Professor of Psychology Dennis Molfese is retiring after more than four decades as a renowned developmental psychologist and neuroscientist. As part of his illustrious career, Dennis served as the founding director of UNL’s Center for Brain, Biology, and Behavior (CB3) from 2010-2015. Dennis earned his PhD from Penn State University in 1972, specializing in electrophysiological studies of speech perception and language development. His research has spanned infant learning, language and math development, effects of sleep loss, the impact of cognitive interventions on the brain, and the impact of environmental factors on cognitive processing and temperament during infancy and early childhood. After serving on the faculty of Southern Illinois University and the University of Louisville he moved to UNL in 2010 to found CB3. While at UNL he developed a new line of research on the effects of concussions on youth brain function and behavior and served on a National Academy of Science panel on sports concussion.

During his career, Dennis has had a profound impact on the field of developmental neuropsychology as reflected in numerous scientific awards. He is a Fellow of the American Psychological Association and the American Psychological Society. He has received a Sigma Xi Kaplan Research Award for Outstanding Contributions in Psychology, a Phi Kappa Phi Award for Scholarly Achievement, the Psychologist of the Year Award from the Kentucky Psychological Association, and a Life Time Achievement Award for Contributions to the Fields of Learning Disabilities and Dyslexia from the Nebraska Dyslexia Association. He has also received Distinguished Scholar awards from Southern Illinois University and University of Louisville as well as the Outstanding Alumni Award from Penn State University. At UNL he is the Mildred Francis Thompson Professor and the 2018 recipient of the ORCA (Outstanding Research and Creative Activity) award.

Dennis has also contributed to undergraduate teaching and to graduate and postdoctoral training at UNL. He regularly taught undergraduate courses in life-span developmental psychology. He also mentored graduate and postdoctoral students, and received the Outstanding Postdoctoral Mentor Award from UNL in 2014.

Although he is retiring, Dennis remains active in the field and is currently working on a book. He is also an avid hiker who spends a few weeks each summer backpacking in the Tetons, where he has been known to encounter bears. We hope his retirement offers him an opportunity to savor his writing and to enjoy nature while avoiding the bears.