Newsmakers: June 1-7, 2026

Accounting 
FaithLyn Bragdon, a staff accountant at KPM CPAs & Advisors, earned her certified public accountant license from the Missouri State Board of Accountancy. Bragdon has a bachelor’s in accounting from College of the Ozarks. 

Banking & Finance 
Central Bank promoted Kendal Dingus and Kimberly Storey, and the company hired Ellie Sayre. With nearly 21 years of experience, Dingus was named vice president and senior mortgage loan officer. Dingus has a bachelor’s in accounting from Missouri State University, graduated from the MBA School of Lending and is slated to soon graduate from the Stonier Graduate School of Banking at the University of Pennsylvania. Promoted to consumer loan officer at the bank’s Nixa location, Storey started her career with Central Bank in 2014. Storey has a bachelor’s in organizational management and ethics. Sayre is a new mortgage loan officer for Central Bank. She previously worked as a mortgage loan officer at Summit Lending. 

Education 
Springfield Public Schools named Ashley Felton as Central High School’s next principal. She starts the new role on July 1. Felton graduated from Parkview High School and obtained a bachelor’s and master’s from the University of Missouri-Columbia and a doctorate in educational leadership from Evangel University. She spent nine years with the Lebanon R-III School District and was an adjunct instructor at Missouri State University. 

Nixa Public Schools tapped Cheryl (Scott) Huson for the district’s Academic Hall of Fame. A Nixa graduate, Huson has undergraduate and master’s degrees from Missouri State University, as well as her specialist in educational administration. Huson has been the principal at the Glenn Scott SCORE Campus of Nixa High School since 2008. 

Healthcare 
Phoenix Home Care & Hospice promoted Brandi Bartell to vice president of public relations and culture. A graduate of Indiana State University, Bartell started at Phoenix Home Care & Hospice in 2014.  

Nonprofit 
The Barnabas Foundation named Gabrielle “Gabe” Martin as director of strategic partnerships and events. Martin’s career has included nearly a decade at Hickory Hills Country Club in membership marketing, as well as serving as executive director of the Burrell Foundation.  

The Arc of the Ozarks Board of Directors added members Joe Driscoll, Nicole Jarratt and Isaac Sooter. Additionally, the nonprofit board elected Chad Astle as president. Driscoll works as a senior vice president at UMB Bank; Jarratt is CEO and strategy director at Revel; and Sooter serves as assistant superintendent of academics at Monett R-1 School District. Astle is owner and president of Geico Springfield. 

Real Estate 
Isabelle Jimenez Walker, broker and owner of Eagle Management & Realty 1 LLC, was awarded Life Membership by the Missouri Realtors association. Life Membership recognizes real estate agents who have maintained membership for 30 years and contributed a minimum of 10 years of service to the association.