UNL junior Matthew Boring of Lincoln wins $30,000 Truman Scholarship

Matthew Boring, a junior music major at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, is a recipient of the Truman Scholarship.

The Truman Scholarship is a $30,000 highly competitive, merit-based national scholarship awarded to undergraduate students for financial support to attend graduate or professional school in preparation for careers in government, the nonprofit sector or elsewhere in public service. The scholarship foundation received 576 applications this year from 245 colleges and universities, and selected 176 finalists. Only 60 were selected as 2010 Truman Scholars.

John W. Richmond, director of the UNL School of Music, made the surprise announcement of the honor March 29 during Boring's wind ensemble rehearsal [video].

Boring, of Lincoln, is the first UNL student to win the prestigious scholarship since 2004 and the first student in the Hixson-Lied College of Fine and Performing Arts to win the award. He is the 13th UNL student to win the Truman Scholarship.

"It is a tremendous honor to be a recipient of the Truman Scholarship and to represent the University of Nebraska as a Truman scholar," Boring said. "Meeting the other finalists for the Truman was a great experience, and all of them were extremely talented candidates, so it is truly a privilege to be selected as a scholarship winner."

Truman Scholarship candidates must be in the upper quarter of their junior class and be nominated by their university's Truman faculty representative. Laura Damuth, director of undergraduate research at UNL, worked with Boring on his Truman Scholarship application.

The Truman Foundation looks for candidates who have extensive records of public and community service, are committed to careers in government or elsewhere in public service and have outstanding leadership potential and communication skills. The Harry S. Truman Scholarship Foundation honors the memory of the 33rd U.S. President, who was dedicated to education and public service.

"Matthew is one of the most disciplined students I've ever had," said his trumpet professor, Darryl White. "It doesn't surprise me that he would win the Truman Scholarship. I'm very proud of him."

Richmond said Boring was an excellent candidate for the award.

"I couldn't be more pleased for and proud of Matt Boring. Matt is a superb musician, an outstanding academic and a fully engaged citizen of the UNL School of Music," Richmond said. "Matt's musical activities have taken him across the United States as a performer, teacher and consultant. Such accomplishments are truly rare in one so young, and I am simply delighted that the Truman Foundation recognized in Matt the exceptional qualities he possesses in such abundance."

Boring, a 2007 graduate of Lincoln High School, is also the recipient of a Regents Scholarship at UNL and is a member of the University of Nebraska Honors Program. He serves as a rank leader in the Cornhusker Marching Band, principal trumpet for the University of Nebraska Wind Ensemble, assistant lead trumpet for the University of Nebraska Jazz Ensemble I and lead trumpet for the Big Red Express Pep Band. He also performs with the Scarlet Brass Quintet.

Boring is also the recipient of a UCARE (Undergraduate Creative Activities and Research Experiences) grant. He serves as a member of the Hixson-Lied College of Fine and Performing Arts Student Advisory Board and is the College's Association of Students of the University of Nebraska senator. He was a featured presenter at the National Service-Learning Conference on the topic of "Creating Cross-Sector Partnerships for Large-Scale Success" as a sophomore. He is also the president of Alpha Class of Phi Mu Alpha, a national music fraternity.

He is in his 11th year of playing trumpet, which he started in fifth grade.

"I got started in music at a young age, singing with my mother at home and on family outings," he said. "I gained a love for the trumpet almost immediately after I started playing it, and haven't put it down since."

A business minor, Boring said he is looking at graduate schools that offer dual MBA/MA degrees in arts administration and hopes to be involved in arts management as a career.

"The arts have made a significant impact on my life, beginning with an excellent music and theater education that I received in the Lincoln Public Schools," he said. "Throughout my life, I have noticed performing arts facilities throughout the country that enrich the communities they are in by being centers for cultural vibrancy and enriching the lives of the community members they serve."

In 2006, he had a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to perform at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., as part of a month-long fellowship in collaboration with the National Symphony Orchestra, which influenced his future goals.

"In addition to the musical training I received, it was enlightening to see the business and management side that fueled the diverse programming the Kennedy Center offers and the impact it is able to make on an extremely diverse audience through that programming," Boring said. "I hope to design programming that engages students at an early age and develop their ability to creatively express themselves as well as ensure our national identity in the arts is continued."

He credits UNL for helping him work toward his goals.

"My education at UNL has prepared me for my future goals by providing an education that is challenging, well-rounded and timely with the events going on in our world," Boring said. "The music education that I receive at UNL is truly first-rate and prepared me for success in applying for the Truman Scholarship and for my future academic and career aspirations."

Giacomo Oliva, endowed dean of the Hixson-Lied College of Fine and Performing Arts, said he is pleased with Boring's selection as a Truman Scholar.

"We are all exceedingly proud that Matthew has been named a Truman Scholarship Award winner," Oliva said. "What a most fitting tribute to this young man for his academic accomplishments and his generous commitment to public service. This is indeed a special honor for Matt, as well as for the Hixson-Lied College of Fine and Performing Arts, UNL, and the state of Nebraska."

WRITER: Kathe Andersen