Newsmakers: Feb. 10-16, 2025

Education
The Missouri State University Board of Governors elected Tim Francka as chair and Melissa Gourley as vice chair for 2025. Francka is administrative director of long-term care for Citizens Memorial Health Care Foundation in Bolivar, and Gourley is a veterinarian at Whetstone Veterinary Service in Mountain Grove.

Six MSU students were recognized by the board with Citizen Scholar Awards, honoring their academic success and their commitment to the university’s public affairs mission. The award recipients are Faith Collins, a junior majoring in professional writing; Ashlie German, a senior pursuing a degree in supply chain, logistics and operations management; Michael Guilfoy, a senior majoring in political science and modern language; Simoriah Longhorn, a graduate student who is studying nutrition and dietetics; Kayla Pfitzner, a graduate student who is pursuing an MBA; and Gerald Schiele IV, a senior majoring in accounting.

Khania Clark, a junior at Drury University who is majoring in computer science, was awarded the Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship, awarded by the U.S. Department of State. Clark will receive a $3,000 grant to study abroad in Rome, Italy.

Government
Hollie Elliott, executive director of the Dallas County Economic Development Group, was reelected as board chair for the Missouri Coordinating Board for Higher Education. Appointed to the board in 2021 by Gov. Mike Parson, Elliott served as vice chair in 2023 and chair in 2024.

Law
Thomas Richardson of the Ozark Police Department was chosen as 2024 Officer of the Year for his work at the department and in the community. An officer since 2021, Richardson is currently assigned to the Ozark Police Department Special Operations Division’s Traffic Unit as a traffic enforcement officer.

Manufacturing
Ozarks Coca-Cola/Dr Pepper Bottling Co. hired Candice Chang as vice president of sales, Wren Hall as director of public affairs and communications, and Jon Marshall as director of manufacturing. With more than 15 years of experience in the consumer-packaged goods industry and a bachelor’s in management from the University of Florida, Chang previously worked as vice president of commercial marketing at Swire Coca-Cola USA. With a bachelor’s in communications from Southwest Baptist University, Hall has more than 30 years of years of experience in public affairs, communications and marketing, most recently working as director of community relations and development at Citizens Memorial Hospital. Marshall, who has 22 years of experience in operations within the beverage industry, previously worked as the South Carolina plant director at Refresco.

Twenty-three employees at the SRC Holdings Corp. family of businesses graduated from its Leading Edge Leadership Academy. The academy involves more than 100 hours of leadership training and education on SRC operations. The graduates are Tim Anderson, Kristin Arber, Katelyn Ashcraft, Trevor Baumgartner, Jimmy Cooper, Tim Cypret, Alicia Del Toro, Michael Eimer, Drew Englert, Blake Ewing, Easton Flaugh, Luis Gonzalez, Randy Harshberger, Tyler Hoskins, Adam Kuiken, Connor Lee, John Nickle, Tyler Rasmussen, Tina Storey, Daniela Thornton, Heather Watson, Charles Wilhere and Christian Winfield.

Marketing
BSR Marketing and The Social Content Co. hired Michelle Bowler as a marketing consultant. Bowler previously worked for 24 years at KY3 Inc., most recently as a senior account executive.