Congratulations to Truman State University graduate Chris Holmes who teaches English and journalism at Hazelwood West High School in Hazelwood, Mo., for being selected as the 2014 Missouri Teacher of the Year by the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE).
Chris Holmes (’90)
Holmes received a bachelor’s in education from Truman in 1990 and has been with the Hazelwood School District for eight years and an educator for 13 years. The Teacher of the Year announcement was made during an all-school assembly. Holmes had no idea he had won the award until it was revealed during the assembly.
Holmes is the Hazelwood School District Teacher of the Year for 2013-2014 and was named the 2009 Educator of the Year by the Governor’s Council on Disability. He was also the recipient of the 2011 Special Ambassador Award by the Special School District of St. Louis County and helped start Project WALK three years ago at West High. The program identifies students at risk of dropping out of school and intervenes to assist students graduate. He will now represent the state of Missouri in the National Teacher of the Year competition.
Check out the most recent issue of the Truman Review alumni magazine were Holmes was featured along with several other Truman alumni at
Truman students pursue everything that intrigues them, like Conor Gearin, who stepped outside the walls of the classroom for an internship experience in Maine that connected his interest in science with his passion for writing.
Conor Gearin, a senior at Truman State University, spent this past summer in a learning environment that elicited hands-on participation studying the water chemistry of ephemeral wetlands in Maine known as vernal pools. The internship was a natural extension of his chemistry class at Truman, which featured an environmental science lab. Gearin, who had studied dissolved oxygen, nitrogen, and phosphorus in a creek as part of his classwork, found he was well-prepared for the internship at the University of Maine-Orono.
Gearin notes that crucial wildlife habitat is not always a large river delta or grassland. “The vernal pools are small, but they have an importance disproportionate to their size,” says Gearin. These pools, which fill up with snowmelt in the spring and dry up by the fall, are critical to the life cycle of several amphibian species — including frogs and salamanders — which depend on the vernal pools for breeding.
Working with his research team, Gearin explored these important wildlife habitats taking water samples at vernal pools across an urban-rural gradient, sampling at urban sites in Bangor, Maine, and relatively remote sites in Hancock County. He also made use of his dual biology-English major by becoming a writer for the project’s blog, “Of Pools and People” (http://ofpoolsandpeople.weebly.com/blog).
Through his participation in the project, Gearin saw first-hand how important it is for researchers to build up a relationship with the public. “The faculty and graduate students at the University of Maine have spent years cooperating with residents of Maine who own the land containing vernal pools,” says Gearin. “They have done an excellent job of explaining the importance of vernal pools to landowners and creating practical but effective conservation strategies,” says Gearin.
He also discovered that, when working the field, mosquitoes and blackflies can be vicious. “We wore mesh bug jackets and vinyl gloves in the field to protect ourselves,” says Gearin. “If we took these precautions, we could avoid most bites.”
Gearin’s internship was funded by a grant from the National Science Foundation’s Coupled Natural and Human Systems (NSF-CNH) program, and while these positions can be quite competitive, Gearin thinks they are worth pursuing. “You get to work outside studying wildlife or the environment, doing a small part to improve our understanding of the changing natural world,” says Gearin, who also enjoyed having a chance to work with other undergraduates, including a civil engineering major. “Completing an internship in a field outside your major can help broaden your experience and perspective on your career,” says Gearin.
Internships often nurture a student’s excitement for the field, and Gearin, who plans to pursue a career in science education and communication, hopes his internship experience will lead to more opportunities to do field work. “The research and science writing experience I gained have reaffirmed that I want to work on science questions that directly impact people and to help in communicating scientific discoveries to the public,” says Gearin.
Every summer Truman’s alumni chapters host send-offs for new first-year students. It’s their way of welcoming the students and their families into the Bulldog community! Thanks to everyone that helped out and participated in this year’s send-offs! See photos on Facebook.
21st Annual Comer’s Bulldog Reunion Held in Nashville, Illinois
Bulldogs representing four decades gathered in Nashville, Ill., for the annual “Comer’s Bulldog Reunion” held June 27-29 in Nashville, Ill. Approximately 40 former Bulldog athletes participated in the festivities that included socials, meals and an 18-hole golf scramble at the Nashville Country Club.
The winning team of Wayne Schroeder, Dennis Sissom and Bill Seman fired a 58.
The event is hosted annually by 1968 graduate and former Bulldog football player Paul Comer. Among the attendees was long-time Bulldog assistant football and golf coach Bill Richerson, a 1953 graduate from Glen Ellyn, Ill.
PHOTO: Front row, L-R: Mark Gambaiana, Lou Coco, Barry Deist, Paul Comer, Gene Ball, John Glore, and Jerry Meyer. Row two: Brad Carter, Al Schif, Bob Jarrett, Tom Kahl, Jim Dattilo, Bill Seman, Charles Hunsaker, Pat Elliott, Bryan Carter. Row three: Billy Carter, Dennis Sissom, Mel Loncaric, Steve Garrett, Bill Richerson, Dickie Ray, Mike Jaffe, Pete Cirrantano, Pat Butler, and Nick Katsaras. Row Four: Don Sparks, John Newcomb, Bob Bradley, Russ Braudrick, Bob Brown, Larry Crooks, and Mike Works.
Chris Holmes (’90)
