College of the Ozarks top exec to retire

College of the Ozarks Executive Vice President Fred Mullinax plans to retire next month.

Mullinax, who’s listed directly under President Jerry Davis on C of O’s online administrative staff page, has worked for the Point Lookout school the past eight years. In 2009, Mullinax founded the school’s Patriotic Education Travel Program, which has taken more than 150 veterans and nearly 300 students on trips to battlefields worldwide, according to a news release.

“Everyone knows Mullinax is the father of the Patriotic Education Travel Program, which will continue for years to come,” Davis said in the release.

Mullinax and wife Rachel, a retired accounting professor at C of O, plan to relocate to their home state of South Carolina.

Mullinax has over 40 years working in higher education in the areas of admissions, development and administration. Prior to joining C of O, he worked as vice president of Alice Lloyd College and Transylvania University in Kentucky and as president of Alice Lloyd College and the Association of Independent Kentucky Colleges and Universities, according to the release.

C of O spokeswoman Valorie Coleman was unavailable for comment by deadline. A separate spokeswoman said the school would take measures to find Mullinax’s successor, but she referred further questions to Coleman.