Vol. 29 No. 15 - December 2, 2024

   

Thousand Hills State Park has earned an exclusive designation, thanks in large part to the efforts of Truman students who took an interest in the night sky years ago.

DarkSky International recently certified the park as an Urban Night Sky Place. Founded in 2001, the International Dark Sky Places Program is a non-regulatory and voluntary program encouraging communities, parks and protected areas worldwide to preserve and protect dark sites through effective lighting policies, environmentally responsible outdoor lighting and public education. Thousand Hills State Park joins exclusive company as only 229 locations in the world have earned Urban Night Sky Place status.

“Preserving natural nighttime darkness in this area is valuable on many levels. It is beneficial to human health and safety, benefits the local ecological systems and it is cost-effective in terms of energy consumption,” said Vayujeet Gokhale, professor of physics. “Additionally, reducing light pollution will attract more tourists of the park, and to Kirksville, who will be much more likely to stay overnight in order to enjoy the wonders of the night sky.”
    
The idea for the DarkSky certification came about in early 2020 from a group of Truman students in one of Gokhale’s classes. The students worked with Ryan Persinger, superintendent of Thousand Hills State Park, to promote night sky preservation and light pollution abatement. Students helped conduct an inventory of the lights in the park, which played a role in creating plans to make these lights compatible with obtaining Urban Night Place status.

While Persinger worked with both DarkSky Missouri and DarkSky International for application and certification requirements and guidance, the student team collaborated with the Adair County Public Library and University staff on dark sky and astronomy programming. They helped organize and conduct “star parties” at Thousand Hills, which regularly attract between 50-100 people from Kirksville and the surrounding area. During these events, students set up telescopes to show visitors deep sky objects such as galaxies and nebulae. They also explain the importance of responsible use of outdoor lighting.

Another contribution of the student team was gathering community support letters. By 2021, Persinger submitted the initial certification inquiry to start the process with DarkSky Missouri, and by September 2024, Thousand Hills State Park received its certification.

“This achievement reflects the dedication of Thousand Hills State Park, DarkSky Missouri, Truman State University, and the city of Kirksville to reducing light pollution as a vital step toward protecting and celebrating the region’s significant cultural and natural resources. It is encouraging to see so many collaborators supporting this effort,” said Amber Harrison, International Dark Sky Places program manager.

Currently, the park’s outdoor lighting is 78% compliant, with plans to be 100% compliant by the end of 2025.

More information about the International Dark Sky Places program can be found at darksky.org/what-we-do/international-dark-sky-places.

 
Alumna Marjorie (Iwai) Maas (’02) will give the commencement address during graduation, Dec. 14.

Whether as an executive, marketer, fund developer, advocate or consultant, Maas has helped both startup and established initiatives and organizations for 20 years in her Omaha, Nebraska, home. Now, she has a voice nationally as the CEO of Share Good, an engagement partner for communities, foundations and nonprofits wanting to increase local philanthropic involvement. Its community platform brings local nonprofits together in one place and offers simple and creative ways for people to do good and engage with them.

Past roles for Maas have included serving as the founding executive director of SHARE Omaha; Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Nebraska’s director of corporate social responsibility; and development officer for College Possible Omaha. In line with her love of the arts and degree in art history from the University, she previously served arts organizations, artists and arts events as the sole proprietor of her consultancy, Palette Promotions, and as director of Nebraskans for the Arts.
 
Among her many community service efforts, Maas was a commissioner and immediate past commission chair of ServeNebraska, the state’s volunteer service agency. She has also occupied board or leadership roles with The Collective Hope, Omaha Network and Hear Nebraska.
 

Truman football will face Tiffin University in the fifth America’s Crossroads Bowl at 1 p.m. Dec. 7 in Hobart, Indiana.

The Bulldogs enter the bowl game with a 7-4 record and finished in second place in the Great Lakes Valley Conference with a 6-2 mark. They won the tie-breaker against Upper Iowa by virtue of their 26-23 win, Oct. 5. Tiffin finished the regular season 8-3 and was 7-2 in the Great Midwest Athletic Conference.

This game will be a rematch of the 2022 bowl game in which Truman denied a two-point conversion with 46 seconds left to preserve a 28-27 win against the Dragons. The two schools played at each other’s campus in 2021 and 2022 with both of those games coming down to the wire.

In 2021, the Bulldogs scored twice in the final 3:29 to win 38-35 over the then No. 12-ranked Dragons.

In September 2022, Tiffin led 10-0, and later 10-7 with 2:27 left to play. The Bulldogs made a 39-yard field goal to tie the game, sending it to overtime, which led the Bulldogs to an 18-17 victory. Truman finished the regular season 8-2 while the Dragons were 6-4.

The bowl game is a partnership between the Great Lakes Valley Conference, Great Midwest Athletics Conference and the South Shore Convention and Visitors Authority. The first game took place in 2019 with Truman defeating Ohio Dominican. The Bulldogs were champions of the first three America’s Crossroads Bowl games. Last season, Ashland, Ohio, defeated McKendree for the GMAC’s first win in the game.

Fans will have the opportunity to attend a pre-game party at the Hobart Art Theater from 9 a.m.-12 p.m. Tickets and other game information are available soon through the America’s Crossroads Bowl website.

The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) can be filed now for the 2025-2026 school year at studentaid.gov.

All students in need of financial assistance are encouraged to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). Federal Student Aid is the largest provider of financial aid for college students in the United States.

Even though a student may not qualify for grants or work-study, all students are considered for the Federal Direct Loan (no co-signer required). Filing the FAFSA does not commit students to taking a loan, but it does allow for more options.

The 2025-2026 FAFSA will use 2023 tax year information with a priority deadline of Feb. 1, 2025 for Missouri residents. It is strongly recommended to apply or renew before Feb. 1 Details about the FAFSA can be found online at studentaid.gov.

For more information, contact the Financial Aid Office at 660.785.4130 or finaid@truman.edu. The Financial Aid Office website also has a variety of helpful resources for students and their families.

Dane Winterboer (middle) accepts the prize for first place in the Bulldog B.I.T.E. competition from University President Sue Thomas and Charles Hunsaker, associate vice president for University advancement.

More than 80 high school and college students participated in the Bulldog B.I.T.E. competition and Bulldog Pitch Day.

The top six pitches in each competition advanced to the finals that took place on campus, Nov. 14. Finalists pitched their concept or idea for a product or service to a panel of judges for the chance to win a portion of the $7,000 in financial awards that were available. Pitches were limited to two minutes with a question-and-answer session of four minutes.

Bulldog B.I.T.E. was open to students from Truman and Moberly Area Community College. There were 22 pitches submitted from a total of 40 students.

Senior Dane Winterboer won first place in the Bulldog B.I.T.E. competition for his app, “Mock Interview Companion,” which provides job seekers with highly customized and specifically-tailored practice interview questions. As the winner, he received the Amanda Gioia Excellence in Entrepreneurship Award and earned an award prize of $3,000.

Sophomores Saron Gebremichael and Nahom Jember placed second and received an award of $2,000 for their business concept “Value College Prep,” a business designed to assist students with the college application and placement process.

Freshmen Victor Hoang and Jobe Weber placed third for their concept “Cooked,” an app designed to bring ingredients for recipes found on the web to an individual’s doorstep in just two clicks.

Bulldog Pitch Day had 23 pitches submitted from a total of 42 students that were from six local high schools; Brunswick, Kirksville Area Technical Center, Knox County, North Callaway, Paris and Schuyler.

Ella Seedorf and Meia Shahan from Kirksville Area Technical Center won first place and received a $500 award for their pitch for a product called Hot-2-Go Cup, a container with a portable heating pad designed to keep meals warm for people on the go.

Hollie Windmer from Brunswick placed second and received a $300 award for her business concept “Doc’s Ranch,” a business designed to provide high-quality, comfortable and affordable horse masks.

Baylee Gashwiler from Kirksville Area Technical Center placed third and received a $200 award for her concept Free Book Fair, designed to make book fairs accessible to grade school students.

These competitions were made possible through the generosity of Truman alumni Doug (’94) and Diane (’95) Villhard and Stella Chakiris (’73) as well as donors to the Villhard Innovation Fund and the Lt. Gen. Shien Min Ku and Shih Chin Ku Entrepreneurship Fund at Truman.

For more information about this year’s competition visit bulldogbite.truman.edu/winners.

In honor of Giving Tuesday, Dec. 3, the Office of Advancement is highlighting three funds to demonstrate the impact a gift can have in the life of a Truman student.

Giving Tuesday celebrates and supports causes that improve the lives of Truman students. The three funds highlighted at truman.edu/givingtuesday are representative of the many ways donors can help the University.

The Truman Food Pantry serves an average of 90 Truman students at each of their pop-up pantries. While addressing food insecurity, they also purchase food options that reflect the cultures and backgrounds of students that need it most, providing international options, shelf-stable milk and recipes for healthy meals with ingredients offered. With dollar-for-dollar gift matching up to $10,000, a gift to the food pantry can help meet day-to-day needs of students facing food insecurity.

Members of 1978-79 men’s basketball conference championship and Hall of Fame team are providing a $25,000 matching gift challenge to support the men’s basketball program. The matching gift challenge runs through Dec. 31 and is designed to help generate much needed support for operations, recruitment and scholarships for the program.

The General Scholarship Fund is used to strategically support University scholarship programs. In most recent years it has been used to award athletic scholarships, band scholarships, e-sports scholarships and support the Bulldog Scholars. A portion of general scholarship is also reserved every year for emergency funding, helping students who need a boost to stay enrolled or are facing personal hardship.

In addition to the highlighted funds, the Truman State University Foundation welcomes gifts of all sizes to any fund at any time. For more information about donating to the University, visit truman.edu/giving or contact the Office of Advancement at 660.785.4133.

The program is looking to recruit undergraduate student applicants for a competitive, paid, 10-week fellowship in the summer of 2025. Fellows will be placed in an arts administration role at an area nonprofit, from fields such as education/programming, development/fundraising, marketing and communications, management, curatorial and more. The program is seeking student applicants from many fields of study.

Truman’s Department of Music will present a holiday tradition with the University Steel Band, aka “Truman Steel,” directed by Michael Bump. “Holiday in Steel,” a festive rendition of holiday favorites performed on traditional Trinidadian steel drums, will take place at 7:30 p.m. Dec. 6 in Ophelia Parrish Performance Hall. This event is free admission. For more information, contact Bump, professor of music at mbump@truman.edu or 660.785.4052.

Two openings for the room setup assistant have a start date of Feb. 17 with the option to continue through the summer. All other room setup assistant openings, the hall desk assistant positions, and the ResLife assistants will start in May.

Other summer positions include conference coordinator, central staff desk worker and ID office worker.

Living on campus provides students with a built-in community of peers, in addition to offering a variety of amenities. All campus residence halls feature furnished rooms, access to laundry facilities and a meal plan. On-campus residents also have all of their utility costs included in the price of their room. More information about applying to live on campus for the 2025-2026 academic year can be found online here.

There are many on-campus living options to choose from, including single-, double- and triple-occupancy residence hall rooms and single- and double-occupancy apartments available in Campbell. Upperclass students can select deluxe double residence hall rooms or a deluxe double apartment in Campbell. Deluxe double residence hall rooms offer more living space at the same price as a standard double room. Deluxe double apartments allow each roommate to have their own private bedroom in a shared apartment. Deluxe double spaces are limited and upperclass students who apply for housing and follow the room self-selection timeline outlined on the website will have priority in being able to select deluxe accommodations while supplies last.

The housing portal is open now and can be accessed through TruView. Room selection will take place in the spring semester. Questions about the housing process can be directed to Residence Life at 660.785.4227 or reslife@truman.edu.

Truman’s annual United Way campaign is currently ongoing with a goal of $28,000.

The United Way of Northeast Missouri funds 10 agencies that directly serve the community. Donors should consider that 99% of every dollar stays local. Area partners include: the Adair County Family YMCA; NEMO Senior Citizen Services Inc.; Adair County 4-H; Boy Scouts; Girl Scouts; Hospice of Northeast Missouri; Macon Community Child Development Center; Macon Diversified Industries; the Salvation Army; and Heartland RSVP.

There are several ways to contribute to the United Way Campaign. All faculty and staff members should have received information about the campaign through campus mail and can complete the enclosed pledge form. For payroll deductions, indicate both the total gift and the amount to be deducted each pay period. Donations can be made now through Dec. 11.

For more information about the United Way of Northeast Missouri, or to donate online, visit liveunitednemo.org. Faculty and staff members who donate online are encouraged to return the white slip from their campaign information through campus mail in order to keep track of the amount raised from the Truman community.

Residence Life is looking for students who will create welcoming environments, develop connections with on-campus residents and foster a learning-centered community to apply as resident advisors for the 2025-26 school year. Resident advisors will have their room and meal fees fully covered.

Anyone enrolled in classes, who has lived on campus for at least one semester and maintained a 2.75 GPA, is qualified to apply. The application is open now until Jan. 14. Visit reslife.truman.edu or email reslife@truman.edu for more information.

MFA is one of the most effective ways to ensure the person logging into a student account is who they say they are. Once the system goes live later this fall, students will be required to identify themselves with a one-time password received via email, text or mobile app each time they log in to their account. If they do not have a security profile, they will be prompted to create one and enroll in MFA.

• Authentication app (preferred): The user gets a time-sensitive code from an app like Google Authentication, Microsoft Authentication or Authy. Authentication apps are the most secure and popular options, especially since many use biometrics to log in for extra security.
• SMS code: The system texts a one-time passcode to the user’s mobile phone.
• Email code: A one-time code is emailed to the user.

Truman recommends creating both a primary and backup profile to receive passcodes.

An email will be sent out to students and authorized users once the system goes live.

The Truman State University Board of Governors will meet at 1 p.m. Dec. 7 in the Student Union Building Conference Room.

Five communication capstone students toured KTVO studios as part of their senior capstone projects.

They heard from the news director, managing editor and head of operations about the day-to-day workings of KTVO, from gathering news with their cameras, to producing the news broadcasts seen nightly.

They also explored the control room and studio, read through scripts at the anchor desk and even stepped in front of the green wall used by the meteorologists.