The Missouri State University Board of Governors elected new officers during its regular meeting Oct. 18.

Tim Francka, Bolivar, was elected chair. Dr. Melissa Gourley, Mountain Grove, was elected vice chair.

Francka is the administrative director of long-term care for Citizens Memorial Health Care Foundation. He has been with the foundation since 1989. He also serves as a member of the Missouri Health Care Association board of directors and currently serves as the Missouri delegate to the American Health Care Association.

He holds a bachelor’s degree in finance and general business from Missouri State.

Gourley is a veterinarian at Whetstone Veterinary Service in Mountain Grove. She previously owned Whetstone Veterinary Service. She is a member of the American Veterinary Medical Association and the Missouri Veterinary Medical Association. She has served as a member of the Missouri State University’s West Plains Development Board and the Federal Appropriations Committee for Mountain Grove High School.

She holds a bachelor’s degree in biology from Missouri State and a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine from the University of Missouri – Columbia College of Veterinary Medicine.

The terms for the new officers will begin Jan. 1, 2025.