From classroom to community: Christopher Moyer receives Wright State Volunteer Service Award 

Long before he became a fixture at Wright State University’s alumni events — or a familiar face on Animal Planet — Christopher Moyer, Ph.D., was a student discovering his passion for teaching.

Decades later, his dedication to his alma mater earned him the 2025 Tony Alexander Volunteer Service Award from the Wright State Alumni Association.

“Winning this award is very important to me because I’ve seen the work that so many people have done with the alumni association over the years,” Moyer said. “And I really don’t know that I’ve done nearly as much as some of the people that I’ve worked with have been doing. But to see the work that they’ve put in and to see the efforts that I’ve made are being recognized and valued is very important to me.”

Moyer graduated from Wright State with a bachelor’s degree in mathematics in 1985 and an MBA in quantitative methods in 1986. He began teaching at Wright State in 1983 and served as a full-time instructor in 1986 and 1987.

“I not only learned the material in the courses I took and the programs that I studied, but I also had opportunities to teach in labs and recitations and occasionally as an instructor,” he said. “In doing this, I found that higher education was what I wanted to make a career out of. Wright State was essential to that career path that I chose.”

Moyer went on to earn his Ph.D. in operations research from The Ohio State University and has since 1994 taught business at Thomas More University in Kentucky, where he was recognized as Faculty of the Year in 2010.

“Wright State was essential to my career path,” he said. “I wouldn’t have taken this path if I hadn’t had the opportunities I did at Wright State.”

Christopher Moyer received the 2025 Tony Alexander Volunteer Service Award in recognition of his involvement in the Wright State Alumni Association. (Photo by Erin Pence)

About 15 years ago, Moyer worked with Wright State alumni Woody Willis and Tom Koogler to start the Greater Cincinnati Network of Wright State alumni. Moyer served as president of the Cincinnati network for four years and on the Wright State Alumni Association Board of Directors for nine years, serving on a variety of committees, including the Legacy Scholarship Committee.

“That put me in the position of reconnecting with the university on a much deeper level,” Moyer said. “To understand the things that the alumni do and to work with the different people and the different programs.”

Moyer regularly participates in Alumni Association events, including Homecoming, the annual Alumni beer tastings and bourbon trips. He has assisted with several wine and theatre events, helping select the wines and working with food services to create proper pairings.

In addition to his career and Alumni Association involvement, Moyer’s varied interests include conducting seminars on wine and food throughout the region. In 2007, he was named Iron Chef of Cincinnati.

Moyer has also raised oversized Russian hounds for more than three decades, ushering his dogs to top 10 national rankings seven times and earning several guest appearances on Animal Planet.

“To see that my efforts have been noticed and have been valued … that’s important,” Moyer said. “I’ve had some very good examples to follow.”