List of Truman State University people

The following is a list of notable people associated with Truman State University, located in the American city of Kirksville, Missouri.

Notable alumni

Politics and government

• Samuel W. Arnold – former US Congressman from Missouri's 1st district
• Jedh Colby Barker – United States Marine Corps, posthumous recipient of the Medal of Honor from the Vietnam War
• Robert J. Behnen – genealogist; former Republican member of the Missouri House of Representatives
• Beryl Franklin Carroll – 20th governor of Iowa
• John W. Cauthorn – former Republican member of the Missouri State Senate
• Mike Colona – Democratic member of the Missouri House of Representatives
• John V. Cox – retired United States Marine Corps aviator and Major General
• Harsha de Silva – Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs in Sri Lanka^[1]
• Hung Hsiu-chu (Continuing Education) – Deputy Speaker of the Legislative Yuan of Republic of China, Kuomintang's potential presidential candidate for Taiwanese general election, 2016
• Alphonso Jackson – 13th United States Secretary of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)
• Clare Magee – U.S. Representative from Missouri
• Rebecca McClanahan – RN and professor of nursing; former Democratic member of the Missouri House of Representatives
• Susana A. Mendoza – City Clerk for the City of Chicago; former member of the Illinois House of Representatives
• John R. Murdock – U.S. Representative from Arizona
• General John J. "Black Jack" Pershing – Army Officer who achieved rank of General of the Armies
• Milton Andrew Romjue – U.S. Representative from Missouri
• Mary Rhodes Russell – judge on the Supreme Court of Missouri – appointed in 2004 and retained in 2006
• Ed Schieffer – Democratic member of the Missouri House of Representatives
• Eric Schmitt – Missouri state senator, 2009–present
• Dan A. Sullivan – Republican member of the Arkansas House of Representatives from Jonesboro since 2015^[2]
• Arthur L. Willard – U.S. Navy Vice Admiral and recipient of the Navy Cross

Media and the arts

• Byron Crawford – blogger and hip-hop critic
• Jenna Fischer ('95) – actress, best known for her role as Pam Beesly in the U.S. adaptation of The Office
• Kevin C. Fitzpatrick – non-fiction writer best known for his research of Dorothy Parker and the Algonquin Round Table
• Lori Nix – printer and photographer known for her work with dioramas
• Prajwal Parajuly – Nepali-speaking Indian author of The Gurkha's Daughter^[3][4]
• Rhonda Vincent – bluegrass singer, International Bluegrass Music Association's female vocalist of the year 2000–2006

Education

• Marc Becker – Professor of History, included in The Professors: The 101 Most Dangerous Academics in America
• Glenn Frank – President of the University of Wisconsin–Madison
• Huping Ling – Professor of History
• Emmanuel Nnadozie, Ph.D. – Nigerian economist, author, educator; founder of the Truman McNair Program

Science and technology

• Harry H. Laughlin – leading eugenicist in the first half of the 20th century

Athletics

• Ray Armstead – gold medal winner in the 1984 Olympics (4x400m relay)
• Gene Bartow – former college basketball head coach for UCLA, UAB, Illinois, and Memphis
• Brian Dzingai – Zimbabwean Olympic sprinter
• Lenvil Elliott – former professional American football player who played running back for nine seasons in the NFL
• Don Faurot – conference champion football and basketball head coach, member of the College Football Hall of Fame
• Harry Gallatin – Truman men's basketball player, NBA player for the New York Knicks and the Detroit Pistons, coach of the New York Knicks and member of the Basketball Hall of Fame
• Glenn Jacobs – WWE wrestler best known as "Kane", played both football and basketball for Truman
• Mike Morris – former long snapper for the Minnesota Vikings; current radio host on KFAN in Minneapolis
• Al Nipper – Major League Baseball coach; former pitcher for the Boston Red Sox, Chicago Cubs, and Cleveland Indians
• Ken Norton – boxer (one of the few to beat Muhammad Ali)
• Gregg Williams – Super Bowl-winning defensive coordinator for the New Orleans Saints, Buffalo Bills former head coach

Presidents

These persons have served as presidents or interim presidents of North Missouri Normal and Commercial School (1867–1868), North Missouri Normal School (1868–1870), North Missouri Normal School of the 1st District (1870–1918), Northeast Missouri State Teachers College (1918–1968), Northeast Missouri State College (1968–1972), Northeast Missouri State University (1972–1996), and Truman State University (1996–present).