Gov. Mike Kehoe has nominated four people to serve on the Missouri Board of Education. What this means is the governor is relieving two sitting board members of their duties.

Kehoe has named Michael Matousek, of Kansas City, to replace longtime Board President Charlie Shields. Jon Otto, of Kansas City, has been chosen to replace Vice President Carol Hallquist. Shields and Hallquist had expired terms and were serving at the pleasure of the governor.

Kenneth “Brooks” Miller Jr., of Sunrise Beach, has been chosen to replace the seat temporarily held by Tawni Ferrarini of St. Charles. Miller previously served as the president and CEO of Jordan Valley Community Health Center.

Dr. Thomas Prater, of Springfield, has been picked to take over the seat that he previously held in a temporary capacity. He was originally nominated to replace Peter Herschend of Branson.

Prater is a physician and partner at Mattax-Neu-Prater Eye Center in Springfield. From 2016 to 2020, he served as a Springfield City Councilman. He was also a member of the Springfield R-12 Board of Education from 1998 to 2014.

Charlie Shields (Photo credit: Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education)

Jon Otto, of Kansas City, serves as corporate counsel for Evergy, Inc. Otto is a school choice advocate. He has served as a board member for Académie Lafayette charter school, University Health KC, Missouri Charter Public School Association, Child Protection Center, Minddrive, and the UMKC Law Alumni Association.

The decision to replace Shields is one that immediately sticks out. He has been the board president since 2015. Shields, a Republican, is also a former Missouri Senate President Pro Tem.

His chosen replacement, Matousek, serves as the director of the Government Freight Conference at the American Trucking Association. Matousek was once a registered Missouri lobbyist but is not at this time.

Due to residency, a decision that was expected was to nominate someone to replace Mary Schrag. Kehoe’s announcement today did not include this nomination.

Carol Hallquist (Photo courtesy of DESE)

Schrag currently serves as the West Plains area board member. Her husband was just elected as the Springfield mayor on the other side of the state.

Since she is the owner and chief executive operator of Physical Therapy Specialists Clinic, Inc. in West Plains, that may qualify her to continue to maintain residency in West Plains. Or Kehoe could be making an announcement at a later date.

The political party makeup of the board is required to be four Republicans and four Democrats. However, the party breakdown can be fudged to include Independents so that one political party skirts the requirement.

To officially become State Board of Education members, the Senate has 30 days to approve the nominations. If they don’t, the nominees would be banned for life from serving in the capacity.

An alternative would be for the Senate to send the nominations back to the governor if they are not approved within 30 days. If the Senate returns the nominations to the governor, Kehoe could reappoint them to serve until the 2026 legislative session begins. Then the 30-day clock would restart to seek Senate approval.

The last time Missouri had several board members replaced during the same time period was back when former Gov. Eric Greitens engineered a plan in 2017 to remove members until he found enough who agreed to fire former state Education Commissioner Margie Vandeven. Greitens resigned about seven months later due to a list of allegations involving his mistress and campaign finance violations. The Missouri Board of Education then rehired Vandeven in November 2018.

Copyright © 2025 · Missourinet

Missouri is among the most affordable places to make your retirement destination, according to a new study.

The Show Me State ranked sixth on Retirement Living’s new list of most affordable states to retire, landing between Iowa and Kentucky. Arkansas came in first, with California landing last.

Missouri is “another balanced state that earned high marks for both an affordable cost of living and affordable housing,” writer Jack Flynn noted. The state came in ninth in overall housing costs, seventh in cost of living.

Here’s how the state compares to the national average on a variety of factors, according to the study:

• Median rent: $835 (national average is $1,406)
• Median home sale price: $258,000 (national: $425,000)
• The cost of groceries and gas in Missouri is also marginally lower than the national average

“Taxes in Missouri are neither low nor high, with a property tax rate of 0.88% and a state income tax rate of 4.80%,” Flynn added. “This makes the Show-me State’s taxes affordable than many others, but as affordable, not most of the other states on our top 10 list.”

In compiling their list, Retirement Living weighted three categories that added up to 100 points: 35 points each for housing costs and living costs, 30 points for tax friendliness. You can read the full study and see where other states rank at https://www.retirementliving.com/most-affordable-states-to-retire.

Aarik Danielsen is the features and culture editor for the Tribune. Contact him at adanielsen@columbiatribune.com. He’s on Twitter/X @aarikdanielsen.

In a similar appeal, state wildlife biologists on Friday warned that an invasive fish, which was initially discovered in Lake Norman, is now harming native largemouth, smallmouth, and spotted bass throughout the state.

Know about invasive python-looking fish found in Missouri

Originally from Asia, northern snakehead fish were first discovered in a Maryland pond in 2002, as per the US Fish and Wildlife Service.

Snakeheads made their way to the Potomac River two years later, and Missouri is now among the most recent states to issue a warning about the invasive fish species.

Its head has a snake-like appearance, and its body pattern and color are similar to a python’s.

Environmentalists are suggesting Anglers cut off the head of any fish that resembles a predator and has the ability to breathe air.

MDC invasive species scientist Angela Sokolowski stated that “this fish is one of Missouri’s newest invasive species threats,” Fox Weather reported.

The US Fish and Wildlife Service states that the Lacey Act prohibits the transportation, sale, purchase, and possession of the northern snakehead in the United States.

The act forbids importing or shipping “injurious” species, like the northern snakehead.

NC Wildlife Resources Commission District’s update on largemouth bass

According to North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission District Biologist Kin Hodges, Anglers frequently confuse Alabama bass with spotted and largemouth bass due to their similar appearances.

The commission further stated the invaders usually outcompete and eliminate native largemouth bass. Largemouth bass are typically larger than Alabama bass, as per officials.

In a statement, Hodges stated: “They’re being stocked and moved to new locations by anglers who need to understand the impact it’s having to our native black bass family of largemouth, smallmouth and spotted bass.”

While largemouth bass populations are drastically declining, smallmouth and spotted bass may soon disappear from North Carolina, he added.

Also Read: Did US Pastor Josh Sullivan’s kidnappers demand huge ransom for safe return? Here’s what we know

Concerns over expansion of Alabama bass

Alabama bass, as per a commission news release, have been present in North Carolina watercourses since the 1980s, “but only sparsely.” They were initially found in the extreme southwest of Lake Chatuge, and later in Lake Norman.

It is believed that Alabama bass were stocked by anglers, and they gradually spread throughout rivers and reservoirs. They are currently found in coastal regions, such as the Tar and Roanoke rivers.

In the press release, Kevin Dockendorf, the state’s coastal region fisheries research coordinator, stated, “When we heard Alabama bass were being caught in reservoirs upstream of our coastal rivers in 2020, we anticipated we would start seeing them downstream.”

According to Dockendorf, state fisheries experts captured Alabama bass using boat electrofishing in the Roanoke and Tar rivers in October 2024.

“This expansion of Alabama bass is of concern given the similarities of North Carolina’s coastal rivers to the habitats found in Alabama bass’s natural range,” he said.

How to file a violation report

Without a state authorisation, it is unlawful to move and stock fish into public waters.

Commission representatives advise anybody with information or sightings of illegal Alabama bass stockings to contact 800-662-7137. When fishing in undocumented waterways, anglers should snap pictures of their Alabama bass and report them via email or the N.C. Wildlife Aquatic Nuisance Species Reporting Tool.