Awards and Achievements

Awards and Achievements

Communications

Arlen Diamond, general manager of KSMU, was awarded $73,604 from the U.S. Department of Commerce for the project, "Public Telecommunications Facilities Program." The program will allow KSMU to improve its present public radio service to West Plains and Howell County by moving to a new noncommercial frequency, increasing transmitter power, improving the quality of the signal and creating the opportunity for some locally originated programming.

Community

Several new members have been added to the chamber board of directors: Jim Baker, executive assistant to the president, SMSU, Sally Hargis, director/media consultant, Ozarks Coca-Cola/Dr. Pepper Bottling Company, Doug Jackson, AIA, principal, Butler, Rosenbury & Partners Inc., Patti Penny, owner, Penmac Personnel Services, Doug Pitt, president, Service World Computer Center and Donn Sorensen, chief operating officer, St. John's Physicians & Clinics. Todd Parnell, president of The Bank, will continue serving on the board for a three-year term. Robert Spence, president, Evangel University, is 2001 chairman of the board. Mary Kay Meek, community relations director, Meek's Building Centers, will serve on the board one more year as past chairperson. Bill Perkin, chief executive officer of Way2Bid Inc. has been named to a one-year term, also.

A southwest Missouri-based domestic violence shelter, COPE, has been selected by the 2000-2001 Taste of the South Committee to receive all profits from this year's event to be held May 19, 2001, at the Ronald Reagan National Airport.

Education

College of Education acting dean, David Hough, received two awards from the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education. The first award of $56,974 is for the project "Missouri Reading Initiative," which is a program developed to raise student reading scores through the Missouri Assessment Program. The second award of $96,876 is for the project "Missouri Assessment Program" (MAP). This project is designed for Missouri's Pre K-12 teachers to develop and implement authentic teaching, learning and assessment strategies to measure what students are capable of accomplishing.

Health Care

Freeman Health System surgeons Brock A. Carney and Kurtis S. Cox, both members of Freeman Surgical Associates of Joplin, were recently named fellows of the American College of Surgeons during the college's 86th annual clinical congress in Chicago.

The 2000 St. John's Walk for Hospice to benefit the hospice program of St. John's Regional Medical Center in Joplin raised more than $20,000. The money will be used to pay for medications, equipment and supplies for hospice patients in the St. John's Hospice service area.