JEFFERSON CITY — Among the most coveted positions a governor in Missouri can hand out are the slots on the University of Missouri Board of Curators. Gov. Jay Nixon filled two of those today, naming St. Joseph News-Press publisher David R. Bradley to one position and former state Sen. Wayne Goode to another.

Goode, of St. Louis, was a longtime Senate budget chairman (before term limits) and had been tapped by Nixon during the transition to help the governor and his staff deal with the budget. The 71-year-old Democrat served as a state representative from 1963 to 1985 and as a senator from 1985 to 2005.

Bradley, 59, a Republican, is a former president of the Missouri Press Association and past chairman of the St. Joseph Chamber of Commerce.

“These are two Missourians who have demonstrated their leadership skills for several decades,” Gov. Nixon said. “I am very pleased to appoint David Bradley and Wayne Goode to positions where they will help set the course for the state’s flagship university system as it prepares Missouri students to compete and excel in the global economy.”

Bradley replaces Don Walsworth and Goode replaces Cheryl Walker on the board.