Our arena has a name — the Great Southern Bank Arena.
The naming follows a $5.5 million gift from Great Southern Bank to the Missouri State University Foundation.
Great Southern Bank has given to many areas of the university over the years. They are a phenomenal partner in supporting academics, scholarships and athletics.
I think we can all be proud to attach their name to the arena.
Honoring Hammons’ contributions
While the arena will have a new name, we haven’t forgotten about the legacy of John Q. Hammons. A memorial will be constructed inside the arena to commemorate Mr. Hammons, his dream for a world class athletic and entertainment facility on our campus, and his significant financial contribution to the arena.
Respecting Mr. Hammons’ support for Missouri State University in this way is critically important to me, our board and our friends at Great Southern Bank.
Reaching our goal
Securing a naming gift for the arena has been a goal of mine, the Foundation and our board for a number of years.
However, this is about more than just getting a name for the arena.
Great Southern Bank’s gift, along with payments we received before and during the settlement of litigation involving the Hammons trust, have allowed us to pay down $10 million in auxiliary bonds.
Going forward our bond obligation and payments will be the same as if the Hammons trust paid its full gift commitment on the arena.
Announcing new leadership
I am pleased to announce that Brad Bodenhausen has accepted the vice president for community and global partnerships position. This is the position currently held by Jim Baker.
Jim will retire on June 30, and Brad will start in the new role on July 1.
We had two excellent finalists for this job, both of whom were internal candidates. This is a testament to Jim’s enormous leadership abilities. One of Jim’s greatest strengths has always been identifying and developing talented people.
Thanks to the search committee and everyone who participated in the search process for this important position.
Narrowing the search
I also wanted to provide a brief update on the search for the executive vice president and provost position.
Last week we hosted Meera Komarraju on campus. This Thursday and Friday we will host Zora Mulligan.
You can find information about these candidates in last week’s Clif’s Notes.
Our third candidate — Magesh Rajan — will not be visiting campus next week, as he has withdrawn from the search.
Thanks for all you do for Missouri State!
