A former local and state official in Utah, Tami Pyfer is chief external affairs officer for UNITE and the co-creator of the nonprofit’s Dignity Index, a tool that measures political speech along an eight-point continuum from contempt to dignity.

Along with Dignity Index co-creators Timothy Shriver and Tom Rosshirt, she works to restore dignity and lower the level of contempt in public discussions.

Pyfer was a PTA president and a city councillor for eight years in Logan, Utah, before serving for four years on the Utah State Board of Education. She taught at Utah State University’s special education teacher preparation program and served as education policy advisor to former Utah Gov. Gary Herbert for seven years, working on state level policy development, coalition building, and stakeholder engagement.

In 2024, Pyfer was named a fellow by the Emerson Collective, an organization founded by entrepreneur Laurene Powell Jobs to support philanthropic work and investments. Her fellowship project involved applying the Dignity Index to women in politics, as a way to support and strengthen their participation in leadership and elected roles.

USA Today named Pyfer 2025 Woman of the Year for the state of Utah.

She also sang with the Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square for seven years, and later served as the choir’s director of external relations.