as well. May Nancy’s story be told over and over again when people ask who she was. Tell the stories of how much compassion and care and dedication she had to the students here, and you’ll be keeping her legacy alive.”
Ministers’ thoughts
Dr. Dan Donaldson speaks before giving the benediction.
The Rev. Lester Lattany delivers the opening prayer.
The Rev. Lester Lattany and Dr. Dan Donaldson delivered the opening prayer and benediction, respectively for Friday’s event. Both are former board members who served with Dr. Moody, and they also shared a few words about her.
Lattany recalled how he called her a stitch in the Tusculum tapestry at her inauguration, a reference he used again Friday. In his remarks Friday, he referred to Dr. Moody as a wonderful woman of God and said everyone thanks her for her vision and all she accomplished.
Dr. Donaldson reflected on the construction of the Meen Center and recalled the time when Mrs. Meen, Dr. Moody and board members had the opportunity to sign the beam atop the building. Even though that beam is now covered, he said the memory of that moment and the vision of Dr. Moody to make that moment possible remain.
More information about the university is available at www.tusculum.edu.