Education College of the Ozarks Vice President Howell Keeter received an honorary doctorate in law. Keeter has worked at the college for 40 years, in that time helping to recruit the NAIA Men’s Division II Basketball Championship. The school’s athletic complex was named in his honor late last year.
Environmental Environmental Works Inc. hired Vince Epps as an environmental scientist, John Rode as a field services group manager and AdriAnn Rode as a senior project manager in the assessment and compliance department. Epps most recently worked as a staff geologist for St. Louis-based Geotechnology Inc., and the Rodes owned Ava-based environmental consulting company RCE Pro.
Government Missouri Rep. Kevin Elmer, R-Nixa, received the St. Louis Business Journal’s 2011 Legislator Award for business advocacy on the Missouri Chamber of Commerce’s “fix the six” priorities as well as employment law reforms under HB 205.
Health Care The Sisters of Mercy Health System, the parent entity of St. John’s, was named among 48 Best Employers for Healthy Lifestyles in 2011 by the National Business Group on Health.
CoxHealth hired health care providers Susan Bounous, Melissa Abramovitz and Kimberly Heiser. Bounous, a family nurse practitioner, joined Cox Family Medicine of Monett. She earned her bachelor’s degree from Missouri State University and completed her nurse practitioner studies at the University of Kansas. Abramovitz joined CoxHealth Springfield Inpatient Physicians as a physician’s assistant. She received her undergraduate education at Central Methodist University and earned her master’s in physicians assisting at Missouri State University. Heiser joined the CoxHealth Family Medical Care Center as a family nurse practitioner. She received her bachelor’s from Union College in Lincoln, Neb., and completed her family nurse practitioner education at the University of Missouri-Kansas City and Missouri Southern State University in Joplin.
Gwen Beebe accepted the position of vice president of program development with Phoenix Home Care Inc. Beebe has 26 years of health care experience, most recently with Integrity Home Care, and has spent the last seven years specializing in business development.
The Missouri Foundation for Health awarded Community Partnershipof theOzarks $16,546 for a new fund development plan and a donor communication plan to support it. The grant was made under MFH’s Strategic Organizational Development funding program and was part of $1.6 million in support recently released by MFH.
Insurance Connie Tucker joined PJC Insurance Agency LLC as its corporate health technician. She is responsible for coordinating client health plan activities, health promotion, customer service and human resources administration.
Media Four broadcast staff members at KMSU and Ozarks Public Television at MSU received awards from the Missouri Broadcasters Association for their news stories.
Michele Skalicky, morning show host at KSMU, won first place in feature reporting for “Remembering 9/11,” and she received a certificate of merit for documentary and public affairs for “Bhear Study.”
Jennifer Moore, senior news producer at KSMU, won first place in news series category for “The MO Public Defender System in Crisis.”
Tom Carter, manager of programming and product at OPT, won a certificate of merit in special programs for “Laura Ingalls Wilder: The Life Stories of a Pioneer Girl.” KSMU staff member
Mike Smith won a certificate of merit in special programs for “Remembering Mitch.”
Nonprofit The Library Foundation for the Springfield-Greene County Library District has named new officers through June 30, 2012: Juli Moseley, president; Andrew Tasset, vice president; Claudia Saul, secretary; and Derek Fraley, treasurer.
Summer Skinner, president of Moxie Event Management LLC, earned the certified special events professional designation from the International Special Events Society. The designation recognizes those who have successfully demonstrated the knowledge, skills and ability in all components of a special event.
Former Taney County Presiding Commissioner Chuck Pennel was named to Christian Action Ministries’ board of directors, representing the Forsyth and eastern Taney County areas.
Recreation The Sound of Freedom USA indoor gun range in Ozark was awarded a 5-Star rating from the National Shooting Sports Foundation. The rating – the highest available from the NSSF – was awarded due to facility management, its focus on customers and because it is seen as a strong competitor in the recreation marketplace.
Services Austin Sickmyre was named operations manager for Text Bucks. Sickmyre, who has 10 years of experience in the textbook industry, manages front-end operations for the company. He has a bachelor’s in marketing research and a master’s in logistics and supply chain management from MSU.[[In-content Ad]]
A franchise store of a Branson West-based quilting business made its Queen City debut; Grateful Vase launched in Lebanon; and Branson entertainment venue The Social Birdy had its grand opening.
