Newsmakers: Aug. 25-31, 2025

Accounting
Springfield certified public accounting firm The Whitlock Co. promoted Christy McCue and Taylor Segars to manager and Cole Dickerson and Brett Stufflebam to senior accountant. McCue has a bachelor’s in accounting and master’s in business administration from Missouri State University, and Segars has a bachelor’s in business administration and MBA from Drury University and a bachelor’s in accounting from Western Governors University. Dickerson has bachelor’s in accounting and cybersecurity from MSU, and Stufflebam has a bachelor’s in management from Drury and a bachelor’s in accounting from WGU.

Education
Branson Public Schools appointed Tim Butler as principal of Buchanan Elementary effective with the 2025-26 academic year. A district employee since 2013, Butler most recently was assistant principal for Branson Junior High. With his undergraduate degree from College of the Ozarks, Butler has a master’s and doctorate in educational leadership, curriculum and instruction from Evangel University.

Stephanie Frigerio was promoted to assistant principal at Branson Junior High within the Branson Public Schools district. An employee with the district since 2019 who previously taught fifth grade at Buchanan Intermediate, Frigerio has an undergraduate degree and specialist degree in educational leadership from MSU, as well as a master’s from Williams Wood University.

The Ozark School District Board of Education voted to name Jared Lotz as principal of Ozark Middle School. Previously the school’s assistant principal since 2019, Lotz has worked at the district since 2008 and has an educational administration specialist degree from Missouri State University.

Lisa Anderson was selected to serve as principal of Ozark Middle School by the Ozark School District Board of Education. Formerly an instructional coach at Ozark Middle School, Anderson’s education career started as a math teacher in 2011 at Hollister Middle School. Anderson has a master’s in curriculum and instruction from Lindenwood University and an educational leadership specialist degree from Northwest Missouri State University.

Republic High School received the Lighthouse Certification from Leader in Me. The certification is based off leadership principles in Stephen R. Covey’s “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People” and recognizes schools for teaching leadership and life skills to students.

Real Estate
Springfield-based real estate investment and development firm O’Reilly Development Co. LLC promoted Kaylee Ellis and Hunter Hein and hired Will Berry, Cole DeBerg and Brooke Martin. Promoted to director of operations is 10-year company employee Ellis, who has a bachelor’s in business from Missouri State University. With a bachelor’s in finance from MSU, Hein was promoted to chief financial officer. Berry joins the company as an investment analyst and has a bachelor’s in finance from MSU. Now a project executive at O’Reilly Development, DeBerg has a bachelor’s in construction management and civil engineering from South Dakota State University and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Nebraska Omaha. The company’s new director of asset management, Martin has more than 30 years of property management experience.