Newsmakers: June 30-July 6, 2025

Banking & Finance
Central Bank announced the promotions of local bankers Michael Baldus, Brandon Blackmann, Blair Gann, Rebecca Greene, Kim Massey and Haley Morell. A Central Bank employee since 2022, Baldus is now serving as assistant vice president and commercial loan officer. Appointed to vice president and mortgage loan officer is Blackmann, who has worked at Central Bank since 2013. An employee since 2021, Gann was promoted to vice president and loan officer. Greene, director of Central Bank’s ProsperU financial education center who has been a company employee since 2010, was promoted to assistant vice president. With nearly three decades of experience at Central Bank, Massey was named consumer lending manager. A company employee since 2017, Morell was named retail officer and banking center manager at Central Bank’s Marshfield branch.

Construction
Branco Enterprises Inc. received three Zero Lost Workday Awards from the Associated General Contractors of Missouri. The awards recognize companies that complete an entire calendar year without an employee missing work due to an on-site incident. The AGC specifically highlighted Branco Enterprises’ building, highway and utility infrastructure divisions.

Education
Springfield Public Schools appointed one director and three principals effective with the 2025-26 academic year. A member of the SPS purchasing team for six years who has more than 20 years of experience in public procurement, Kara Daniel has been named director of purchasing and distribution. Bowerman Elementary School’s next principal is Greg Chadwell, who has worked the past three years as assistant principal at Sherwood Elementary School. Debra Stewart, who has been named the next principal at Williams Elementary School, joins the district from Abilene Independent School District in Texas and has a 24-year career in public education. Angie Valchev, the next principal at Pittman Elementary School, has been Bowerman Elementary School principal for the past nine years. 

Engineering
Bartlett & West Inc. was named on Engineering News-Record’s Top 500 Design Firms list for 2025. The company, which operates in Springfield at 1824 S. Lone Pine Ave., Ste. F, made the list for the 18th consecutive year.

Health Care
Cox Medical Center Branson and Mercy Hospital Springfield earned top A grades on the nonprofit Leapfrog Group’s spring hospital safety grades list. Leapfrog analyzes up to 30 performance metrics, including rates of preventable errors, injuries and infections, for the list. Safety grades are updated twice a year.

Logistics
Erlen Group promoted Christina Angle and John Griesemer as part of a planned leadership transition that included the retirement of Chair Louis Griesemer. Angle was promoted to president in addition to her role as chief financial officer, while John Griesemer was appointed chair in addition to his CEO position. Angle is the fifth family member to serve as president of the industrial company that encompasses mining, logistics and real estate, and Griesemer became president and CEO in 2018.