Nixa Public Schools announced last week John Thomas School of Discovery (JTSD) received the International Technology and Engineering Education Association’s (ITEEA) STEM School of Excellence award for the second year in a row. more

Earlier this month, on Dec. 12, 2023, the Christian County Commission voted 2-1 to adopt Senate Bill 190. more

The Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) has released the statewide Annual Performance Reports (APRs) for the 2022-23 school year. APRs demonstrate the progress local education agencies (LEAs) and their individual buildings are making towards meeting the Standards and Indicators in the sixth version of the Missouri School Improvement Program (MSIP 6). more

A Houston, Texas, man was indicted by a federal grand jury on Dec. 19, 2023, for his role in the theft from an automated teller machine (ATM) at an Ozark bank. more

Children’s Smile Center and Santa’s Toy Drive have each received a $10,000 grant from the Community Foundation of the Ozarks (CFO) through the Delta Dental Rural Youth Program. The grants will support dental health for children in each organization’s service area — Christian, Stone, Taney, Lawrence, Dade and Barry counties for Children’s Smile Center and Christian County for Santa’s Toy Drive. more

Josie Orellana passed away last week, according to a Facebook post by her father, Frank. more

The Christian County Collector’s office will be closed on the following dates: more

Ozark School District Assistant Superintendent of Learning Dr. Craig Carson was recently presented with the inaugural Linda Dorn Leadership Award at the Missouri Association of Reading Recovery Educators conference, recognizing his outstanding leadership in the field of literacy within the District and across the state of Missouri. more

Ozark School District police were honored Dec. 12 at the Christian County Sheriff’s Office annual Christmas party and awards ceremony with three service awards and four life-saving awards. more

After leading the District as interim superintendent for the first half of the school year, Dr. Lori Wilson will now officially lead the Ozark School District as superintendent. The Ozark Board of Education chose Wilson during a special closed-session meeting on the evening of Dec. 13 following a day of in-person formal interviews with three finalists. The vote was unanimous. more

Ozarks Food Harvest donated their 6 millionth meal to Least Of These, Inc. on Thursday, Dec. 14 in celebration of their 25-year-long partnership that began in 1998. Through their partnership with Ozarks Food Harvest, Least Of These distributes USDA food, “Senior Boxes,” fresh produce and additional food items to more than 1,400 families each month. more

Mia Hatten was so inspired by the Girl Scout Cookie Program that she recruited two of her neighborhood friends, Asa and Tucker. Together, they created a business called Stick Pickers, where they help their neighbors by picking up the sticks in their yard for them. more

The City of Nixa is launching Nixa 2045, a process for planning the city’s growth for the next 20 years and beyond. This new comprehensive plan process will be used to guide decision-making, development and infrastructure projects across the community. The Nixa 2045 plan will serve as a road map to visualize where the public wants to go as a city, and the path to reach that destination. The focus of the plan will be a strong emphasis on land use, transportation, education, parks and trails, development patterns, housing types, infrastructure and economic development. Public input will be essential to shaping this plan for Nixa’s vibrant future. more

The Ozark Chamber of Commerce recently announced the appointment of Ashley Johnson as Interim President and CEO. With an extensive background in community development and a proven track record of leadership, Johnson brings a wealth of experience to steer the Chamber towards new heights. more

Chadwick School’s kindergarten students took a trip to Marie Day’s farm last Wednesday to cut down a Christmas tree for their classroom. more

The State Board of Education (State Board) announced last week that Senator Karla Eslinger will assume the role as the state’s next commissioner for the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) effective June 1, 2024, after concluding her work in the Missouri Senate during the 2024 legislative session. more

The City of Ozark recently announced it was awarded a Community Forestry Cost-Share Grant through the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) to remove green ash trees under threat from emerald ash borer (Agrilus planipennis). more

The application period for Ozark School District’s next superintendent is now closed, and the Ozark Board of Education is progressing into the third phase of the superintendent search, with hopes to name the new superintendent for the 2024-25 school year at the Dec. 14 board meeting. more

The theme at Ozark East Elementary this school year is “Difference Maker,” and that’s exactly what Tiger Team, comprised of fourth graders, are hoping to accomplish — make a difference in the lives of teachers, fellow students and even the community. more

Lucid TLC Studio & Art Gallery will host the art of area photographer Dee Albers as its featured artist for December. The exhibit will showcase many of Albers’ landscapes in prints and on canvas. The studio/gallery is located at 214 North Massey Boulevard. An opening night reception was held on Saturday, Dec. 2 for Albers’ exhibit. more

Missouri State Treasurer Vivek Malek visited with local leaders on Wednesday, Nov. 15 at the Christian County Courthouse. He discussed the local impact of the MOBUCK$ low-interest loan program, and shared his plan to work on legislation that would expand the successful program’s capacity. more

Suicide is the second leading cause of death for Missourians aged 18-34, and 66 percent of those involve a firearm. Safe firearm storage is a very important part of suicide prevention. To help encourage and support safe firearm storage, Community Partnership of the Ozarks (CPO) has developed a series of videos showing how to safely store a wide range of firearms, including semiautomatic pistols, revolvers, lever action rifles, shotguns and more. Storing firearms unloaded and locked with ammo stored separately is the best practice for safe firearm storage, but there are a variety of options for safe firearm storage. more

Nixa Community Foundation (NCF) joined in a nationwide celebration for the week of Nov. 12, 2023, to recognize the increasingly important role that community foundations play in strengthening their regions by addressing high-priority challenges and betterment projects for local residents. This year’s community foundation week fell alongside the NCF’s 30th birthday. more

Sugar Stop Candy Shop is now open inside Signal Food Store. Not only can customers stop by Signal for high quality gas and diesel, but they can now get their sugar fix at the brand new Sugar Stop Candy Shop. more

Finley River Community Foundation (FRCF) is seeking nominations for the 2023 Ozark Citizen of the Year. The recipient of the 2023 Ozark Citizen of the Year award will be announced at the Ozark Community Awards Banquet on Feb. 17, 2024. This annual event is hosted by the Ozark Chamber of Commerce to honor outstanding achievement and service in Ozark. more