Our Approach
Ideas to Action
Our methods for creating engagement start with education–you can find research on almost every issue in Oklahoma public policy in our online library–and they move into motion with our Town Hall events, where citizens can discuss policy and discover solutions, together.
Change Through Collaboration
Oklahomans are stronger together, and after reaching consensus through the discourse at a Town Hall event, we empower citizens to lobby leaders to enact the necessary change, bringing the civic engagement plan of action full circle.
Our History
Oklahoma’s first Republican governor, Henry Bellmon, was surrounded by top officials who were Democrats when he was first elected. This challenge, coupled with the fact that Bellmon truly saw himself as a representative of the people of Oklahoma and sought their engagement in the development of public policy, led to the founding of the Oklahoma Academy for State Goals by Bellmon in 1967.
Bellmon knew that a well-informed populace with the confidence to approach and engage their representatives was necessary for a strong, successful state, and he saw the need for an independent, nonpartisan, inclusive public policy organization to bring that level of enlightenment to fruition…and then continue to grow it throughout the years.
The Oklahoma Academy has remained focused on strengthening public policy through citizen engagement and has continued to uphold Henry Bellmon’s vision, which often stands in stark opposition to divisive and lobby-centered modern politics.
Our Story
The Oklahoma Academy underwent a revitalization in 1985 and used a traditional conference format to form recommendations addressing critical public policy issues facing the state until 2000. The adoption of our current Town Hall model occurred in 2001, and has only strengthened our mission of fostering collaboration, even as most modern politics get more divisive and specialized.
Our Mission
Raise Awareness of the Issues, Provide Non-Partisan, Evidenced-Based Research and Hold Space for Civil Discourse and Consensus Building.
Our Staff
Julie Knutson
President and CEO
April Maddry
Membership & Program Manager
Lynn Thompson
Communications & Development Director
Board of Directors
2024 Officers of the Board
- Board Chair &Town Hall Chair – Michael Neal, CCE, CCD, President & CEO, Tulsa Regional Chamber, Tulsa
- Immediate Past Chair – Lee Denney, DVM, Treasurer-Elect, Payne County, Cushing
- Vice Chair & Treasurer/Secretary –Chris Meyers, General Manager & CEO, OK Association of Electric Cooperatives, OKC
- Board Governance Vice President & Co-Development Vice President – Darryl Schmidt, Chief Executive Officer, BancFirst
- Investment Vice President – David Nimmo, President and CEO, Chickasaw Nation Industries, Norman
- Co-Development Vice President – Dan Boren, Secretary of Commerce, Chickasaw Nation
- Membership Vice President & Regional Team Leader – Michael Gordon, External Affairs Manager, PSO, Tulsa
- Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Vice President – Valerie Thompson, Ph.D., President & CEO, Urban League of Greater Oklahoma City
Executive Committee Members of the Board
Howard Barnett, Jr., of Counsel, Barnett Family Law Firm, Tulsa, Town Hall Chair
Hon. Lee Denney, D.V.M., Treasurer, Payne County, Cushing, Immediate Past Chair
Margaret Erling, CEO, Erling and Associates, Tulsa
John Feaver, Ph.D., President Emeritus, University of Science & Arts, of Oklahoma, Chickasha
Michael Gordon, Manager, External Affairs– Northeast OK, PSO/AEP Company, Tulsa, Membership Vice President
Hon. AJ Griffin, Ed.D., President & CEO, Potts Family Foundation, Oklahoma City
Hollye Hunt, J.D., Chief Government Affairs Officer, The University of Oklahoma, Norman
Rachel Hutchings, Principal, Chart Consulting, Skiatook
Barry Koonce , VP & Chief Govt. Affairs Officer, American Fidelity Assurance Co., Oklahoma City
Chris Meyers, General Manager & CEO, Oklahoma Association of, Electric Cooperatives, Oklahoma City, Vice Chair, Treasurer/Secretary
Hon. Ken Miller, Ph.D., Vice President of Public and Regulatory Affairs, OG&E, Oklahoma City
Michael Neal, CCE, CCD, President & CEO, Tulsa Regional Chamber, Tulsa, Chairman of the Board
David L. Nimmo, President/CEO, Chickasaw Nation Industries, Norman, Investment Vice President
Stephanie Regan , Director of Corporate Citizenship, AAON, Tulsa
Lana Reynolds, President, Seminole State College, Seminole
Darryl Schmidt, CEO, BancFirst, Oklahoma City, Board Governance Vice President, Development Vice President
Andy Sherrer, Regional President , First United Bank, Norman
Hon. Kris Steele, Executive Director, The Education and Employment Ministry (TEEM), Oklahoma City
Valerie Thompson, Ph.D., President & CEO, Urban League of Greater Oklahoma City, Oklahoma City, Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Vice President
At Large Board Members
Hon. Chris Benge, Vice President of Operations, OSU Institute of Technology, Okmulgee
Hon. Dan Boren, Secretary of Commerce, the Chickasaw Nation, Oklahoma City, Development Vice President
Larry Briggs, Banking Consultant, Shawnee
John Budd, Chief Operating Officer, George Kaiser Family Foundation, Oklahoma City
Teresa Meinders Burkett, Partner, Conner & Winters, LLP, Tulsa
Leah Christopher, Public Affairs Manager, Grand River Dam Authority, Oklahoma City
Michael Davis, J.D., Ph.D., Special Assistant to the President for Compliance, Southeastern Oklahoma State University, Durant
Hon. Joe Dorman, CEO, Oklahoma Institute for Child Advocacy, Oklahoma City
W. Jeff Greenlee, President, NBC Oklahoma Bank, Altus
John Harper, Tulsa
Hon. Kim Holland, Principal, East Consultant Group, Tulsa
Dwight Hughes, Superintendent & CEO, Autry Technology Center, Enid
Craig Knutson, Chief Retirement Officer, The Knutson Estate, Norman, Town Hall Research Chair
Karen Langdon, Attorney, Tulsa
Matthew Morgan, Special Envoy, the Chickasaw Nation, Ada
Adrienne Nobles, APR, Vice President for Communications and Public Affairs, University of Central Oklahoma, Edmond
Craig Perry, Manager of Govt. Relations Oklahoma, ONE Gas, Oklahoma City
Mark Schell, President, Security State Bank of Oklahoma, Seminole
James J. Sluss, Jr., Ph.D., Regents’ Professor of Electrical & Computer Engineering, The University of Oklahoma, Tulsa
Sara Jane Smallwood-Cocke, Senior Govt. Relations Strategist, Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma, Durant
Craig Stephenson, City Manager, Ponca City
Clayton Taylor, Principal, The Taylor Group, Oklahoma City
Richard Wansley, Ph.D., Principal Consultant, Advocate Oklahoma, LLC, Tulsa
Bailey Perkins Wright, MPA, Community Investor, The Boeing Company, Oklahoma City