YOUR BUSINESS AUTHORITY
Springfield, MO
YOUR BUSINESS AUTHORITY
Springfield, MO
The Missouri State University Board of Governors met Friday to elect new officers and to honor two state legislators for their support to shore up funding for the school.
Board transition
The board made Springfieldian Craig Frazier its chairman and elected Amy Counts, of St. Louis, as vice chairwoman, according to a news release.
Frazier is currently a board member of Springfield Innovation Inc. and has 20 years of experience in the health care technology and insurance industries. An alumnus of MSU, Frazier previously was chief operating officer for HealthMedX LLC, which sold in 2016.
Counts is a senior account executive at insurance provider Wise F&I. Both are scheduled to take on their new roles on Jan. 1, 2020, according to the release.
Frazier succeeds Gabriel Gore, a partner with the St. Louis law firm of Dowd Bennett LLP. The transition sets up Counts as the 2021 chairwoman.
Government Excellence Award
The MSU board on Friday selected Sen. Lincoln Hough, R-Springfield, and House Speaker Elijah Haar, R-Springfield, as recipients of the 2019 Government Excellence Award, according to a separate news release.
Both legislators are credited with helping to secure a $10 million increase to MSU’s core funding this year. The state budget provided the increase, as well as nearly $5 million for Ozarks Technical Community College’s Center for Advanced Manufacturing and Technology, according to past reporting.
“Without the tremendous leadership of Sen. Hough and Rep. Haahr, Missouri State would not have received the $10 million equity increase,” MSU President Clif Smart said in the release. “This support is vital to our ability to expand our programs and build a strong workforce.”
Previous Government Excellence Award recipients include Gov. Mike Parson and U.S. Sen. Roy Blunt.
The board meeting was held a day before the university unveiled a $250 million capital campaign, according to Springfield Business Journal reporting.
Under the weight of rising health care costs, an increasing number of people are surging to the Health Insurance Marketplace rather than opting for employer-sponsored plans.
