Skip to main content
University of Nebraska Omaha logo University of Nebraska Omaha
APPLY MY UNO DIRECTORY

Students Faculty Staff Community
University of Nebraska Omaha logo
College of Business Administration
APPLY MY UNO DIRECTORY
Students Faculty Staff Community
  • About Us Backback to Main menu
    • About CBA
    • Why Choose the UNO College of Business Administration?
    • Mission, Vision, and Societal Impact Aspiration
    • Dean's Message
    • AACSB Accreditation
    • Faculty and Staff Directory
    • Advisory Boards
    • Our Alumni Network
    • News and Events
  • Academics Backback to Main menu
    • Undergraduate Programs
    • Graduate Programs
    • Undergraduate Academic Advising
    • Collaborative Leadership Minor & Minors for Non-Business Majors
    • CBA Scholars Academy
    • CBA Capstone Cup
  • Admissions Backback to Main menu
    • Undergraduate Admissions
    • Graduate Admissions
    • Scholarships
    • Graduate Assistantships
    • Financial Support
    • Request Information
  • Student Involvement Backback to Main menu
    • Student Involvement
    • CBA Student Organizations
    • Study Abroad
    • CBA Internships
  • Outreach Backback to Main menu
    • Outreach
    • Genius of Buffett
    • High School Business Competition
    • Prep Academy
    • Maverick Investment Camp
    • Maverick Young Entrepreneur Bootcamp
    • CBA Career Outfitters
    • International Outreach
  • Centers and Programs
    Centers
    • CBA Career Center
    • CBA Center for Real Estate and Asset Management
    • The Center for Collaboration Science
    • UNO Center for Economic Education
    • Center for Innovation, Entrepreneurship and Franchising
    • Center for International Business Initiatives
    • Koraleski CAB Lab
    • Nebraska Business Development Center
    Programs
    • Executive and Professional Development Program
    • NSF I-Corps
    • Underserved Law Opportunity Program
    • Financial Literacy Program
    Students work in the Jack and Stephanie Koraleski Commerce and Applied Behavioral Laboratory
    CBA students are doing amazing things.

    Explore the possibilities - contact us today.

    Email CBA(Opens an external site in a new window)
  • Resources Backback to Main menu
    • Tutoring
    • Undergraduate Academic Advising
    • CBA Career Center
    • UNO Support Services
    • Mammel Hall
    • Mammel Hall Technology Services
    • Magazine and Newsletter
    • UNO Speech Center
  • Executive Education Backback to Main menu
    • Executive and Professional Development Program
    • index
  1. UNO
  2. College of Business Administration
  3. News
  4. 2025
  5. 05
  6. “It Begins in Neighborhoods”

“It Begins in Neighborhoods”

Why Carmen and Bob Tapio are passionate about the CBA Prep Academy.

  • published: 2025/05/20
  • contact: Melissa Lindell Kozak - Sr. Director of Communications & Marketing, UNO CBA
  • email: melissalindell@unomaha.edu
  • search keywords:
  • CBA Prep Academy
  • Carmen Tapio
  • Bob Tapio
  • Giving Back
Bob and Carmen Tapio, couple standing in a garden

Bob and Carmen Tapio

Carmen and Bob Tapio have made it their life’s work to build up people. Carmen is the founder and CEO of North End Teleservices LLC and several other enterprises in the city of Omaha. The company, founded in 2015, provides state, federal, and local government entities and commercial enterprises, with state-of-the-art contact center solutions and services. Bob has had a career in the food service and restaurant industry and has always believed that most people can come together around food. Previously, he was Food Service Director at Boys Town, an organization that provides youth care services for thousands of children nationwide.

Carmen and Bob have deep roots in the community. Bob grew up in South Omaha with his family of eight and attended South High School. Carmen originally came to Nebraska with her military Air Force family in 1975. While her career has taken her all over the world, she has always called Omaha home. Their daughter Caityln is a commodity trader and their son Josh runs an insurance agency. Josh and his wife Anne are graduates of UNO.

Their love for their community has compelled them to make diversified investments, not just financially but also through community philanthropy, and serving on boards.

Bob serves on the Father Flanagan League of Devotion Board. Carmen is the chair of the Omaha Chamber of Commerce and serves on many other boards including the University of Nebraska Trustee Foundation, the Omaha Zoological Society, and is Board Chair of the Omaha Chamber of Commerce. Together they serve on the University of Nebraska CBA Capital Campaign Committee.

Their passion for people and the city of Omaha has led them to invest in causes and projects that they believe in. One of those causes is CBA’s Prep Academy, a college preparatory program for students of all backgrounds, designed to create a diverse talent pipeline from high school to UNO CBA to the Omaha workforce through programs like the Prep Academy’s summer camps.

“What we find is that early exposure to anything such as the arts, education, science, music, culinary arts, sports, etc. is very important. What young people believe is possible, and their early experience and interaction helps them understand what is accessible to them. We support the Prep Academy because of that. We think it’s really important for that early exposure,” Mrs. Tapio said.

In the fall of 2020, senior leadership at UNO announced new strategic investment areas of inequality, social justice, race, and class in our society. There was a university-wide call for program proposals focused on these areas, with the opportunity for some to be selected to receive temporary funding. The CBA Prep Academy was one of them and officially began operation in October 2021. The CBA Prep Academy’s mission is to provide the academic skills, exposure, and support necessary to succeed in college and the workplace thereafter to all students, including those who are first-generation, low-income, and/or underrepresented.

Ultimately, the program aims to uplift under-resourced populations within the Omaha community, diversify the student body of UNO CBA, and create a diverse pipeline of CBA graduates who will bolster the Omaha workforce.

“We love the University of Nebraska system and the leadership. I’ve had an opportunity to work closely with Rebecca Atkins (Director of the Prep Academy) and her team as well as CBA Dean Michelle Trawick and the faculty, and we just feel like it’s a really good recipe for success for the Prep Academy,” Mrs. Tapio said.

The Tapios want to encourage others to support things that they are passionate about.

“Investing in others is a great way to advance and enrich our community and drive positive things. My mom instilled in me a great passion for cooking and food. She said food is our common denominator. Why not make it enjoyable? It’s something I have always thought about in my 40 years in the food service and restaurant industry. You never know where your passion is going to take you and what impact it is going to have on you and your community,” Mr. Tapio said.

One of their passions is to help revitalize North Omaha. Investing in a program like the CBA Prep Academy is a great way to help with education in the community and young people in North Omaha, an often-underserved area of the city.

“We are all in on being a part of helping to revitalize North Omaha through North End Teleservices, and other business ventures. I like to tell people about how the University of Nebraska was founded in North Omaha (the original Omaha University was founded in 1908 in the Kountze Place neighborhood of North Omaha. The first classes were held at the Redick Mansion once at North 24th and Pratt Streets). It begins in neighborhoods,” Mrs. Tapio said.

The Tapios say they want their legacy to be about changing lives, one person at a time, and the CBA Prep Academy is a way to do that.

“The mission of North End Teleservices and our mission is to take holistic care of people and help them overcome the barriers that prevent them from being economically independent. We want to be a part of removing barriers and exposing young people throughout our city to what’s possible at an early age. We want our legacy to be one life changed at a time,” Mrs. Tapio said.

News Sections

  • College of Business Administration News Center
  • UNO News Center
  • Maverick Daily
  • The Bullseye
  • Campus Events

Featured

  • “It Begins in Neighborhoods”
  • Rising from Rock Bottom
  • CBA Announces 2025 Scholars Academy Cohort
  • GCEE Delegation Explores Finnish and Estonian Economic and Educational Excellence

Most Viewed

  • The UNO EMBA Program Is Different – And Gets Results
  • UNO CBA’s Dr. Yanhui Zhao Quoted by BBC News
  • The Capstone Cup: UNO CBA’s Unparalleled Senior Experience

Contact Us

If you have a story idea, news tip or inquiry, please contact:

College of Business Administration
unocbainfo@unomaha.edu • 402.554.2303


About the College of Business Administration

College of Business Administration

Address
  • College of Business Administration
  • 300 Mammel Hall
  • 6708 Pine Street
  • Omaha, NE 68182   map
  • unocbainfo@unomaha.edu
Social media
Contact Us
  • Dean's Office: 402.554.2303
  • Academic Advising: 402.554.3419
  • AACSB Accreditation
  • Nebraska Business Development Center
US News and World Report Best Colleges Business Program 2022

Next Steps

  • Visit UNO
  • Request Information
  • Apply for Admission
  • The UNO Advantage
  • Our City (Omaha)

Just For You

  • Future Students
  • Current Students
  • Work at UNO
  • Faculty and Staff
  • A-Z List

Popular Services and Resources

  • my.unomaha.edu
  • Academic Calendar
  • Campus Buildings & Maps
  • Library
  • Pay Your Bill
  • Course Catalogs
  • Internships & Career Development
  • The Maverick Store
  • MavCARD Services
  • Military-Connected Resource Center
  • Speech Center
  • Writing Center
  • Human Resources
  • Center for Faculty Excellence

Affiliates

  • University of Nebraska System
  • NU Foundation
  • Buffett Early Childhood Institute
  • Daugherty Water for Food Institute
  • National Strategic Research Institute
  • Peter Kiewit Institute
  • Rural Prosperity Nebraska
  1. University Policies
  2. Privacy Statement
  3. Accessibility
  1. 402.554.2800

University of Nebraska Omaha
University of Nebraska Omaha, 6001 Dodge Street, Omaha, NE, 68182
  • ©  
  • Emergency Information Alert
  • MavsReport

Social Media


Omaha Skyline

Our Campus. Otherwise Known as Omaha.

The University of Nebraska does not discriminate based on race, color, ethnicity, national origin, sex, pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, disability, age, genetic information, veteran status, marital status, and/or political affiliation in its education programs or activities, including admissions and employment. The University prohibits any form of retaliation taken against anyone for reporting discrimination, harassment, or retaliation for otherwise engaging in protected activity. Read the full statement.