Vol. 30 No. 18 - January 20, 2026

Alumni members of the Phi Lambda Chi/Phi Lambda Phi fraternity recently donated more than $130,000 to the Truman State University Foundation to provide financial support to eligible students.

Originally established in 1969 as the Lambda chapter of Phi Lambda Chi fraternity, the organization was later absorbed as the Alpha chapter of Phi Lambda Phi in 2002. Alumni are commonly referred to as Phi Lambs, regardless of their era of active membership. When the Phi Lamb alumni group sold the organization’s house in 2025, they decided to invest the gains in current University students.

“We all understand the fraternity’s impact on the trajectories of our lives and careers, and we want to continue to foster that positivity in today’s students,” said Steve Clem (’73), treasurer of the Phi Lamb alumni group. “Houses, and even specific organizations, may come and go as the student body evolves, but fraternities and sororities are as valuable now as ever. They build character, develop leadership abilities and establish community bonds that last a lifetime. It is an honor to support those ideals in current Truman students.”

The newly endowed Phi Lamb Scholarship will give first consideration to the children, grandchildren or relatives of an alumnus of the chapter. If no students meet the criteria, the scholarship may be awarded to a member of a social Greek organization in good standing who has been active with their chapter for a minimum of one year.

Through the Truman State University Foundation, a portion of the Phi Lamb Scholarship Fund’s earnings will be awarded annually to support an eligible student. 

More information about the Truman State University Foundation, including a list of scholarships and other ways to give, can be found online at truman.edu/giving. 

Truman has released the names of students who graduated at the conclusion of the fall semester.

The names of the graduates can be found online at truman.edu/honors/fall-2025-graduation-list. Students who graduated with honors will have that distinction noted by their names. Cum laude recognizes those who earned a grade point average of 3.50-3.74. Magna cum laude is for graduates with a grade point average of 3.75-3.89. Summa cum laude honors graduates with a grade point average of 3.9 or better. 

Master’s degree recipients will have that distinction noted by their names.

The list is organized by state and hometown. Hometowns are based upon the permanent address given to the University by the student. Students who have requested a directory hold on their information will not be included on the list. Any questions regarding student eligibility for inclusion on the list can be directed to the Registrar’s Office at 660.785.4143.

Truman conducted commencement ceremonies Dec. 14 at Pershing Arena. A recording of the ceremony is available at truman.edu/registrar/commencement/commencement-video. A photo gallery can also be found at photos.truman.edu.

Barbara Kramer (left) and Stacy Davis (right) accept their Academic Innovation Awards from Tim Walston, interim executive vice president for academic affairs and provost.

Stacy Davis, associate professor of Spanish and director of second language instruction, and Barbara Kramer, professor of chemistry, were the fall 2025 winners of the Truman Academic Innovation Award.

Davis was recognized for building cross-campus, cross-community, and inter-professional connections through a collaboration with Truman and ATSU medical Spanish students. Once a month, Truman medical Spanish students would travel to the ATSU campus to participate as specialized patients for the ATSU students taking an elective Spanish of the Medical Professions course that demonstrates how to perform medical interviews, review vital signs and take a patient’s medical history in Spanish. This partnership between Truman and ATSU has allowed students to develop meaningful skills that help them connect to Spanish-speaking populations in Kirksville and Milan confidently, with empathy through inter-cultural communication.

Kramer was recognized for her semester-long lab project to model the analytical process of a chemist at a contract lab. Students in CHEM 322, Instrumental Analysis, were led through a 12-week process of choosing a research question, designing an instrumental method to answer it and performing shortened versions of traditional experiments, gaining experience utilizing eight different lab instruments. During the last three lab sessions of the semester, students implemented their plan and presented their results in the form of an article in the style of the journal Analytical Chemistry. Students were able to understand the difficulties of planning and conducting chemical analyses, as well as the abilities and limitations of the instrumentation they gained experience utilizing.

JustServe Kirksville is hosting a kick-off event from 4-6 p.m. Feb. 19 at Sip Downtown, 122 W. Harrison St. 

This free, come-and-go event is designed to connect individuals with meaningful local volunteer opportunities and to introduce the JustServe.org platform — a free, easy-to-use tool that helps people find ways to serve in their community. Attendees will have the opportunity to create a free JustServe account, explore local volunteer opportunities and connect with fellow volunteers and local nonprofit and community organizations. 

This event is open to the public, there is no registration required and complimentary JustServe t-shirts will be available while supplies last. 

The Activities Fair will take place from 12-5 p.m. Jan. 28 in the Student Union Building. This event is an excellent opportunity for students to find organizations to join on campus. A full list of organizations can be found here. 

This year, Spike is celebrating National Rubber Ducky Day by placing 50 rubber ducks across campus. Students who find a duck and bring it to the Office of Student Engagement, Student Union Building 3100, can win a prize. All returned ducks earn a full-sized candy bar. The first 10 ducks returned will also receive a drink coupon to Einsteins or Starbucks. No ducks are hidden in classrooms. Ducks need to be returned by Jan. 23 to receive a prize. One duck per student.