Leadership kudos: Business, industry, movers and shakers get awards

Last Friday was a big day for recognition of achievement by business, industry and retailers in the Cape Girardeau area.

It started with the annual Magnet luncheon. The group's mission is to solicit and recruit new business, industry and commerce to Cape Girardeau, Jackson, Scott City and Cape Girardeau County.

A slide presentation showing the new industries, retail outlets and manufacturers coming to the area this past year was quite impressive (including Commander Aircraft, Kohl's, Sears Grand, Buchheit Logistics, Cape Milling, Jackson Machine and Manufacturing, SIO3 (vitamin supplement producer) and the 400 acre-plus University Village to be located on the former Southeast Missouri State University farm.)

AmerenUE, which has contributed $9 million through 2006 in grants to the area, announced more at the meeting ($500,000 to three projects).

Lt. Gov. Peter Kinder spoke about the turnaround in Missouri's fiscal condition and the outlook for additional funding to elementary and secondary education along with additional money to Southeast Missouri State University, the first higher-education funding increase in the last four years.

He also pointed out that the possible selling of MOHELA funds could be the last opportunity to honor the state's previous funding commitment to the River Campus.

The Southeast campus project has been No. 2 on the state's capital funding list for at least four years.

Southeast has a $5 million projected MOHELA allocation tied to having to get $13.6 million in matching money for a life-sciences incubator, which placed Southeast 12th on the list in dollars.

Our area state elected officials should make every effort to see that Southeast is included in the list of higher-ed institutions scheduled to receive some of the payout. Now is the time for inclusion even before hearings and review validate the financial and student loan effects. I have no problem with an exhaustive review of same.

The River Campus is under construction and slated to be completed in 2007. Many of the other listed projects will require two to three years (or more) to build.

Many of Missouri's state universities have had state funding for their performing arts centers, and Cape Girardeau has met its city and private-donor obligation required for the previously committed state money.

In the following column, Columbia Daily Tribune publisher Hank Waters III calls the MOHELA sale "worth a full consideration."

"The basic question about the proposed sale of the Missouri Higher Education Loan Authority is whether disadvantages exist that offset its obvious benefit.

"Thus, I believe the burden of proof will be on opponents to show why the Missouri Higher Education Loan Authority should stay in business handling student loans when the operation might be sold to a private financial institution providing a large capital infusion for statewide higher education with positive long-range implications.

"The only decision necessary at the moment rests with the state legislature, which will be asked to form a study and implementation committee empowered to test the marketplace and discover the terms of a deal that can be made with any one of several potential buyers. This sort of process is necessary to answer detailed questions about how a new operation would compare with today's, run by MOHELA.

"Essentially, the deal would convert latent MOHELA assets into ready cash for capital improvements. A financial institution would buy the student loan business and pay the state $400 million, more or less, to underwrite a list of projects the governor's office will present to the legislature, headlined by the long-sought health research building at the University of Missouri-Columbia School of Medicine. Also included is $100 million for a student scholarship endowment and a number of other goodies for campuses all across the state.

"Potential opposition lurks in several corners. Some will simply be against the idea of selling MOHELA, fearing a new operation might not be as advantageous for potential student borrowers. Some might harbor vague suspicions about the motivation of Gov. Matt Blunt, whose basic political philosophy favors privatization. As they anticipate a nice capital-improvements pie to split, prospective recipients will argue over priorities.

"None of this is good reason not to consider this deal with an open mind, remembering the benefits are palpable and the arguments against are vague and not yet weighed carefully against those benefits.

It does make sense not to be blindly carried away by the prospect of a money gusher without giving fair consideration to the implications for selling the loan agency, but the gusher is a real value and warrants serious inquiry.

"During coming months we will have time to examine the issue. The primary concern now is good process. Give the Blunt administration credit for explaining this issue as soon as it could reasonably do so and recognizing it won't be able to simply make a deal on its own. Even after committee research, a bid process would have to be conducted. The surest way to derail an inquiry would be to cloud the proves in secrecy. I believe administration promoters are avoiding that deadly pitfall, opening the way for a fair look forward."

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There is no disgrace in a failure, only in a failure to try. -- Theodore Roosevelt

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The annual Cape Girardeau Chamber of Commerce dinner, awards and dance was Friday evening in the Show Me Center. A jovial crowd was rewarded with a smooth evening of committee and board member introductions handled by outgoing chairman Mike Jenewein of Procter & Gamble. And what a year he presided over, with state recognition as Missouri's outstanding chamber and national selection into its elite chamber category (thanks to the leadership of president John Mehner.)

Jim Limbaugh, incoming chairman, gave a motivating speech on continuing success, and his cousin David Limbaugh again gave his off-the-cuff humorous remarks before presenting the background to this year's Rush H. Limbaugh Award recipient, Mary Kasten.

What a wonderful list of service Mary has provided to this area and the state centered on education, good deeds, church and her service as the state representative from Cape for 18 years. Thanks, Mary.

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The chamber's Small Business Award went to Automation Services, one of those quieter, solid, home-grown computer industries that has made contributions not only to this area, but nationally as well. Founder Mike Buchanan received the award on behalf of the company.

Kimberly Kelley of Kelley Transportation accepted the Go-Getter of the Year Award for her volunteer work and recruitment for the chamber.

~ Gary Rust is the chairman of Rust Communications.