Vol. 15, No. 13 - Nov. 30, 2010

Comedians Michael Ian Black and Mike Birbiglia will perform at 7 p.m. Dec. 11 in Baldwin Hall Auditorium.
 
Michael Ian Black is a multi-talented actor, writer, comedian and director. His most recent comedy series, “Michael and Michael Have Issues,” appeared on Comedy Central this past year. Black also created, starred in and co-wrote the Comedy Central series “Stella.” He is also one of the lead commentators on VH1’s “I Love the...” series.


Black appeared opposite Paul Rudd and Janeane Garofalo in the USA Films cult hit “Wet Hot American Summer” and for four years he starred on NBC’s hit drama “Ed.” Early in his career, Black co-wrote and starred in the acclaimed MTV sketch comedy show “The State.” From there, he co-created, co-wrote and starred in the Comedy Central series “Viva Variety.”


Comedian Mike Birbiglia is best known for his 2009 hit show “Sleepwalk With Me.” Birbiglia closed out 2009 with a 35-city Comedy Central Live tour called “Mike Birbiglia: I’m In The Future Also,” selling out concert halls nationwide. His long-standing relationship with Comedy Central has resulted in three of his own standup specials, including the critically acclaimed one-hour special “What I Should Have Said Was Nothing.” At the end of the year, Birbiglia’s 2007 Comedy Central Records release “My Secret Public Journal Live” was named one of the “Best Comedy Albums of the Decade” by The Onion AV Club.

Tickets for this event are available now in the SAB Office in the lower level of the Student Union Building. Tickets are free for Truman students and $10 for general admission. The SAB Office is open Monday through Friday from 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. The show begins at 7 p.m. and doors will open at 6:30 p.m.

Truman was recently named a recipient of funding from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Specialty Crop Block Grant Program, which seeks to enhance the competitiveness of crops such as fruits, vegetables, tree nuts, dried fruits, horticulture and nursery crops.

The University’s “Farm-to-College as a Catalyst for Specialty Crop Production” project will receive $28,970 in funding. This project involves coordinating with Sodexo to facilitate the production, procurement and delivery of locally grown fruits and vegetables to campus dining services. Truman’s is one of 13 projects across Missouri selected to receive funding through this program.

The one-year Specialty Crop Block grants are funded through USDA’s Agriculture Marketing Service Specialty Crop Block grant program. The grants total approximately $55 million nationwide, with more than $340,000 being awarded in Missouri.

For more information, visit the Missouri Department of Agriculture at http://mda.mo.gov or the USDA at http://usda.gov.

Studies show that today’s students and instructors are increasingly turning to collaborative or group assignments to create significant and authentic learning experiences.

However, group projects are not always easy to coordinate. Enter Google Apps: tools available at Truman for students and teachers to easily work asynchronously and collaboratively on documents, presentations, drawings and whole websites.

The apps use a “wiki” construct to make this possible. Students can engage in real-time editing between multiple users at once and see what the other people are typing as they type it. Links to shared documents and projects can even be posted on Blackboard to make a class assignment easily accessible.

To take a tour to see how this is possible, visit http://www.google.com/google-d-s/tour2.html.

See the Learning Technologies Team in Pickler Memorial Library 205 or call 785.7750 for more information.

The next event in the 2010-2011 Kohlenberg Lyceum series will welcome Truman alumnus Kevin Harrison and his music group Axiom Brass.

The group will be spreading holiday cheer at 7:30 p.m. Nov. 30 in Baldwin Auditorium.

The old and new will come together in this performance, including yuletide hits like Corelli’s “Christmas Concerto” and “Frosty the Snowman.”

Praised for their “high level of musicality and technical ability” and for their “clean, clear and precise sound,” the award-winning Axiom Brass Quintet has quickly established itself as one of the major art music groups in brass chamber music. They are the winners of the 2008 International Chamber Brass Competition held at the University of Louisville, Ky., and they were recently appointed as the Brass Quintet-in-Residence at the Music Institute of Chicago.

Last month, Truman’s chapter of Delta Sigma Pi was selected as the Most Outstanding Chapter in the nation.

National officers presented the award to Matt Vennemen, president of the Iota Nu chapter of Delta Sigma Pi at the LEAD (Leadership and Excellence Academy for Deltasigs) School in Indianapolis, Ind.


The National Most Outstanding Chapter Award is given to the chapter that best exemplifies the purpose of Delta Sigma Pi. The chapters are evaluated on professional activity, community service, fundraising, academics and others.

In addition to the National Most Outstanding Chapter Award, the chapter also won the national award for Most Outstanding Professional Activities, the Provincial award for Most Outstanding Chapter and Professional Activities and Outstanding Scholastic Development for the Gateway Region.

The Iota Nu Chapter of Delta Sigma Pi continuously strives to improve its programs in order to represent Truman effectively. The chapter was founded Dec. 9, 1978. Since then, it has claimed the National Most Outstanding Chapter Award nine times, which is more than any other chapter. The International Fraternity of Delta Sigma Pi was founded at New York University, School of Commerce, Accounts and Finance Nov. 7, 1907.

Delta Sigma Pi, a professional fraternity, is one of Truman’s organizations open only to students majoring in business, accounting, or economics.  Delta Sigma Pi is involved in a number of activities across campus, including: co-sponsoring the Career Expo; managing the University’s concessions business, which provides food service at all athletic events; providing speakers to students to encourage professional development; tutoring for the Junior Achievement program, which teaches basic economic concepts to young students in Kirksville’s elementary classes; and participating in Relay for Life, to name a few. 

The major service-learning project for this fall's HLTH 150 Nutrition class was a food drive to benefit the Salvation Army food pantry in Kirksville.
 
Students from HLTH 150 organized and secured donations. With help from students in HLTH 290 Principles of Health, they collected donations of food and money Nov. 6 and Nov. 13 at Hy-Vee Food Store. They also manned tables in the Student Union Building and Violette Hall on campus during the week of Nov. 8-12.


The HLTH 150 food drive for the Salvation Army netted 20 large boxes of food donations and nearly $200 in cash.

In addition to the food drive, the HLTH 150 class also helped to unload a semi-trailer of food delivered to the Salvation Army food pantry in October. 

Brent Buckner, professor of biology, recently received notification that a proposal entitled “Functional structural diversity among maize haplotype” submitted to the National Science Foundation’s Plant Genome Initiative has been funded.

Buckner is a co-principal investigator on this award and will collaborate with principal investigator Dr. Patrick Schnable and co-principal investigators Dr. Carolyn Lawrence and Dr. Daniel Nettleton, all of Iowa State University.

During the two-year grant period Buckner’s lab will receive $188,000 while the entire collaborative grant is funded at $3 million.

The focus of this proposal is to test the hypothesis that differences in gene copy number (both gains and losses) contribute to the extraordinary phenotypic diversity and plasticity of maize.

The proposed studies will ultimately inform crop improvement strategies. For example, to help adapt crops to climate change it may be desirable to reintroduce into breeding germplasm stress resistance genes and genetic diversity inadvertently lost during domestication.

This grant will provide funding for three student research internships in each of the next two summers. In addition, the grant provides for the hiring of a postdoctoral teacher-scholar who will work with Buckner to develop the professional skills that are consistent with success at a predominantly undergraduate institution where teaching and research are mutually supportive.

Since early in the semester, ITS has been pursuing options for providing faster Internet access. They have successfully increased campus Internet service 150 percent from 100Mbps to 250Mbps. This increase will improve the quality of all Internet activities used by Truman students, faculty and staff.

Upward Bound is seeking Spring 2011 employees. Application reviews will begin immediately and continue until positions are filled. Application packets and information are available at http://ub.truman.edu or call Donna at 785.4244.

Activity: Bench Press
League: Mens/Womens
Division: Open/Org/Greek
Deadline: Dec. 6
Captains’ Meeting: E-mail
Play Begins: Dec. 8
 
Activity: College Bowl Mania
League: Open
Division: Open
Deadline: Finals Week
Captains’ Meeting: NA
Play Begins: Finals Week
 
Activity: Wrap-Up Meeting
League: Open
Division: Open/Org/Greek
Deadline: NA
Captains’ Meeting: Dec. 8
Play Begins: NA
 
Activity: Basketball
League: Mens/Womens/Co-Rec
Division: Open/Org/Greek
Deadline: Jan. 18
Captains’ Meeting: Jan. 19
Play Begins: Jan. 24
 
Activity: Wiffleball**
League: Mens/Womens
Division: Open
Deadline: Jan. 18
Captains’ Meeting: E-mail
Play Begins: Jan. 22-23
 
Activity: Badminton-Singles
League: Mens/Womens
Division: Open
Deadline: Jan. 25
Captains’ Meeting: E-mail
Play Begins: Jan. 29 & Feb. 5
 
Activity: Badminton-Doubles
League: Mens/Womens/Co-Rec
Division: Open
Deadline: Jan. 25
Captains’ Meeting: E-mail
Play Begins: Jan. 29 & Feb. 5
 
Activity: Super Bowl Pickem
League: Open
Division: Open
Deadline: Jan. 21
Captains’ Meeting: NA
Play Begins: Feb. 6
 
Activity: Raquetball-Singles***
League: Mens/Womens
Division: Open/Org/Greek
Deadline: Feb. 15
Captains’ Meeting: E-mail
Play Begins: Feb. 19-20
 
Activity: BAGGO
League: Mens/Womens/Co-Rec
Division: Open/Org/Greek
Deadline: Feb. 22
Captains’ Meeting: E-mail
Play Begins: Feb. 27
 
Activity: Volleyball
League: Mens/Womens/Co-Rec
Division: Open/Org/Greek
Deadline: Mar. 1
Captains’ Meeting: Mar. 2
Play Begins: Mar. 14
 
Activity: Outdoor Soccer
League: Mens/Womens/Co-Rec
Division: Open/Org/Greek
Deadline: Mar. 1
Captains’ Meeting: Mar. 2
Play Begins: Mar. 14
 
Activity: NCAA March Madness BB
League: Open
Division: Open
Deadline: Mar. 14
Captains’ Meeting: NA
Play Begins: Mar. 15
 
Activity: Closest to the Pin
League: Mens/Womens
Division: Open/Org/Greek
Deadline: Mar. 29
Captains’ Meeting: E-mail
Play Begins: Apr. 3
 
Activity: Swim Meet
League: Mens/Womens/Co-Rec
Division: Open/Org/Greek
Deadline: Apr. 5
Captains’ Meeting: E-mail
Play Begins: Apr. 7
 
Activity: Ultimate Frisbee
League: Co-Rec
Division: Open
Deadline: Apr. 12
Captains’ Meeting: E-mail
Play Begins: Apr. 16-17
 
Activity: Punt Pass & Kick
League: Mens/Womens
Division: Open/Org/Greek
Deadline: Apr. 19
Captains’ Meeting: E-mail
Play Begins: Apr. 20
 
Activity: Track Meet
League: Mens/Womens/Co-Rec
Division: Open/Org/Greek
Deadline: Apr. 19
Captains’ Meeting: E-mail
Play Begins: Apr. 21
 
Activity: T-shirt Design Contest
League: Mens/Womens
Division: Open
Deadline: Apr. 29
Captains’ Meeting: E-mail
Play Begins: NA
 
All information, rules and registration requirements are online at http://recreation.truman.edu/intramuralrec.asp or contact the Intramural Office at 785.4467. Captains’ Meetings will take place at 4:30 p.m. in the SRC Conference Room.
**New Sport
***All racquetball matches will be played at the A.T. Still Thompson Campus Center.

The Center for International Education has applications for the Summer 2011 Foundation Study Abroad Scholarships. Ten $1,500 scholarships will be awarded based on financial need, statement of purpose and academic achievement. Applications are due in the Center for International Education office, located in Kirk Building 114, by 12 p.m. Jan. 28, 2011. Scholarship recipients will be notified in February.

Donald Bindner, assistant professor of mathematics, and Martin Erickson, professor of mathematics, had their textbook “A Student’s Guide to the Study, Practice, and Tools of Modern Mathematics” published by CRC Press.

Alexandra Czahor, a spring 2010 graduate, was awarded the Truman State University Distinguished Master’s Thesis Award for 2011 for “Native and Nonnative Speakers’ Perceptions of Syllable Initial Voiced Stop Consonants in Three Contexts: Non-manipulated, Edited to Remove VOT and Edited to Remove Formant Transitions.” Czahor has also been selected as Truman’s nominee for the annual MAGS Distinguished Master’s Thesis Award. Czahor’s thesis adviser was Paula Cochrane of the Department of Communication Disorders. Other faculty members serving on Czahor’s thesis committee were Janet Gooch, Ilene Ashbaugh and Sally Cook.

Masahiro Hara, professor of Japanese, had a paper entitled “Real-Time Reading and Reactivation Evidence of Syntactic-Gap Processing in Japanese Scrambling” accepted for inclusion in Selected (Peer-Reviewed) Proceedings of Second Language Research Forum 2009. This research was partially supported by Hara’s Truman Faculty Summer Research Fellowship.

The Physics Colloquium will continue at 4:30 p.m. Dec. 1 in Magruder Hall with a presentation by Shoaib Usman of the Department of Nuclear Engineering, Missouri University of Science and Technology.

SUB After Dark will sponsor the Holiday Sweets House Decorating Contest at 8 p.m. Dec. 1 in the Student Union Building Georgian Rooms. All of the supplies for building are provided. Compete individually or on teams of up to four people. The top three winners will get a choice of the DVD “Elf,” “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” (with Jim Carrey) or Josh Groban’s Noel CD. Hot chocolate and Christmas music will be provided.

Shawn Joyce, a 2006 Truman linguistics graduate, will be a featured speaker as part of the English and Linguistics Senior Seminar Conference. Joyce will present the keynote address, “Foreign Languages and Linguistics in the Working World,” at 12 p.m. Dec. 2. His talk, “Translation as a Career,” will take place at 9:30 a.m. Dec. 3. The whole Senior Seminar Conference, with sessions on creative writing, ecocriticism, folktales, the Great War and storytelling, runs from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Dec. 2-3 in the Student Union Building Georgian Rooms.   

Peter Rolnick, professor of physics, will speak at the Mathbio Colloquium at 3:30 p.m. Dec. 2 in Magruder Hall 2050.

The men of Phi Sigma Kappa in association with the Department of Public Safety and the Kirksville Police Department are sponsoring a Self-Defense and General Safety Awareness Seminar at 6 p.m. Dec. 2 in the Kirk Gym. This seminar will be broken down into two sessions, the first being a demonstration by DPS of basic self-defense techniques as well as a general Q&A session followed by a taser demonstration by the Kirksville Police department. This event is open to all Truman students, faculty and staff as well as the general public. For more information, contact Michael Brelsford at mjb3328@truman.edu.

The Truman State University Percussion Ensembles will present their annual “Percussion Fall Sampler” concert at 8 p.m. Dec. 2 in Ophelia Parrish Performance Hall. Under the direction of Michael Bump, associate professor and director of percussion studies, and Vincent Wallace, graduate teaching assistant, the program will feature the Music Department’s Concert Percussion Ensembles I & II in an exciting and diverse selection of music for percussion. The program will include Pat Metheny’s, “First Circle,” Jan Bach’s, “Woodwork,” and David Gillingham’s classic work for percussion orchestra, “Stained Glass,” among others. Admission is free.

The American Association of University Professors (AAUP) will meet at 4:30 p.m. Dec. 3 at the University Club House, located at 516 E. Patterson. Contact Marc Becker at marc@truman.edu or call 785.6036 for more information.

The Truman Observatory will host an open house at 7 p.m. Dec. 3. See http://observatory.truman.edu for more details and for directions. This event will be canceled if it is cloudy or raining.

The True Men Winter Concert will take place at 8 p.m. Dec. 3 in Baldwin Hall Auditorium.

The Board of Governors will meet at 1 p.m. Dec. 4 in the Conference Room of the Student Union.

President Paino will host "Coffee with the President" from 1:30-2:30 p.m. Dec. 7 in the Conference Room of the Student Union.

Megan Wargo, Truman volleyball assistant coach, will conduct a meeting at 7 p.m. Dec. 7 for parents and students ages 12-18 interested in participating in Kirksville Club Volleyball. Teams will practice two times per week and play in regional tournaments. For information about the meeting, contact Wargo at mwargo@truman.edu or 660.341.9610.

The Student Activities Board will sponsor "Holiday Lights" at 8 p.m. Dec. 8 at Kirk Memorial. "Holiday Lights" is an event where Truman students can come celebrate the upcoming holiday season. Kirk Memorial will be lit up with lights and a cappella groups True Men, Minor Detail and Sweet Nothings will perform. There will be free hot chocolate and cookies.

The Fall 2010 One-Act Festival runs from Dec. 9-11 in the Ophelia Parrish James G. Severns Theatre. Performances begin at 8 p.m.

The Franklin Street Singers and Brass Choir Fall Concert will take place at 8 p.m. Dec. 10 in Baldwin Auditorium.