People in the News

Education

Springfield Public Schools announced that two vacancies within the district have been filled.

Jim Dow was named director of facilities, maintenance and grounds. Dow previously was employed at Litton Interconnect Technologies for 14 years, where he advanced from director of engineering and facilities to president of that division.

He also worked for six years as a private consulting engineer for large corporations and small, local businesses. He has a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering and computer science from the University of California at Berkeley and a master's degree in engineering from Purdue University.

Scott Wendt, who served as director of facilities, maintenance and grounds on an interim basis, accepted the position of deputy director of facilities, maintenance and grounds.

Wendt previously worked for Servicemaster as general manager for custodial and maintenance service at Toledo Public Schools. Prior to that, he spent four years with Springfield Public Schools as coordinator of custodial services, and seven years as operations director for Waukegan Public Schools.

Finance

Sharon Miller was promoted to assistant vice president of private banking at The Commerce Trust Company. She has more than 15 years of experience in business and banking.

In her new position, she continues to provide banking and borrowing solutions to professionals, executives and high net-worth individuals. She is a graduate of Drury University.

Human Resources

Julie Cummings has joined Ozarks Coca-Cola/Dr Pepper Bottling Company as the company's corporate human resources manager.

Cummings, a cum laude graduate of Southwest Missouri State University, where she also earned her master's of business administration. Cummings has had extensive training from human resources organizations. She previously worked for six years with Schreiber Foods as human resources manager.

Insurance

Chad Munsey joined Ollis & Company as a producer in the group health department. He has an associate's degree from Ozarks Technical Community College and is scheduled to graduate from Evangel University in fall 2003 with a bachelor's degree in business. He previously spent seven years as a professional firefighter, most recently with the Jefferson City Fire Department. He also was a legislative assistant to the president of the Missouri State Council of Firefighters.

Real Estate

Diane Nicholas has joined Murney Associates. She has 22 years of experience in retail management and customer service, and she has a background in marketing and real estate. In her first year as an agent, Nicholas had sales of $5 million.

Brett Heidelberg also joined Murney as a sales agent. He has a bachelor's of science degree in business and sales management from SMSU, and he has been active in the real estate industry since 1992. Heidelberg has extensive experience in construction and development, a primary focus that he will maintain with Murney.