Public relations officers on the move at local companies

A handful of public relations officers have been on the move recently at BKD LLP, CoxHealth, Drury University, Paul Mueller Co. (OTC: MUEL) and the Springfield Police Department.

In separate announcements, a new spokesperson was named at Drury University as the former leader exited for BKD, a Mueller Co. PR professional also moved to the accounting firm and CoxHealth's top media liaison announced her exit.

The most recent move was by Jasmine Bailey, who started as Drury's director of university communications and media relations on Nov. 16. She previously served as public affairs officer for the Springfield Police Department since 2018, according to a news release.

“We are grateful to have Jasmine on our team, as we continue to tell the stories of the many innovative and exciting things happening at Drury. Her strong journalism and public relations experience will no doubt help her excel in this vital role at our university,” said Kevin Kropf, executive vice president for enrollment management, marketing and communication at Drury, in the release.

Bailey succeeds Mike Brothers, who worked in PR at Drury for nearly eight years before his September switch to BKD. He's now serving as public relations manager for the Springfield-based public accounting firm.

At the Police Department, Lt. Jennifer Charleston, LGBTQ+ liaison for the agency, is filling in for Bailey temporarily as a search is conducted for a permanent replacement, said city of Springfield spokesperson Cora Scott.

Another new hire at BKD is Christine Daues, who started last month as regional marketing director for national advisory services, according to a separate news release. A former news anchor, Daues worked in marketing at Mueller Co. for six years.

In the health care industry, Kaitlyn McConnell recently announced she would exit CoxHealth as its system director of public relations to focus on her Ozarks Alive publication that covers the people and history of the area. McConnell, who has worked at CoxHealth for more than six years, said in a Facebook post that Ozarks Alive would work with Community Foundation of the Ozark Inc., Missouri State University Libraries and the Springfield Daily Citizen on upcoming projects. The MSU Libraries recently announced plans to develop Ozarks programming for the 2023 Smithsonian Folklife Festival in Washington, D.C.

In a separate post on Nov. 17, McConnell said CoxHealth had begun accepting applications for her successor.