It Feels Like Family
Charles and Bettye Moore fund the future
I’m so thankful for the Charles and Bettye Moore Scholarship,” says Audrey Ingle of Sharon, Tennessee, a freshman at the University of Tennessee at Martin. “The Moore scholarship is for students from my hometown, so I know they care about us and our families. It feels like I have a second family supporting my education.”
Audrey, who also holds down two jobs, is not alone in her gratitude for financial support. Ashley Thomas, a UT Martin nursing major, says, “My scholarship has allowed me to totally focus on my classes. I’m not sidetracked with the dilemma of how to pay for my education.”
Audrey and Ashley, like most Tennessee students, need financial assistance to help pay for college. In its 2007–08 educational report, the Tennessee Higher Education Commission noted that nationally the percentage of state tax revenue devoted to higher education has decreased over the past 20 years.
Although Tennessee is the 17th most populous state in the U.S., historically it has been near the bottom of the 50 states in spending for education. And despite Tennessee’s lottery-based scholarships, financially disadvantaged Tennesseans need further assistance to make their dreams of earning a college education a reality.
“Most of our scholarship endowments at UT Martin were created by people who love the university and want to expand opportunities for the people of this region,” explains UT Martin Chancellor Tom Rakes. “Certainly Bettye and Charlie Moore meet that description perfectly.”
The Moores were born and grew up in the northwest Tennessee community of Sharon. They attended high school together and established a good-natured competition for top grades and honors. Charlie attended UT Martin and, in 1962, earned his bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from UT’s Knoxville campus.
Charlie and Bettye are both retired after careers with Boeing. Charlie was a senior specialist with the Apollo programs, and Bettye was the administrative aide for senior management at a number of Boeing locations and at corporate headquarters. Charlie also served as vice president of corporate engineering at Ethyl/Albemarle and as executive vice president and chief operating officer with Stone and Webster.
The Moores have not only supported the university financially; they are also both active volunteers on behalf of UT. Charlie serves on the UT Development Council, and Bettye is a member of the UT Martin Development Committee.
To say they are active volunteers is putting it mildly, since they are both motorcycle enthusiasts and international travelers who have been known to saddle up their Harleys for a cross-country ride or head off on an African safari when not serving as volunteer leaders for the university.
Although they now live in Baton Rouge, the Moores want to continue helping academically accomplished students in financial need, especially from the areas around Sharon and Sidonia, Tennessee. They recently committed $5.6 million to establish the Charles and
Bettye Moore Scholarship Endowment for UT Knoxville and UT Martin students.
In addition to establishing a scholarship endowment, the Moores have also made provision in their estate plans to continue assisting students from the Sharon and Sidonia area. Clearly, the Moores plan to be part of the UT family for a long time.
