GREENEVILLE – Tusculum University is remembering with fondness Dr. Nancy Moody, who contributed to the higher education institution’s strength as she served with distinction for eight years as president.
Dr. Nancy Moody served as Tusculum’s president from 2009-2017.
Dr. Moody passed away Thursday, Dec. 26, and the news has resulted in an outpouring of support from those who knew her. She served as president from 2009-2017 when the institution was named Tusculum College.
“The Tusculum family expresses its condolences to the family of Dr. Moody while celebrating her work to equip our students to be career-ready professionals,” said Dr. Scott Hummel, who has served as the university’s president since 2020. “I have heard many stories about the positive impact Dr. Moody made on Tusculum and join those who knew her well in mourning her passing. We are grateful Dr. Moody graced us with her service to the university and thank her for her leadership and dedication to Tusculum’s success.”
Part of Dr. Moody’s legacy that remains such a force in Tusculum’s delivery of a high-quality education is the construction of the state-of-the-art Meen Center. This is the university’s newest building, and Dr. Moody guided the 100,000-square foot project through every step – from the initial approval to funding to oversight of construction. She led the efforts that secured a $3.9 million gift for the naming of the Meen Center and two $1.5 million endowments to support faculty and students.
The Meen Center is a key component of a student’s academic development, but the facility is also playing a key role in the university’s commitment to civic engagement. Since 2018, Tusculum biology and chemistry students have been engaged in researching potential new medications to fight cancer. The building supports additional active and experiential learning opportunities for students across multiple disciplines.
A major supporter in the building’s construction was the late Verna June Meen, and Dr. Moody talked about her when she announced her retirement as president.
“Verna June came to love Tusculum and her interactions at events with members of the board and others,” Dr. Moody said. “She expressed on more than one occasion how proud she was to have provided support to Tusculum College for the Meen Center for Science and Math and for two endowments, one to fund scholarships and one to fund an endowed professorship in chemistry.”
Dr. Chuck Pearson, assistant dean of math and science, was named the Dr. Ronald H. Meen Distinguished Professor of Chemistry in 2022.
In addition to the Meen Center, Dr. Moody’s presidency resulted in the installation of several academic programs at the university, including criminal justice and the Master of Business Administration. The university also launched the men’s and women’s lacrosse and track and field programs with Dr. Moody at the helm.
Dr. Moody’s presidency produced further success. Tusculum reached articulation and affiliation agreements with regional community colleges and professional schools to increase enrollment in the bachelor’s degree programs and to provide expedited graduate school opportunities for the university’s alumni.
The university’s Board of Trustees recognized Dr. Moody’s contributions to Tusculum by presenting her with the inaugural Founders Award in 2013. The award, named in memory of the Rev. Samuel Doak, the Rev. Samuel Witherspoon Doak and the Rev. Hezekiah Balch, recognizes those who have moved Tusculum forward in serving its students, its community and the world with integrity, tenacity, commitment, ingenuity and drive.
“I am honored to have had the opportunity to serve as the 27th president and first female president of this historic institution,” Dr. Moody said in announcing her retirement. “In the last 7 1/2 years, the most memorable events for me have been the relationships that I have had the good fortune of developing with students, the Board of Trustees, alumni, members of the local community, faculty and staff and particularly with donors.”
In the immediate aftermath of Dr. Moody’s death, several people expressed their sadness and gratitude on social media. Dr. Michael Bodary, a former English professor, highlighted the personal attention she gave him when he rolled his ankle one day. A nurse by training, Dr. Moody checked his ankle and, after concluding he had not broken it, advised him how to treat it.
“I missed her when she left TU in 2017, and today I am missing her again,” Dr. Bodary said.
Roxanna Jaynes, who works in the cafeteria, remembered when she was undergoing chemotherapy how Dr. Moody visited her. She said Dr. Moody read to her, prayed for her healing and stayed in touch throughout her treatments. Dr. Moody also sent flowers and attended the visitation when Jaynes’ father passed.
Dr. Moody began her academic career as a nursing instructor for Lincoln Memorial University in 1974 and advanced to hold several academic leadership positions there. She was associate professor and department chair in the College of Nursing at East Tennessee State University, executive director of the Tennessee Center for Nursing and assistant professor of nursing in the College of Nursing at the University of Tennessee. She served as president of Lincoln Memorial for seven years.
Dr. Moody earned her associate and bachelor’s degrees in nursing from Eastern Kentucky University, a master’s in nursing from the Texas Women’s University Institute of Health Sciences-Houston Center in 1978 and a doctorate in nursing from the University of Alabama at Birmingham’s School of Nursing.
More information about the university is available at www.tusculum.edu.