Organization also Elected Officers and Extended the Appointment of Existing Board Members at Annual Meeting, Held Sept. 6
The Missouri Public Transit Association (MPTA) – the state’s transit advocacy organization – has named Jonathan Feverston of the Mid-America Regional Council (MARC), Shannon Hemenway of Go COMO, David Knaut of the Ozark Transportation Organization (OTO), Gerry Stegeman of the Jefferson City Transit Division (JEFFTRAN) and Kelley Watson of the Cape Girardeau County Transit Authority (CTA) as the newest members of its Board of Directors. All five members were elected during MPTA’s annual meeting at 2023 Midwest Transit Conference, held Sept. 6 at the Westin Kansas City at Crown Center. Each will each serve a three-year term.
Feverston is a Transportation Planner with MARC. In this role, he works to further regional public transportation planning, transportation access for older adults and people with disabilities, the intersections between housing policy and transportation, and public engagement. Feverston has a Master of Urban Planning from the University of Kansas with a specialization in transportation planning, sustainable land use planning and housing policy.
Hemenway is the Administrative Supervisor for Go COMO. She is a 25-year veteran of the transit industry and has worked in everything from school bus and paratransit to fixed routes. In her current role, she is helping to expand transit in Columbia and integrate multi-modal options into existing service.
Knaut is the new Multimodal Planner for the OTO. He brings with him many years of experience in the administration and planning of public transit. He previously worked for a transit provider in Northern California, where he was responsible for project implementation, federal and state compliance, as well as contracting and purchasing.
Stegeman is the Transit Manager of JEFFTRAN. He is responsible for a wide range of projects including safety, management, quality control, ISO Certification and procurement. Stegeman got his start at JEFFTRAN in 2014 as the Operations Supervisor after spending more than three decades in the manufacturing industry.
Watson is the Accounting Manager for CTA and has been part of its management team for more than a decade. She is responsible for directing the transit authority’s fiscal management and accounting functions, writes and manages all of its grants, oversees many areas of compliance and acts as the primary liaison for local, state and federal reviews.
During the annual meeting the MPTA extended the appointment of current board members Janine Clampitt of Ray County Transit, Sheila Holm of AARP in St. Louis, Denny Ward of Southeast Missouri Transportation Service (SMTS) and Chance Gallagher of City of St. Joseph. Each will serve an additional three-year term.
The association also appointed the following six officers to one-year terms: President – Taulby Roach, President and Chief Executive Officer of Bi-State Development; Vice President – Matt Crawford, Director of Transit at City Utilities of Springfield; Secretary – Cindy Baker, Vice President of Communications for the Kansas City Area Transportation Authority; Treasurer – Janine Clampitt, Director of Ray County Transit; Past-President – Chance Gallagher, Deputy Director of Public Works and Transportation at the City of St. Joseph; and At-Large – Dorothy Yeager, Executive Director at OATS, Inc.
“We are thrilled to be able to work with each of these individuals,” said Kim Cella, executive director of the Missouri Public Transit Association. “Their collective experience, coupled with their diverse backgrounds and areas of expertise, will go a long way towards furthering the organization’s mission.”