KEARNEY – University of Nebraska at Kearney faculty member Tami Moore is the featured speaker for this year’s Last Lecture event.
A professor of family science and former director of the family studies program, Moore will present “Family Matters” at 7 p.m. Wednesday in Copeland Hall Room 142 on the UNK campus. Her presentation explores how we define family and how family shapes our life experiences.
Sponsored by UNK’s Xi Phi chapter of Mortar Board, the event is free and open to the public. A livestream will be available here.
The Last Lecture series honors members of the UNK faculty, staff or administration by inviting them to give a lecture on a topic of their choosing. Lecturers are asked to think about insights and wisdom they would share if they had one final opportunity to address an audience.
A Wolbach native, Moore has taught courses in family science, multicultural education, ethnic studies and marketing and led several study abroad trips to Europe.
She was part of a task force that developed a program to support UNK freshmen during their transition to college, and she wrote a grant proposal that secured nearly $800,000 in federal funding to improve education for English-language learners in central Nebraska. “Family Resource Management,” which she co-authored with recently retired UNK family science professor Sylvia Asay, is a leading textbook in the field and the only one recommended for the National Council on Family Relations’ family life educator certification, a credential Moore holds.
Moore served as UNK Faculty Senate president from 2010-11 and as director of the family studies program from 2011-20. Her recognitions include the Pratt-Heins Award for Service, Order of Omega Faculty Member of the Year and College of Business and Technology Outstanding Teacher and Outstanding Service awards.
Equally active in the community, Moore was a member of the Kearney Planning Commission from 2014 to 2018, when she was elected to a four-year term on Kearney City Council. She’s served on the board of directors for the Kearney Area Children’s Museum, Yanney Heritage Park Foundation and Central Nebraska LOSS Team and is heavily involved with the Kearney Dawn Rotary Club.
Her family business, T. James Enterprises, has built more than 200 homes in Kearney over the past 25 years and was twice named Builder of the Year by the Kearney Area Builders Association, an organization Moore previously led as president.
Moore has three grown sons, Patrick, Taylor and Christopher, and two grandchildren, James, 10, and Norah, 6. She holds master’s degrees in human development and family relationships and industrial/organizational psychology and a doctorate in postsecondary leadership.
Established in 1918, Mortar Board is a national honor society recognizing college seniors for their exemplary scholarship, leadership and service. UNK’s Xi Phi chapter is one of 233 active chapters nationwide.
