Vol. 31 No. 2 - August 24, 2026

Multiple Truman teams will open the home portion of their schedule this week. 

Throughout the upcoming regular season, the men’s soccer team will host nine home games, while the women’s soccer team will host 10 home games. Both teams will kick off the season with their Student and Community Appreciation Week games Aug. 27 in Stokes Stadium. The women’s game will begin at 5 p.m., with the men’s game following at 7:30 p.m. A tailgate for the games will take place at 4 p.m. on Stadium Drive, featuring giveaways, games and food.

During their 2025 season, the Truman football team brought the University back to the playoffs for the first time since 1994. The Bulldogs will open the 2026 season at 6 p.m. Aug. 29 with Student and Community Appreciation Day at Stokes Stadium. A tailgate for the game will take place at 3 p.m. on Stadium Drive, featuring giveaways, games and food. Ten free tailgate spots will be available with registration. Reservations can be completed by contacting Signe Coombs, director of athletics, at scoombs@truman.edu. More home games will follow, including the Hall of Fame game Sept. 12, Family Day, Sept. 19, Homecoming, Oct. 24 and the Halloween game Oct. 31, with the final home game taking place Nov. 14 for Senior Day. 

The volleyball team will open home play with the Truman Tournament, Sept. 11, in Pershing Arena. The Bulldogs will play at 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. Succeeding home games will take place Sept. 25, Sept. 26, Oct. 9, Oct. 10 and Oct. 29 (Senior Day), with their final home game taking place Oct. 31.

Additional information about the 2026-27 season can be found at trumanbulldogs.com. Information regarding season tickets, single-game tickets and tailgate lot reservations for the upcoming season will be announced at trumanbulldogs.com and at @trumanathletics on Facebook, Instagram and X (Twitter).

This fall, the Kohlenberg Lyceum Series will feature two unique shows, offering a dynamic mix of comedy and ballet.

The series will kick off with “The Best of Second City” at 7 p.m. Sept. 23 in Baldwin Auditorium. In their show, The Second City will blend signature improv comedy with hilarious songs, classic characters and timeless sketches handpicked from their comedy archive and modernized by some of today’s boldest comedic voices.

The Second City is one of the oldest and most infamous comedy empires, having been co-founded as a small cabaret theatre in Chicago in 1959 by Bernie Sahlins, Howard Alk and Paul Sills. After generations of success, the company is now home to iconic alumni including Steve Carell, Stephen Colbert, Tina Fey, Keegan-Michael Key and many more.

Tickets for “The Best of Second City” will be available beginning Sept. 9 at any of three convenient campus locations: the Union and Involvement Office in the Student Union Building; the Advancement Office in McClain Hall 205; or the Admissions Office in the Ruth W. Towne Museum and Visitors Center. Tickets will also be available off campus at the Kirksville Arts Association in downtown Kirksville. Any remaining tickets will be available at the ticket window in Baldwin Hall beginning 30 minutes before the performance.

The Saint Louis Ballet will perform “The Nutcracker and Broadway Dreams” at 7 p.m. Dec. 5 in Baldwin Auditorium. Their performance will feature selections from Jerome Robbins’ jazz-infused “Interplay,” along with “Pas de Deux” from Christopher Wheeldon’s “Carousel,” concluding the evening with Act II of “The Nutcracker,” including “Waltz of the Snowflakes.”

The Saint Louis Ballet was established in 1975 as a nonprofit organization before Gen Horiuchi, former dancer with New York City Ballet and star of Broadway’s "CATS," joined the organization as executive and artistic director in 2000. He has since expanded it into the resident ballet company it is today, employing artistic staff and administration, as well as 21 professional dancers with a board of directors. Horiuchi also co-founded the St. Louis Ballet School with Tanya Strautmann, a St. Louis native and former Saint Louis Ballet dancer. The program teaches hundreds of students of all ages and skill levels each year. 

The Kohlenberg Lyceum Series is also planning two events for the spring semester. Details on these events will be announced at a later date.

Tickets for the 2026-27 Kohlenberg Lyceum Series typically become available two weeks before each show. Tickets are provided free of charge thanks to the generous support of local sponsors, the Friends of the Lyceum program and the Truman State University Foundation.
 
For more information about the Kohlenberg Lyceum Series, visit lyceum.truman.edu or contact the Advancement Office at 660.785.4133.

The Robert L. Gould Scholastic Award is an opportunity for students of all majors to submit a research paper for the chance to win up to $10,000.

For more than 30 years, SS&C Technologies, a financial technology company, has sponsored the award to recognize outstanding university students who produce academic papers on topics related to investment management strategies, theories and trends.

The topic for this year questions if investors should expand access to tokenized assets, asking students to evaluate portfolio benefits, risks and regulatory challenges in modern financial markets. Evolving financial markets have influenced institutional and high-net-worth investors to increasingly allocate capital to tokenized assets and blockchain-based securities. Simultaneously, advances in blockchain technology have enabled the development of asset tokenization, which has been argued by critics as both favorable and problematic.

First place will receive $10,000, second place will receive $7,500 and third place will receive $5,000. To apply for the Gould Scholastic Award, students must be a university junior or senior. Graduate students are not eligible to participate. Group projects are eligible, but if the group wins, the winning dollars are split equally among the members of the group.

In 2025, Truman students earned first, second and third place in the contest, taking home a combined total of $22,500.

Interested students should contact Yung-hwal Park, associate professor of business administration, at yhpark@truman.edu by Sept. 11.

Dr. Brian Reeves has been named the director of student success and will oversee Truman’s Center for Academic Excellence.

A two-time alumnus of the University, Reeves has spent more than three decades in education. Since June 2025, he served as an academic advisor with the CAE, specializing in pre-law. During his time in that role, he created a pre-law handbook for students and established Truman’s first law school prep course involving LSAT prep, application support, law school research and alumni advice. 

Prior to his experience with the CAE, Reeves worked for Farmington High School for 26 years as an instructor and dual credit coordinator. He also served as the school’s internship director from 2018-2024. In the 2024-25 academic year, he was named Teacher of the Year for both the high school and Farmington R-7 School District. 

At the collegiate level, Reeves has taught in various adjunct roles since 1993 at schools including Truman, Saint Louis University, Missouri Baptist University, Jefferson College and Mineral Area College. 

Reeves received a Ph.D. in early modern European history from Saint Louis University. From Truman, he earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees in history. He also has a bachelor’s degree in secondary education from the University of Missouri-St. Louis. 

The Center for Academic Excellence offers tutoring and academic planning services to students beginning with orientation. For more details regarding available resources, visit excellence.truman.edu. 

Reeves began his duties as director of student services July 22.

Carolyn Cox, professor of health science, and Michelle Boyd, head athletic trainer and lecturer in exercise science, as well as Gayathri Sadanala, assistant professor of computer science, were the spring 2026 winners of the Truman Academic Innovation Award. 

Cox and Boyd were recognized for the collaboration between their two health professions classes to solve an interprofessional medical mystery. Students worked together in small groups to solve their patient’s medical mystery, as well as create a detailed discharge plan for the patient and their family. The lesson challenged students to work as a team and use both clinical and health promotion skills while catering their knowledge to their patient’s individual needs. 

Sadanala was recognized for her work in utilizing critical thinking and co-designing with artificial intelligence (AI) to deepen student understanding of complex system design. AI is integrated into the module as a learning partner, helping students visualize and explain information. The interface is also used as a reflective tool, critiquing designs and encouraging students to find areas for improvement. Using the feedback they received, students then became co-designers by identifying flaws and solutions to the AI’s programming. 

Jessica Parks will return as manager of the Truman bookstore for the 2026-27 school year.

Parks has a diverse career background, with experience running her own restaurant and working as a retail operations manager for the city of Kirksville, as well as being a newly published author. She also holds a bachelor’s degree in anthropology and human rights, as well as a master’s in education. Parks lives in Kirksville with her son and cat, and when she's not working or writing, can be found in nature, baking sourdough or traveling to St Louis, where her partner lives.

Any questions regarding textbooks or the campus store can be directed to Parks at sm8540@bncollege.com or jeparks@bncollege.com.

Truman is included in the recently released “The Best 392 Colleges” 2027 guidebook by The Princeton Review. 

Since 1992, The Princeton Review’s Best Colleges guide has showcased the colleges they recommend as the nation’s best for undergraduate academics. It features only about 14% of America’s four-year colleges and is one of the most popular of their 150 books.

Schools included in “The Best 392 Colleges” are not ranked, but were determined by the results of more than 172,000 student surveys across the U.S. Participants answered a variety of questions that asked what they loved about their school. Questions covered topics such as financial aid, career services, quality of life and sustainability.

Within Truman’s description, the University is praised for affordability, education quality and the undergraduate Student Research Conference, as well as the preparedness students feel when moving onto graduate programs. The faculty received just as much appreciation, being commended for their engaging discussion-based lectures and strong work ethic, demonstrating true care for their students. 

Profiles for each of the schools included in the book can be found at princetonreview.com/college-rankings/best-colleges.

The first pop-up pantry of the semester will take place form 2-4:30 p.m. Aug. 25 in the Student Union Building Down Under. Students are encouraged to check out the food available, as well as select personal hygiene items, at no cost. The food pantry is available to all Truman students and there are no income eligibility requirements for use.

The Fall Activities Fair will take place Aug. 26 from 12-5 p.m. in the Student Union Building Georgian and Activities rooms. This event is an excellent opportunity for students to find organizations to join on campus. A full list of organizations can be found here. For more information contact Union and Involvement Services in the Student Union Building 2000, at 660.785.4222 or by email at orgs@truman.edu.

Bonus Bucks will be available to purchase through Aug. 28. Load $100 worth of Bonus Bucks and get $20 free. Bonus Bucks can be purchased at truman.sodexomyway.com. For more information call 660.785.4197.

Applications for positions on AFAC are available at senate.truman.edu/application. Questions should be directed to studentgovernment@truman.edu.

Students who may be interested in sharing their Truman experiences should fill out this form.

The University is seeking students to be Spike for various events on and off campus, including some nights or weekends. This is a paid position at a minimum $25 per event. Applicants must be taller than 5’4” and shorter than 6’2”. Applicants must also be enthusiastic and outgoing. Those interested can email wcarter@truman.edu to apply.

Applications are available here. Questions should be directed to Brody Douglas, recruitment chair, at jc22571@truman.edu.

Beta Theta Pi is offering a scholarship totaling up to $1,000 for non-Greek male students.

Beta Theta Pi believes that college men should be recognized for their desire to achieve. They strive to provide strong relationships as well as leadership opportunities and personal development. They seek to reward men who demonstrate devotion to intellectual growth and a commitment to making both the University and community better places to live.

Applications are due Aug. 30 and can be completed here. Applicants have no obligation to join Beta Theta Pi fraternity. Questions should be directed to Josh Corbett, recruitment chair, at fi83244@truman.edu.