Vol. 15, No. 19 -Feb. 1, 2011

Every student fantasizes about a dream internship, one that combines work and fun in a glamorous location where sometimes celebrities stop in just to say “hi.”

Evan Rioux, an exercise science major at Truman, made this dream a reality when she interned at Apple’s headquarters in Cupertino, Calif., during the Fall 2010 semester.


Rioux worked in the Wellness Department conducting fitness consultations, performing various tests, developing workout plans and more for Apple’s thousands of employees.

The application process for Apple spanned about seven months. When Rioux had her first phone interview with Apple in February, the company warned her the process may take a while. The internship was not offered officially until mid-July, when she was interning for Cooper Aerobics in Austin, Texas.

“It was a pretty long process, long enough to where you kind of forget about it,” Rioux said.

Based on her previous coursework at Truman and her summer internship at Cooper, Rioux said she felt pretty prepared for her internship at Apple.

“[The internship at Apple] seemed a little bit more intense than Cooper,” Rioux said. “I catch onto things pretty easily because I’m a ‘have-to-do-it-to-learn,’ so we did clinicals—lots of stuff—where it’s just hands-on, all the time, 24-7.”

Not only did Rioux have to train for her position in the Wellness Department, but she also had to go through all Apple’s computer and software training in order to start working.

The fitness center where Rioux worked was right off Apple’s main campus and sometimes she had up to eight appointments per day consulting patients. Fitness center services are included in the benefits program for Apple employees and dependents, so most take advantage of them, which keeps employees of the Wellness Department busy.

“Apple Wellness is basically there to delay the onset of heart disease—it’s to make them more aware of it and how to become healthier and more productive at work,” Rioux said. “A lot of times, employees don’t realize that when you’re healthier—you exercise regularly, eat well, sleep a lot, aren’t stressed—you’re going to be more productive at work which is better for your company. So, it all ties together in the end.”

Despite all the hard work, there were some perks to being an intern for Apple. Rioux said musicians such as Keith Urban came to Apple’s main campus frequently to visit employees in iTunes. At one point, James Blunt performed in Cafe Macs, one of the restaurants on campus. Apple offered giant coach buses with Wi-Fi and leather seats for employees to commute from cities such as San Francisco, a luxury which Rioux utilized for the last couple weeks of her internship while visiting family. One day, Rioux even saw Steve Jobs when walking on campus with colleagues from the Wellness Department.

“Don’t be afraid to go far,” Rioux suggests. “I applied for two dream internships and got them both. I traveled from Missouri to Texas to California all in an eight-month period of time. Don’t limit yourself. If there’s something you really want to do, go for it, because it’s totally worth it in the end.”

Truman’s SERVE Center has invited numerous area community agencies to campus for a Volunteer Fair meant to educate students about local organizations and to recruit volunteers.

The Volunteer Fair will take place from 2:30-4:30 p.m. Feb. 17 in collaboration with the Career Center’s Nonprofit Conference. The SERVE Center, along with the Spring 2011 Structured Inequalities class in the Sociology and Anthropology Department, will sponsor this event.

Several area agencies, including the Salvation Army and Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA), will attend the fair. This will be a valuable opportunity for Truman students to learn more about needs and services in the Kirksville area and for community agencies to recruit volunteers to enhance their service efforts.

The SERVE Center will also host the Big Event this semester on March 19.

The SERVE Center acts as a liaison between the campus and the community by matching volunteer interests with appropriate agencies in the community. The Center provides students with out-of-classroom service opportunities which enhance their liberal arts education by offering real world experiences, aiding in developing leadership skills, personal skills and social responsibility.

Truman will conduct the 24th annual Student Research Conference (SRC) April 12.

The SRC is a University-wide celebration of student research, scholarship and creative achievement in all disciplines. Undergraduate and graduate students from all disciplines are invited and encouraged to present the outcomes of their scholarly or creative work.

Scheduled classes will not meet the day of the conference, thereby providing the opportunity for all students and faculty members to attend and fully participate.

In addition to the many oral and poster presentations by students, the day will feature a conference-wide plenary address delivered by John Lyden, visiting professor of philosophy and religion from Grand View University. Lyden specializes in interreligious dialogue; religion and culture; and religion and film. He is the author of “Film as Religion: Myths, Morals, and Rituals,” and was the 2008 recipient of the Spiritus Award for outstanding contributions to the study of religion and film.

All presenters are required to submit abstracts online at http://src.truman.edu by Feb. 11. A copy of the information submitted will be sent electronically to the student presenter’s faculty mentor for approval. For inquiries about the SRC, including requests for special sessions and questions about the abstract submission process, contact the Office of Student Research at 785.4455 or osr@truman.edu.

The Truman State University Press has awarded B. K. Fischer of Sleepy Hollow, N.Y., the 2011 T. S. Eliot Prize for Poetry.

Fischer’s winning poetry collection, “Mutiny Gallery,” was selected from more than 400 manuscripts in the 15th annual competition. As part of the award, Fischer receives $2,000 and publication of her book, which is scheduled for Fall 2011.

Fischer currently teaches at the Hudson Valley Writers’ Center in Sleepy Hollow. Her poetry has been published in numerous journals, and she has published an interdisciplinary study, Museum Mediations.

“I enjoyed the poems’ combination of cleverness, wittiness and innovative technique, for which one usually pays a price: a draining away of heart,” said Tony Barnstone, this year’s judge. “Not in this case—these poems all have heart, big heart.”

Four finalists were also named: Karina Borowicz, Belchertown, Mass.; George Looney, Erie, Pa.; Mary Quade, Madison, Ohio; and Katy Didden, Columbia, Mo.

The prize, established in 1996 in honor of Missouri native T. S. Eliot, is awarded annually for the best unpublished book-length collection of poetry.

Amtrak is now seeking train travel-themed videos from college students to compete for more than $3,000 in prizes.

Amtrak expanded the second annual TRAINsportation competition this year to include students in Illinois, Michigan, Missouri and Wisconsin. Students could win prizes including a MacBook Air, a Fuji 3D Digital Camera and travel on Amtrak.

Submissions will be judged by industry experts including Andrew Schneider, publisher/editor of Screen Magazine; Lori Rackl, travel editor of the Chicago Sun-Times; and Stephen Harris, director of nonfiction and alternative programming for A&E Television Network. 

Amtrak plans to use the winning video in future promotional campaigns.

For more information, contest rules, prize details and to enter the second annual Amtrak TRAINsportation video contest, visit http://amtraktrainsportationvideocontest.com. Entries must be submitted by Feb. 28.

The American Shakespeare Center (ASC) performance of “As You Like It” has been rescheduled for 7 p.m. Feb. 4 in Baldwin Auditorium.

The event is free and open to the public.

“As You Like It,” one of William Shakespeare’s comedies, tells the story of Rosalind as she flees persecution in her uncle’s court, accompanied by her cousin Celia and the court jester, Touchstone.

The ASC seeks to make Shakespeare and the joys of theatre accessible to all. At the company’s home in Staunton, Va., the ASC has constructed a re-creation of Shakespeare’s original indoor theatre, the Blackfriars Playhouse, and plans to build an open-air replica of London’s second Globe Theatre.

February’s performance will not be the first in Kirksville for the ASC, which tours regularly and has earned a reputation as one of America’s most respected theatre companies. Between 1996 and 2001, the company performed annually at Truman. The last ASC performance in Kirksville took place in March 2009 and featured a production of “Hamlet.”

“As You Like It” is sponsored by the Department of English and Linguistics, with additional funding from the Arnold and Alanna Preussner Fund, Truman State University Foundation, New Student Programs, the Theatre Department and the School of Arts and Letters.

Huping Ling, professor of history, has won the Booklist/Reference Books Bulletin Editors’ Choice Award in 2010 for her encyclopedia “Asian American History and Cultures: An Encyclopedia.” Ling edited the book with Allan W. Austin by M. E. Sharpe.

With overview essays and more than 400 A-Z entries, this exhaustive encyclopedia documents the history of Asians in America from earliest contact to the present day. Organized topically by group, with an in-depth overview essay on each group, the encyclopedia examines the myriad ethnic groups and histories that make up the Asian American population in the United States.

“Asian American History and Culture” covers the political, social and cultural history of immigrants from East Asia, Southeast Asia, South Asia, the Pacific Islands and their descendents, as well as the social and cultural issues faced by Asian American communities, families and individuals in contemporary society.

In addition to entries on various groups and cultures, the encyclopedia also includes articles on general topics such as parenting and child rearing, assimilation and acculturation, business, education and literature. More than 100 images round out the set.

Ling is the executive editor for the Journal of Asian American Studies. She has published 10 books including “Surviving on the Gold Mountain,” “Chinese in St. Louis, 1857-2007,” “Emerging Voices: Experiences of Underrepresented Asian Americans” and more than 100 articles.

KY3 television station in Springfield, Mo., has established a scholarship to encourage students to enter broadcasting as a career and to seek the highest quality education in the field. To be eligible for this scholarship, students must be an Arkansas or Missouri resident with a permanent address in one of the following counties: Baxter, Boone, Carroll, Fulton, Marion or Newton in Arkansas; Barry, Benton, Camden, Cedar, Christian, Dade, Dallas, Dent, Douglas, Greene, Hickory, Howell, Lawrence, Laclede, Oregon, Ozark, Polk, Pulaski, St. Clair, Shannon, Stone, Taney, Texas, Webster or Wright in Missouri. Other qualifications include being enrolled in a broadcast or related curriculum, which may include, but is not limited to: accounting, communications, engineering, journalism, mass media and marketing. For further qualifications and an application, go to http://www.ky3.com.

The Alumnae Panhellenic Association of Greater Kansas City is offering scholarship opportunities to female college juniors, seniors or graduate students who are residents of the greater Kansas City area and attend Kansas or Missouri schools. The Kansas City area is defined as Cass, Clay, Platte and Ray counties in Missouri, and Johnson, Leavenworth, Miami and Wyandotte counties in Kansas. Greek sorority membership is required to apply for this program. The application deadline is Feb. 4. Applications are available online at http://www.kcpanhel.com.

The Missouri Insurance Education Foundation will award scholarships to students attending Missouri colleges or universities in a program that could lead to positions in the insurance industry in Missouri. The $2,500 C. Lawrence Leggett Scholarship will be awarded to a junior or senior Missouri resident majoring in insurance or a related area of study in a Missouri college or university. In addition to the Leggett Scholarship, the foundation has established an additional scholarship available in the amount of $2,000. Application forms are available online at http://www.mief.org. Applications are due by March 31.

Students in Free Enterprise will host Life 101: Skills for the Real World—General Personal Finance from 6-7 p.m. Feb. 1 in the Student Union Building Alumni Room. This organization will also host an investing class Feb. 8.

Special Olympics Northeast Area will host a recruitment meeting for organizations from 6:30-7:30 p.m. Feb. 1 in Violette Hall 1308. Interested organizations should send one representative who knows approximately how many volunteers will be available for the event on April 16.

The Truman Art Gallery is now featuring Renaissance prints through Feb. 18. Truman professors who wrote poetry to accompany “The Workshop and the World” will read their selections at 6:30 p.m. Feb. 1. Refreshments will be provided.

The Physics Colloquium continues at 4:30 p.m. Feb. 2 in Magruder Hall 1096. Paul Kleiber of the Department of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Iowa will discuss laboratory studies of atmospheric dust.

An informational meeting for a summer music course in London will take place at 7 p.m. Feb. 2 in the Student Union Building Alumni Room. The course will fulfill the requirements for Truman’s Perspectives in Jazz class. To apply, visit http://programs.capa.org/mlpsum11. The deadline to apply is March 1.

“Cultural Perspectives on Plagiarism and Academic Dishonesty in Higher Education,” the first event this semester hosted by the Global Issues Colloquium, will take place at 7 p.m. Feb. 3 in Baldwin Hall 176. At this event, a diverse panel of international students will discuss ideologies on plagiarism and how they have adjusted to expectations in this country.

The American Association of University Professors (AAUP) will meet at 4:30 p.m. Feb. 4 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 Funds Allotment Council is accepting applications for new members. Time spent working with FAC may also count toward students’ scholarship hours. Applications are available at http://fac.truman.edu and are due Feb. 4.

2011 TruScholars Summer Undergraduate Research Program applications are due by 5 p.m. Feb. 4. For more information, see http://osr.truman.edu/truscholars or contact the Office of Student Research at osr@truman.edu.

The University Board of Governors will meet at 1 p.m. Feb. 5 in the Conference Room of the Student Union Building.

The Society for Sino-American Studies and the SUB After Dark will sponsor a Chinese New Year Dinner and Performance at 6 p.m. Feb. 5 in the Student Union Building Georgian Room. Admission is free. Contact hrs8385@truman.edu for ticket reservation information.

The Society for Sino-American Studies will be taking orders for fresh red or colored roses and bouquets Feb. 7-11 in the Student Union Building. Orders can also be placed online at http://ssas.truman.edu.

President Paino will host an all-University meeting at 2:30 Feb. 11 in the Student Union Building Georgian Room. He will update the campus on the budget for Fiscal Year 2012. A webcast of the meeting will be available shortly after the meeting ends.

“4 Real 4 Faux—Animating the Vernacular” will be on display in Ophelia Parrish’s main art gallery through Feb. 18. The display features artwork influenced by outsider art by self-taught and academically trained artists and it was curated by the Truman Curatorial Fellow Nancy Mizuno Elliot. The closing reception for this display will take place 6 p.m. Feb. 18.