Dr. Jim Vann, will receive the Outstanding Alumnus Award at the 23rd Annual Anniversary Banquet of the Callaway County Chapter of the Mizzou Alumni Association.
The banquet will be April 25 at Tacos & Tequila Restaurant & Cantina, 1205 S. Business 54, Fulton. Social hour begins at 5:30 p.m.; dinner will be served at 6:30 p.m.
Vann is a 1986 graduate of the University of Missouri-Columbia with a Bachelor of Science degree with honors in Biochemistry and a 1990 graduate of the University of Missouri-St. Louis with a Doctorate of Optometry degree.
He has been the optometrist and owner of Vision Arts Eyecare Center in Fulton since 1993. His practice is known for using state-of-the-art instrumentation for the benefit of his patients. Vision Arts Eyecare Center also is known for its community service, raising more than $50,000 for local organizations.
Marshall Stewart, University of Missouri vice chancellor for extension and engagement and UM system chief engagement officer, will be the featured speaker at the banquet.
Throughout his 30-year career, Stewart has been recognized for his expertise in leadership development, strategic planning, legislative affairs, youth and agricultural education and advocacy.
At Mizzou, Stewart provides leadership for cooperative extension, continuing education and university-wide engagement efforts, overseeing an $82 million budget, with 650 faculty and staff. Through its campus faculty and statewide network of county offices, MU Extension delivers almost $1 billion in economic impact to Missouri's economy.
Besides his role as vice chancellor, Stewart serves as chief engagement officer for the University of Missouri System, where he leads statewide outreach efforts and works with university leaders at all four system campuses to develop an outreach and engagement strategy.
In addition to Stewart's speech and Vann's award, two other awards and four student scholarships will be given.
Nicole Kemp, a Fulton Public Schools teacher, will receive the Education Award and Linus Rothermich will receive the Agriculture Award.
Kemp has taught at North Callaway School for 23 years and is currently the assistant superintendent. She received her Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Missouri in 1995, her master's degree in 2004 and her specialist in 2009. She also has been highly active in the Callaway youth EXPO for the last eight years.
Rothermich is a seventh-generation progressive farmer who started farming at age 12 and earned his B.S. in Agriculture from the University of Missouri in 1986. On his farm just east of Auxvasse, he grows grain crops (corn, soybeans and wheat) plus sunflowers and some cover crops that are healthy for the soil. He served on the Callaway
Soil and Water Conservation District Extension Council and the board of the Callaway Electric Cooperative for several years.
The chapter will present a $1,000 Capstone scholarship, renewable for four years, to Parker Pitzen, a senior at New Bloomfield High School. A local alumni scholarship of $1,000 will be given to Anna Bonderer, a Fulton High School senior.
Two Mizzou students will receive funds for their senior year in college. Jason Pae, a Fulton High School graduate, will receive the $2,000 Pinet Scholarship and Michael Pezold, a North Callaway High School graduate, will receive the Forward Callaway Scholarship.
Chapter officers are: Mike Boulware, president; Gary Cunningham, vice president; Ken Niemeyer, secretary; and Gina McLachlan, treasurer.
Alumni and friends of the university, as well as friends of the honorees, are invited to attend. The deadline for reservations is Saturday. Cost for the dinner is $25 for MAA members and $30 for non-members. Checks should be made payable to Mizzou Alumni Association-Callaway County and mailed to Mike Boulware, P.O. Box 10, Fulton, MO 65251.
The Callaway County Alumni Chapter is one of only a few chapters nationally to achieve Capstone status - the highest level of achievement in the Mizzou Alumni Association's Chapter Recognition Program - every year since the award was established. This distinction allows the chapter to earn scholarships for local students, as well as funds for chapter activities.
For more information on any of the chapter's activities, contact Mike Boulware, president, at 573-642-3322 or [email protected].