JOPLIN, Mo. – Sherry Noller has been appointed interim education director for University of Missouri Extension’s Business Development Program and interim state director for the Missouri Small Business Development Centers.

The appointment, effective June 1, follows the retirement of longtime Missouri SBDC leader Greg Tucker, who joined the Missouri SBDC team in 2000 as a business counselor in Jefferson County.

“Greg’s leadership has allowed the Missouri SBDC to further offer quality one-on-one business counseling and coaching as well as training to business owners and aspiring entrepreneurs all over the state,” said Robert Russell, interim senior program director of MU Extension’s Business and Communities program area. “His leadership has raised the awareness of the Missouri SBDC program within the state and across the nation.”

The Missouri SBDC helps business owners and entrepreneurs succeed through training, one-on-one counseling and other specialized services. Noller will be the first woman to lead the program.

“Without Greg’s vision, tenacity and support, I would not have the opportunity that I have today,” Noller said. “Greg has been a strong advocate for small business in our state, and it is my intention to continue to lead the Missouri SBDC team farther along the path Greg has led us down.”

Noller joined the program in 2012 on temporary disaster grant funding from the U.S. Small Business Administration in response to the 2011 Joplin tornado. Starting as a research associate, she expanded her responsibilities over the next several years until funding for her position ran out. She returned to Missouri SBDC in 2018 to serve as the program’s marketing and communications director. Over the next two years, she deployed an internal communications platform, oversaw the development of a new website, created a brand standards guide and led the transition to an updated Missouri SBDC logo. In 2020 she was promoted to associate state director while maintaining her marketing and communications responsibilities.

As interim education director for the MU Extension Business Development Program, Noller will oversee two other federal grant programs serving businesses: the Missouri Procurement Technical Assistance Centers and the Mid-America Trade Adjustment Assistance Center. In this role, Noller will support the program directors and help make connections to community needs and business services.

For more information about Missouri SBDC, visit sbdc.missouri.edu.

Photo:

https://extension.missouri.edu/media/wysiwyg/Extensiondata/NewsAdmin/Photos/2022/20220601-noller-1.jpg
Sherry Noller, interim education director for MU Extension's Business Development Program and interim state director for the Missouri Small Business Development Centers.