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Chamber urges citizens to prepare for next week’s election
On Tuesday, Nov. 10 Tulsans will make some critical decisions for this city and the Tulsa Metro Chamber urges each of them to use the next week to review all the options and make the decision that is in the best interest of this great city.
Tulsa will select a new mayor and council who will step in during a critical time – one that could hold great opportunity for this city and this region in the hands of the right leaders.
Additionally, important changes to the city’s charter have been proposed and will appear on the ballot for Tulsans to review and approve or oppose.
Changes that include increasing the requirements for city auditor, lengthening the election term for city councilors and changing the approval of expenditures requirements all have a major impact on the distribution of power within our city’s government. With the city and business community’s best interest in mind, the Chamber has developed positions on each of the proposed changes, which can be found here.
The Chamber also hosted a mayoral forum last week so that voters, especially those in the Tulsa business community, could hear directly from the candidates on issues like their management style, their priorities for this city and how they plan to handle some of the crises, such as law enforcement shortage, currently plaguing the city. To find out the candidates’ answers to these questions and more, please read the Tulsa World article.
Other important information to note as an informed voter is the Research Institute for Economic Development’s report on voting records for Oklahoma elected officials, which the Chamber has included a copy of in this week and last week’s Monday Memo.
Tulsans are at a critical crossroad for our city and this region as a whole. It is time to decide what Tulsa should be and part of that decision will rely heavily on who is selected to lead this city and what guidelines that person will be expected to follow.
The Chamber urges each citizen to review the resources provided here and make an informed decision at the polls on Tuesday, Nov. 10.
Chamber hosts successful CEOs for Cities’ Talent Dividend TourThree events were held to emphasize the importance of attaining college graduates
In a push to increase the Tulsa region’s talent pool, Tulsa Metro Chamber invited area business, education and civic leaders to develop strategies for increasing the city’s college attainment rate. Last week’s strategic planning was part of the national “Talent Dividend Tour” from CEOs for Cities, a national network of urban leaders dedicated to building and sustaining the next generation of great American cities. Tulsa was one of only 30 cities on the tour.
“Increasing the number of Tulsans who hold a college degree is no longer just an education issue; it’s an economic development issue,” said Chamber President and CEO Mike Neal. “We know the more educated Tulsa’s population is, the more robust our economy will be. For this reason, it is imperative Tulsa has a solid talent and workforce strategy in place that is the foundation of our economic development plan.”
The Talent Dividend Tour in Tulsa included three sessions: a strategic planning event with Tulsa’s Young Professionals, an invitation-only breakfast with community and business leaders and higher education partners, and a public session called the Employer Workforce Outlook.
“If we could improve the overall level of educational attainment consistent with a one percentage point increase in the college attainment rate to 25.5 percent, it would mean an additional $646 million annually to the Tulsa economy,” said CEOs for Cities President and CEO Carol Coletta. “Given the huge gains that are just within reach for the region, capturing Tulsa’s Talent Dividend seems like an effort definitely worth making.”
Coletta’s planning session with TYPros leadership included discussion of amplifying the preservation of talent through the vibrancy of downtown; concentrating activity to create things for YPs to do; and determining what is “uniquely Tulsa” and using it to recruit and retain talent.
Coletta’s discussions with community, education and business leaders focused on re-engaging adults with some college; increasing the transfer rate of students in two-year institutions to four-year institutions; retaining current students for timely completion; and increasing the college-going behavior of high school students.
Click here to learn more about the CEOs for Cities Talent Dividend Tour.
Click here to read about Coletta's visit to Tulsa in the Tulsa World.
Tulsa Convention and Visitors Bureau names Huntley vice president
A 10-year veteran with the Tulsa Convention and Visitors Bureau, Amy Huntley has been promoted to vice president.
Previously serving as director of convention sales, Huntley’s new role will oversee convention services, visitor development and information resources as well as maintaining a lead role in managing convention sales.
“We are thrilled to have Amy step into this new role,” said Mike Neal, president and CEO of Tulsa Metro Chamber. “She has been a valuable asset to the CVB team for years and we look forward to her taking on more responsibility.”
Huntley’s cumulative experience in the tourism industry is approximately 22 years having spent the first 12 managing sales for various hotels in South Carolina, Illinois and Kansas before making a home in Tulsa.
“In the hotel industry you move around quite a bit,” said Huntley. “But Tulsa was the right size and a good fit.”
Huntley feels it’s a great time to be in Tulsa and looks forward to helping her colleagues continue to sell the city to convention and meeting planners as well as individual tourists.
“We’re continuing to focus on the revitalization of downtown,” said Huntley. “The energy and excitement surrounding all the great things happening make it easy to do and we want to continue to build on that excitement and move forward.”
Huntley is also excited about the legacy left by former Executive Director Suzann Stewart, and the future of the CVB and its continued service to Tulsa.
“Suzann’s leadership and the groundwork she laid has positioned the CVB well and we’ll continue building on her vision as we move forward.”
American Airlines to close Kansas City base, Tulsa jobs not affected
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| American Airlines opened a new 81,400-square-foot wide-body aircraft maintenance hangar at Tulsa International Airport in September, made possible through the Oklahoma Opportunity Fund and a city sales tax extension. |
American Airlines announced last week it will close the Kansas City, Mo., maintenance base within a year, cutting up to 700 positions in six cities. However, none of the job cuts will occur at the company’s Tulsa Maintenance & Engineering Center, which employs 7,000. The location is Tulsa’s second largest employer and the world’s largest maintenance repair and overhaul (MRO) base.
While Kansas City’s closing does not directly affect Tulsa, the layoffs may cause “bumping” or relocations of some workers with less seniority, Carmine Romano, American Airlines senior vice president of maintenance and engineering, told the Tulsa World last week.
“While Kansas City’s loss is unfortunate, we believe the investment in American Airlines made by the city, county and state through Vision 2025 and the Oklahoma Opportunity Fund has certainly helped Tulsa retain jobs,” Mike Neal, Tulsa Metro Chamber president and CEO, said. “Our economic prosperity is intrinsically tied to the success of the region’s aerospace employers and aerospace remains a target industry for growth.”
Click here to read Tulsa World’s coverage of the American Airlines announcement.
RIED report evaluates local legislator voting records
The Research Institute for Economic Development evaluates business, industry and economic growth issues considered by the Oklahoma legislature and scores legislators creating a profile of their individual voting record pertaining to those issues.
In an effort to keep members well-informed and versed on local and statewide elected officials’ agendas and voting records, the Chamber is making available the most recent RIED report.
Each legislator was graded with respect to his or her position on each of the bills related to legislation introduced during the session regarding the issues listed below:
• Taxes
• Energy
• Workforce Development
• Tort Reform
• Job Growth
• Technology
• Small Business
• Insurance & Health Care
• Housing
• Manufacturing
• Rural Economic Growth
• Military Impacts
• Education
• Worker Compensation
• Transportation
• Unemployment Compensation/ All other Business & Economic Growth Issues
Top RIED scores from the state House, Tulsa area, include:
2009 Cumulative
Rep. Kirby, Dan
Rep. Watson, Weldon
Rep. Sullivan, Daniel
Rep. McCullough, Mark
Rep. Jones, Tad
Rep. Tibbs, Sue
Rep. Benge, Chris
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Tulsa
Tulsa
Tulsa
Tulsa
Tulsa
Tulsa
Tulsa
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100
100
100
100
100
100
100
|
100
100
98
97
92
91
89
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Bottom RIED scores from the state House, Tulsa area, include:
2009 Cumulative
Rep. McDaniel, Jeannie
Rep. Shoemake, Jerry
Rep. Shumate, Jabar
Rep. Rousselot, Wade
Rep. Hoskin, Chuck
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Tulsa
Tulsa
Tulsa
Tulsa
Tulsa
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15
13
12
10
-1
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60
58
42
57
53
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Top RIED scores from the state Senate, Tulsa area, include:
2009 Cumulative
Sen.Bingman, Brian
Sen. Ford, John
Sen. Brown, Bill
Sen. Crain, Brian A.
Sen. Stanislawski, Gary
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Tulsa
Tulsa
Tulsa
Tulsa
Tulsa
|
100
100
97
94
93
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98
90
82
97
93
|
Bottom RIED scores from the state Senate, Tulsa area, include:
2009 Cumulative
Sen. Sweeden, Joe
Sen. Eason McIntyre, Judy
Sen. Garrison, Earl
Sen. Ballenger, Roger
Sen. Adelson, Tom
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Tulsa
Tulsa
Tulsa
Tulsa
Tulsa
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8
6
4
-2
-4
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44
43
58
40
51
|
2009 RIED scores for other Tulsa area state representatives are: Ron Peters (96), Earl Sears (92), Steve Martin (91), Skye McNiel (89), Pam Peterson (89), Fred Jordan (86), Eddie Fields (85), John Wright (84), John Trebilcock (77), David Derby (72), Lucky Lamons (60), Rex Duncan (52), Mike Ritze (50), Eric Proctor (24), Ben Sherrer (24), Jerry McPeak (23), Steve Kouplen (21) and Seneca Scott (16).
2009 RIED scores for other Tulsa area senators are: Dan Newberry (84), Randy Brogdon (77), Mike Mazzei (70), Sean Burrage (23) and Mary Easley (9).
View the entire RIED report online at http://www.probizok.com/RIEDINDEX.asp.
TCC celebrates opening of Center for Creativity
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| Mike Neal, the Chamber’s president and CEO; Tom McKeon, TCC president; Glen Johnson, chancellor, Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education; and Stuart Price, chairman of the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education, celebrated the opening of The Center for Creativity in October. |
Tulsa Community College recently celebrated the opening of its newest campus building, The Center for Creativity, in downtown Tulsa with a reception, tour and dinner. Key business and higher education leaders and several members of the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education, including Chancellor Glen D. Johnson, attended the open house event.
“TCC has answered the call of a demanding, progressive global workforce with a $22 million investment to increase the quality of education for our students and develop the workforce of Tulsa’s future,” said Chamber President and CEO Mike Neal during his comments at the open house. “With this commitment to educating Tulsans, TCC is a significant partner in the Chamber’s mission to increase the number of our workforce who hold a college degree.”
Stuart Price, chair of the OSRHE, also spoke, explaining the financial and educational impact TCC has had on Northeastern Oklahoma since opening in 1970.
“TCC has provided educational services to more than 450,000 people,” Price said. “Tonight we celebrate TCC’s newest investment – the $22 million Center for Creativity—and look forward to its impact on downtown Tulsa.”
The evening concluded with Johnson speaking about the importance of TCC within the state’s higher education system. He said the Center for Creativity, as well as the Tulsa Achieves Program, are innovative investments in Oklahoma’s future.
Call for Partners
Newcomer International School is designed to accommodate Tulsa Public School’s non-English language students. Newcomer has an entirely Hispanic population and all of the students currently use the free lunch program. The school offers programs in character education, safety and diversity, in addition to its regular curriculum. While Newcomer has had significant increases in its math scores, its students experience difficulty in other areas.
“Due to the fact that most of our families are limited or non-English speaking, reading is a huge challenge for our students, as well as our parents,” Principal Consuela Franklin-Harris said.
As is the case with most TPS schools, Franklin-Harris said, volunteers are greatly needed at Newcomer. Volunteers acting as “reading buddies” or assisting with “English language acquisition” are needed to help the students complete their transition.
To learn more or to become a partner with Newcomer through the Chamber’s Partners In Education program, contact Heather Johnson at heatherjohnson@tulsachamber.com or 560.0218.
CVB director to chair OITA board
At the close of the 2009 Governor’s Conference on Tourism held this month in Tulsa, Nancy Phillips, director of visitor development for the Tulsa Convention and Visitors Bureau, was called to chair the Oklahoma Travel Industry Association’s Board of Directors.
OITA is charged with building a progressive and prosperous future for tourism in Oklahoma. The organization provides benefits and training for tourism-related businesses and citizens throughout Oklahoma. It also helps to monitor and protect tourism industry interests at the state capitol and nationally through their affiliate, the Travel Industry Association of America.
Phillips served the past two years as vice chair and has been a member of the Board of Directors more than 10 years.
She will maintain her new role for the next two years until she passes the torch at the 2011 Governor’s Conference on Tourism scheduled to return to Tulsa.
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