New board member named at Great Southern Bank

provided by Great Southern Bancorp Inc.

Amy Counts starts Jan. 1.

Springfield-based Great Southern Bancorp Inc. (Nasdaq: GSBC) is adding a new member to its board of directors.

Amy Counts is scheduled to start Jan. 1, according to a news release. Regional vice president of sales at St. Louis-based Wise F&I, Counts also serves on the Missouri State University Foundation Board of Trustees and is working to help find the school's next president.

"We value diversity of talent, knowledge and experience in our board members, and Amy’s extensive business development and customer relationship expertise will prove to be a tremendous asset to our board," Great Southern President and CEO Joe Turner said in the release. "Amy being a resident of St. Louis will also bring valuable insight and perspective as we expand customer relationships in this key market for our company.”

Counts will be the 10th member of the board. She fills the seat of Larry Frazier, a longtime board member of Great Southern who died in November, according to past reporting.

The Springfield-based operator of Great Southern Bank reported third-quarter earnings of $15.9 million, down 12.4% from $18.1 million a year earlier.

GSBC shares were trading at $60.09 as of 10:39 a.m., compared with a 52-week range of $45.39 to $61.63 per share.