Accounting Elliot, Robinson & Co. LLP hired Matthew Blackwell as staff accountant. With a master’s in accounting from Missouri State University, Blackwell has six years of public accounting experience.
Banking Doug Simkins, Beverly Ikerd and Eric Schmidt were selected to join the Metropolitan National Bank’s credit review group. Simkins, assistant vice president and credit review supervisor with Metropolitan, holds a bachelor’s in accounting from MSU and brings nine years of credit analysis experience to the bank. Ikerd, a credit analyst, has 31 years of experience, 11 years with Metropolitan. Schmidt, a credit analyst, holds an MBA from MSU.
Regions Mortgage named Alan Noe branch manager. Noe has 30 years of industry experience, with stints at Bank of Kansas City Mortgage and Bank of America.
Simmons First National Bank hired David Losse as a vice president and commercial loan officer and Todd Brierly as a mortgage loan officer. Brierly has worked in the Springfield banking market for 18 years, including jobs at BancorpSouth and Guaranty Bank. Losse, who holds a bachelor’s in business from Drury University, has nine years of banking experience.
Education Belva Worthen Prather, MSU professor of music and director of the University Wind Ensemble, was inducted into the Missouri Bandmasters Hall of Fame, which honors high school and university band directors. Prather has taught band for 46 years, the last 27 at MSU.
Engineering Tayler Kurtzman joined Crawford, Murphy & Tilly Inc. as a civil engineer assigned to the firm’s water and wastewater group. Kurtzman, who earned a bachelor’s in civil engineering from the Missouri University of Science and Technology, is working on the historic downtown Branson streetscape project.
Finance BluCurrent credit union promoted Gary Kirk to executive vice president and chief financial officer. A four-year credit union employee, Kirk is responsible for treasury management, accounting functions, facilities, asset liability management and information technology.
Health Care Missouri House Speaker Tim Jones, R-Eureka, appointed 50 members to the Citizens and Legislators Working Group on Medicaid Eligibility and Reform, including Steve Edwards, CEO of CoxHealth; gastroenterologist Dr. Larry Gurian; Gordon Kinne, president of Med-Pay Inc.; Thomas Long, fleet manager with Prime Inc. and former state representative; and Brooks Miller, executive director of Jordan Valley Community Health Center. Rep. Lynn Morris, R-Ozark, was selected to serve on the House Interim Committee on Medicaid Transformation that will work with the Medicaid working group.
Cox College received two grants totaling $26,000. The school was awarded a $5,000 education grant from Bank of America to fund multimedia software for online courses and $21,000 from the Missouri Department of Higher Education for its student loan default program, which teaches financial literacy and repayment plans of back federal loans.
Registered nurse Diane McNamara received the Critical Care in Hyperbaric Nursing Award of Excellence from the Undersea Hyperbaric Medical Society. McNamara was recognized for her work at the CoxHealth Hyperbaric Medicine and Wound Care Center.
Nurse practitioner Ashley VanHorn joined the CoxHealth Family Medical Care Center. With bachelor’s and master’s degrees in nursing from Cox College, she is board certified and a member of the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners.
Dr. Sailaja Tummala joined Ferrell-Duncan Clinic Family Medicine. She attended Guntur Medical College in India and completed her residency in Maryland with Harbor Hospital and Franklin Square Hospital. Tummala is board-certified in family medicine and holds membership in the American Medical Association and American Academy of Family Physicians.
Insurance Osborn & Associates LLC owner John Osborn was appointed president of the Missouri Association of Health Underwriters. Osborn, a licensed life and health insurance agent since 2001, appoints committee members, represents the association at industry meetings and handles public relations.[[In-content Ad]]
Moseley’s Discount Office Products was purchased; Side Chick opened in Branson; and the Springfield franchise store of NoBaked Cookie Dough changed ownership.
