Vol. 15, No. 14 - Dec. 7, 2010

Dr. David R. Russell, commissioner of higher education for the state of Missouri, will give the commencement address during graduation ceremonies Dec. 18.
 
Missouri’s Coordinating Board for Higher Education named Russell as interim commissioner July 1, 2010 and appointed him as the permanent commissioner earlier this month. He most recently served as senior associate vice president and chief of staff for the University of Missouri System, where he was liaison between the university and the Coordinating Board for Higher Education and its administrative arm, the Missouri Department of Higher Education.

Russell worked in the University of Missouri System for 19 years, first as associate director of university relations, assuming even greater responsibility for communications, strategic planning and public policy positions. He served as director of university relations and chief of staff before becoming senior associate vice president, where he worked with the president and all four university campuses to integrate finance and administration, human resources, general counsel, government relations, information technology, communications, and academic and student affairs.

Prior to his tenure at the University of Missouri System, Russell served in the United States Army as a commissioned officer, retiring in 1991 as a Lieutenant Colonel after a 22-year career, including assignments in media relations at the Pentagon and as director of public affairs at Ft. Leonard Wood, Mo.

Russell obtained a bachelor’s degree in education from Henderson State University, a master’s degree in communications from The American University and a doctoral degree in educational leadership and policy analysis from the University of Missouri-Columbia. His dissertation examined public and political support for higher education reform. He is a frequent presenter and lecturer on topics related to higher education, public policy and governance structures.


Graduation ceremonies are scheduled for 11 a.m. Dec. 18 in Pershing Arena.

Truman Head Football Coach Gregg Nesbitt was inducted into the Missouri High School Football Coaches Association Hall of Fame Dec. 3.

The 1980 Truman graduate was the head coach at both Columbia-Hickman and Hannibal high schools and just completed his first year as coach of the Bulldogs.

Nesbitt began his high school coaching career in his native Hannibal in 1984 where he led the Pirates to three straight state playoff appearances from 1987-1989. In 1990, Nesbitt returned to Truman to join Eric Holm’s staff as linebackers coach and defensive coordinator of the Bulldogs.

During his three-year stint, Truman was 23-9 and made NCAA Division II playoff appearances in 1990 and 1992.

Nesbitt left Truman in 1993 to take over one of the state’s premier high school programs at Hickman. Over the next 13 seasons, the Kewpies racked up six Missouri Class Six playoff appearances and the 2004 state championship.

He was named the 2004 Missouri Coach of the Year by the Associated Press, the National Federation of High School Sports Regional Coach of the Year and was a nominee for the NFHS National Coach of the Year award.

In 2006, Nesbitt moved back to the collegiate ranks as defensive coordinator and secondary coach at Central Methodist University and moved the next year to the University of Central Missouri in Warrensburg.

In December 2009, he returned to Truman to lead the Bulldogs.

The Missouri High School Football Coaches Association Hall of Fame was founded in 1992 and currently features 112 inductees.

For nearly a decade, Truman has given Master of Arts in Education students the chance to fulfill their internship requirements at one of several locations throughout the world.
 
A partnership with the Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA) allows MAE students to complete their internships by teaching children of service men and women on military bases.

DoDEA operates a worldwide school system known as the Department of Defense Dependents School, or DoDDS. In addition to stateside schools, DoDDS operates schools in Spain, Italy, Germany, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Turkey, Korea, Guam, Cuba and Japan.

Truman students who intern with DoDDS are afforded a unique study abroad opportunity.

“Interns are still able to work with American children in a classroom setting very similar to what they would find in the states,” said Laura E. Nickelson, director of field experiences for the Truman Department of Education. “Additionally, they are exposed to dealing and working with interesting dynamics and challenges of deployment, governmental accountability, politics and a variety of other social and cultural issues.”

Andrew Dager (’06) interned at Sembach, Germany, a small annex of Ramstein Air Base.

“It was certainly a change in environment, but I really enjoyed living on base,” he said.

At Sembach, Dager lived within walking distance of the base commissary, restaurants, the library, a gym and the middle school where he did his internship. He also credits the men and women in the military with making the transition easy for him.

“The people on base were exceptional to newcomers. Being in the military, they really seem to understand how it feels to travel so far from family and friends,” he said.

During the week, Dager’s experience was like any other MAE intern. He was responsible for teaching courses, processing paperwork, communicating with parents of students and planning for upcoming classes. On the weekends, however, he was able to take a train to various locations throughout Europe such as Paris and other bases hosting DoDDS interns.

Regardless of where MAE students do their DoDDS internships, they remain in contact with Truman faculty.

“Students participating in this internship are still provided with intensive faculty support from the University in many avenues, including site supervision throughout the experience in order to monitor their progress and growth as an educator,” Nickelson said.

During the semester-long internship, students receive a minimum of three site visits from Truman faculty members. That commitment to education has earned the University a reputation and is one reason why several schools in the DoDDS program will accept only Truman interns.

In addition to receiving Truman support, interns also make connections with teachers already on base. Dager credits his host teacher and school principal for making the experience especially rewarding.

“Not only did my host teacher ensure I had everything needed to succeed, she made sure I got the opportunity to learn all of the skills I would need to be a first-year teacher,” Dager said.

In fact, Dager is still in contact with his host teacher and principal and recently accepted a full-time position with the DoDEA. He is again teaching in Germany, this time in the Kaiserslautern District.

“The faculty, administration, facilities and professional support of the DoDEA are all top-notch,” he said. “The experience of being a teacher just like you would in the states, but living in the middle of a foreign country, was just too exceptional to turn down.”

The DoDDS internship was implemented at Truman about 10 years ago by Sam Minner, dean of the School of Health Sciences and Education, and Jeff Gall, MAE social science faculty member. Since the first group of three students completed their DoDDS internship in Fall 2001, Truman has seen 98 students participate, with placements in locations including Italy, Japan and Germany. Internships are offered both in the fall and spring semesters, and Truman usually sends 8-12 students to the DoDDS program in an academic year.

While there is not a cap on the number of students who are accepted for DoDDS internships, there is a formal application, interview and preparation process before a student can be accepted into the program. Students do not need to know a foreign language to apply.

The application process occurs approximately a year in advance of the actual internship experience. Applications for Fall 2011 are due Jan. 15. Students interested in interning in Spring 2012 should have applications turned in by April 15. Applications can be picked up in Violette Hall 2316.

DoDDS informational meetings take place each semester. Additional information can be obtained by contacting Nickelson at lenickel@truman.edu or 785.4399, or by visiting the Field Experience Office located in Violette Hall 2310.

Similar to the movie “Night at the Museum,” great speeches from 20th century history will come to life Dec. 8 in the Barnett Hall atrium.
 
Approximately 20 students from the COMM 270 class will be portraying speakers in a program scheduled from noon to 1:30 p.m. At any given point, about half of the students will be in character sharing their speeches.

The speeches will portray Midwestern speakers from the Top 100 Great Speeches of the 20th Century, available online at http://americanrhetoric.com.

Members of the public are invited to explore the “museum” at their own pace. Each presentation is expected to last approximately five minutes. Students will share brief insights about the speakers and the rhetorical situation in addition to performing excerpts from the speeches.  

Light refreshments will be served at the event. Those attending are encouraged to vote for the best portrayal based on dress and delivery of quotes, as well as understanding of speaker, rhetorical situation and rhetorical splendor.

This event is sponsored by the Communication Club (NCASC) and Toastmasters International.  NCASC is committed to enriching the lives of undergraduate communication majors and minors by promoting the study and application of communication principles through educational and social functions. Toastmasters International is open to all students, regardless of major, as well as members of the community interested in improving speechmaking.    

Cape Air and the Kirksville Chamber of Commerce Tourism Office have teamed up to provide the Truman community with discounted flights to St. Louis.

Cape Air is Kirksville’s newest airline, offering three daily flights to Lambert-St. Louis International Airport. Truman students and their families, along with faculty and staff members of the University, are eligible for a $20 discount on round-trip flights or a $10 discount on one-way flights.

Reservations may be made by visiting the Cape Air City Ticket Office at 102 E. Washington in downtown Kirksville or by calling either 665.3057 or 866.Cape.Air. The promotion code QIRK must be referenced when making the reservation. This is a temporary offer extended to the Truman community.

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 will begin offering courses in the new Master of Arts in Leadership graduate program in Spring 2011.

The program includes a solid theoretical foundation in personal and organizational leadership, plus experiential learning consisting of simulations, case studies and internships that will enable students to progress from the study of leadership to its application and practice.

Graduates will have completed a specialization area designed to advance the individual’s personal leadership goals.

For more information, see http://gradstudies.truman.edu/areasofstudy/Leadership.asp, e-mail cyoung@truman.edu or call 785.4109.

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.

Mark Appold, professor of philosophy and religion, appeared in the Nov. 19 archaeology series on the International History Channel in an interview with Israeli filmmaker Simcha Jacobovici. Filmed on site at biblical Bethsaida in the Golan, the interview focused on Bethsaida as the cradle of early Christianity. The exchange was triggered by Appold’s journal article about the significance of a first century cross, which was incised on a large shard of an ancient wine jar discovered at Bethsaida.

Elaine McDuff, associate professor of sociology, has been elected to the Board of Directors of the Midwest Sociological Society as the representative for the state of Missouri. Founded in 1936, the Midwest Sociological Society is a professional organization of academic and applied sociologists as well as students of the discipline. Nearly 1,200 scholars, students and practicing sociologists in universities, government and business belong to the organization. The MSS encompasses nine states: Illinois, Missouri, Wisconsin, Iowa, Nebraska, Minnesota, Kansas, South Dakota and North Dakota; however, more than one-third of the members are from other parts of the nation and the world. McDuff will serve a term of three years, beginning at the Annual Meeting, March 24-27, 2011 in St. Louis, Mo.

Betty Louise McLane-Iles, professor of French, and George Barlow, a local award-winning photographer, have been notified by Xlibris Press of Bloomington, Ind., that their first-ever commissioned respective illustrated portraits and photographs have been published for the cover of McLane-Iles’ husband Larry Iles’ first book, “The Progressive Left Centre Animal Lover Legacy: Expansive Historical Saga of Radicals George Greenwood and Vera Terrington.” There will be a book signing and talk at 2 p.m. Jan. 20 in the University Bookstore.

Sherri Addis Palmer, professor of psychology, 2009 alumnus K. Lee Raby and 2010 alumna Jaimie O’Gara have been notified that their submission, “Parent-Infant Relationships Within the Family System: Fluctuations in Interactions Across Dyadic and Triadic Social Contexts,” was accepted for presentation at the 2011 Meeting of the Society for Research in Child Development, to take place in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Raby is currently pursuing a Ph.D. at the University of Minnesota and O’Gara is pursuing a MSW at the University of Nebraska-Omaha.

Peter Ramberg, associate professor of history of science, was visiting professor at the Organic Chemistry Institute of the University of Zürich in Switzerland in September and October. He taught a four-week special course on the history of chemistry entitled “Atoms, Elements, Structure, and Mechanism. Lectures on the History of Chemistry.”

The Printmaking Club will sponsor an art sale from 10:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Dec. 8 in the Ophelia Parrish Lobby. Artwork will be available from the Bad Acids Print Club, Clay People, AIGA and Fibers Club. All artwork will be for sale at a reasonable price.

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 celebrate the 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 Truman Observatory will host an open house from 7-9 p.m. Dec. 9, inviting the public to view celestial sights with the Observatory telescopes. This event will be cancelled if it is cloudy or raining. See http://observatory.truman.edu for more details and for directions.

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

The Alpha Sigma Gamma Holiday Market will take place from 9 a.m.-3 p.m. Dec. 11 in the Pershing small gym. The Holiday Market will feature fun and unique crafts for friends, family, or yourself.

A “Christmas Magic Family Concert” will take place at 3 p.m. Dec. 11 at the Quincy Junior High Morrison Theater. The concert will feature performances of popular Christmas music including “Sleigh Ride” and “Deck the Halls,” an audience Christmas carol sing-a-long and music from the movie “Polar Express” by the Quincy Symphony Orchestra and Chorus, the Quincy Area Youth Chorus and the Voices of Praise Gospel Choir. Admission is free for faculty, staff and students who show their Truman ID at the event.

The Cantoria Fall Concert will take place at 8 p.m. Dec. 11 in the Ophelia Parrish Performance Hall.