Newsmakers: Dec. 7-13, 2015

Accounting
Abacus CPAs LLC hired Jenna Benton as a staff accountant and added Cristian Rath as a tax and accounting intern. Benton holds a bachelor’s from Adams State University, and Rath is an accounting senior at Missouri State University.

Advertising
Revel Advertising hired Michael Peacock as graphic designer and Chris Miller as account coordinator. Peacock has a bachelor’s in graphic design from Drury University and four years of graphic-design experience. Miller, who has worked in customer service, has a bachelor’s in psychology from Colorado State University.

Banking & Finance
Mid-Missouri Bank hired Rick Craine and Meagen Duran as residential lenders, Vicki Whitworth as closing coordinator and Andrew Moore as marketing director.

Old Missouri Bank added Shanda Trautman as director of marketing and a business development representative. She has 10 years of marketing and sales experience, working previously for Revel Advertising as accounts director.

Education
Nancy Chikaraishi, a professor at Drury’s Hammons School of Architecture, delivered a lecture at Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville, Ark., on the process and shared boundaries of creating space in art and architecture. It included works from her previously released exhibit, “Life Interrupted,” which features drawings and paintings portraying her parent’s time in a Japanese internment camp in Rohwer, Ark., during World War II.

Victory Media recognized Drury as a Military Friendly School for efforts to embrace U.S. military service members, veterans and their families as students.

Julie Masterson, a professor of communication sciences and disorders at Missouri State University, received the Honors of the Association Award from the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. A member of the ASHA since 1980, Masterson has spent her career working on the design and application of computer software to support assessment and treatment for language and literacy skills.

The MSU Master of Business Administration online program received recognition by both U.S. News and Affordable Colleges Online for quality and affordability. The MBA ranked sixth out of 10 most affordable programs by U.S. News and 14th in ACO’s Best Online MBA Programs: 2015-2016.

Springfield Public Schools named Bowerman Elementary principal Dana Webb as director of summer learning and student experiences for the district and moved Angela Valchev to interim principal at Bowerman. Valchev has assisted principals at McGregor and Westport elementary schools.

The Robert D. and Patricia E. Kern Family Foundation Inc. awarded a $117,000 grant to the Assemblies of God Theological Seminary at Evangel University. The funding supports activities that integrate faith with work and economics in classes, extracurricular activities and institutional partnerships.

Alumni and supporters of Drury and Southwest Baptist universities raised $32,542 during the second annual Highway 13 CatFight Giving Challenge. SBU came out on top in the competition, raising $18,955.

Government
The Springfield Police Department promoted Sgt. Fred Beck to lieutenant, Cpl. Dustin Martin to sergeant and Derrick Anderson to senior geographic information systems specialist.

SPD awarded Terry Lambert the Citizen Service Commendation for Lambert’s efforts to stop an attempted sexual assault.

Health Care
The Missouri Hospital Association named CoxHealth’s Auxiliary the state’s top auxiliary in the large hospital category. The hospital system’s 1,224 volunteers were recognized for 154,517 hours of service helping donate more than $160,000 to support the hospital and community, including $70,000 for the new patient tower. The auxiliary also contributed over $50,000 in medical and nursing student scholarships.

United Access of Springfield hired Jenna Davis as a mobility specialist in the sales department.

Hospitality
Hotel Vandivort earned a Four Diamond rating from AAA following an on-site evaluation. The designation represents the top 5 percent of 28,000 properties inspected for AAA.

Nonprofit
Springfield businessman Bobby Allison was named Outstanding Philanthropist of the Year by the Association of Fundraising Professionals’ Ozarks regional chapter. Other annual Philanthropy Day awards went to Springfield Remanufacturing Corp., Outstanding Philanthropic Business; the Marshfield Area Community Foundation, Outstanding Philanthropic Foundation; Denise Gibson of Ozarks Food Harvest, Outstanding Philanthropic Fundraising Professional; KOLR10/“Ozarks Live,” Outstanding Philanthropic Media Organization; Donny and Char Harrell, Outstanding Volunteer Fundraiser; Sigma Kappa Delta Upsilon, Outstanding Young Philanthropist; Community Foundation of the Ozarks’ Give Ozarks Day event, Outstanding Campaign; and Kimberly Michelsen of The Victim Center, Child Health Advocate.

The Child Advocacy Center was reaccredited by the National Children’s Alliance following an application and site review process.

Real Estate
Carol Jones Realtors hired Jeff Kester as professional development manager, a new position to serve agents in CJR’s 12 offices. Kester has served on the board of the Greater Springfield multiple listing service, was the first president of the Southern Missouri Regional MLS and is the Greater Springfield Board of Realtors 2016 board president.

Telecommunications
The Missouri Chamber of Commerce & Industry selected Bluebird Network LLC among its 2015 Fast Track awards for achieving significant revenue growth.