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December 12, 2019

New officers selected for the Coordinating Board for Higher Education
Committee chairs named, Thomson retires

Doug Kennedy, Joe Cornelison, and Shawn Saale were selected to serve as officers of the Coordinating Board for Higher Education at its Dec. 11 meeting. Kennedy will serve as chair for the third consecutive year. Cornelison will serve as vice-chair, and Saale as secretary.

Coordinating board officers are selected by the board annually and serve a one-year term.

“I am honored to serve as chair of the coordinating board for a third year,” Kennedy said. “As a board, we are excited about the direction of the department, and will continue our efforts to help more Missourians get on a path to higher education.”

Kennedy, representing District 8, an attorney from Poplar Bluff, was first appointed to the board in December 2013. Cornelison, At-Large member, a retired colonel in the U.S. Army and senior counsel for Husch Blackwell from Maryville, was first appointed to the board in December 2017. Saale, representing District 3, a law partner at Saale & Bailey, LC, was first appointed to the board in August 2017.

Committee Chairs for 2020 have also been named. Gary Nodler will chair the Budget & Financial Aid Committee; Saale, the Academic Affairs & Workforce Needs Committee; Gwen Grant, the Strategic Planning & External Affairs Committee; and Cornelison, the Audit Committee.

Mike Thomson, who served as vice chair of the coordinating board in 2018 and 2019, is retiring from the coordinating board at the end of the year. A former teacher and principal, Thomson has spent his career advocating the importance of education. He also served Missouri as a state representative, where he was a member of several education committees and served as chair of the Higher Education Committee. He was appointed to the coordinating board in 2016.

 

About the Missouri Department of Higher Education & Workforce Development: The department works to empower Missourians with the skills and education needed for success. More information about MDHEWD can be found at https://dhewd.mo.gov or on Facebook and Twitter @MoDHEWD.