SPEAKERS

Erik Louis Soliván

Erik Soliván has invested over 15 years in housing policy, finance, development, and planning. He currently serves as Chief of Staff for the Tulsa Housing Authority, leading Affordable Housing, RentalAssistance, Development Services, Construction Services, and Compliance Services departments. Erik is a lawyer and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania native, where he served as Special Assistant to the Deputy Secretary for Community Development, Senior Analyst at Public Financial Management, Inc., and Senior Vice President at the Philadelphia Housing Authority. He is an avid runner, chess player and passionate advocate for housing.

Jim Sill

“AI is as dangerous and destructive as the atomic bomb… we perilously drift toward destruction like babes in a bomb factory. The normalization, acceptance, and adoption of biases in AI cannot continue, if we care for the future of humanity. This talk speaks to the state of biases and what we can do to change our destinies with AI.” 

As a futurist and senior business leader with more than two decades of progressively responsible experience working across varied business models, including working with some of the Fortune 100, Jim Sill has a diverse understanding of what makes companies and individuals successful. For most of the past 15 years, he has worked in litigation as a consultant, problem solver, and forensic risk auditor. He graduated in 1990 from Oklahoma State University with a Bachelor of Science in Agriculture Education, and in 2022 with a Master of Science in Cybersecurity (with honors) and is currently a Ph.D. Candidate in Cyber Studies at the University of Tulsa (est. graduation of May '24). At TU, Jim is also a Team8 Cyber Fellow. Jim also holds multiple professional designations and certifications, in data analytics and information security.

Jamie Rhudy

Did you know that Native Americans experience chronic pain at a higher rate than any other ethnic group in the U.S.?  Pain researcher Jamie Rhudy discusses how historical and contemporary trauma shape this pain disparity and how we can start to solve this pain puzzle. 

Dr. Jamie L. Rhudy is a Professor, licensed clinical psychologist, and Director of the Psychophysiology Laboratory for Affective Neuroscience. Dr. Rhudy completed his Ph.D. in clinical psychology in 2002 at Texas A&M University and post-doctoral training at the University of Mississippi Medical Center and the G.V. (Sonny) Montgomery Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Jackson, MS. The overarching goals of Dr. Rhudy’s work are to identify mechanisms that contribute to and/or maintain chronic pain conditions, to develop non-invasive methods for assessing individuals at risk for developing chronic pain, and to improve the methods for studying pain. Since 2010, his work has focused on understanding the mechanisms of the Native American pain inequity.

Tracy Spears

Tracy Spears grew up in a trailer park in Tulsa, Oklahoma.  She tells real life stories from her time in the trailer where she learned about goal setting, decision making, inclusion, grit and more. She might even convince you that her time at “Trailer Park University” was the best education money couldn’t buy. 

Tracy Spears is an internationally sought-after keynote speaker, advocate, and host of the podcast "Shift Out Loud." She is a member of the National Speakers Association and the Founder of the Exceptional Leaders Lab. Her organization specializes in developing leaders, inspiring teamwork, and creating inclusive cultures. Her best-selling books-"What Exceptional Leaders Know," "The Exceptional Leaders Playbook." and "Leadership is a Verb"- provide much of the content in the workshops she teaches globally. Tracy's energetic and interactive approach has helped aspiring leaders all over the world improve their leadership skills, communication, and understanding of how people and organizations succeed. She is a graduate of the University of Oklahoma and earned her college degree through a softball scholarship. She was a member of the U.S. National Softball Team and competed in the U.S. Olympic Sports Festival.

Charity Barton

Charity Barton is a former TU cheerleader and TU alumna with a B.A. in Communications. She is a Director at TU's Collins College of Business and the TU Cheer coach. Charity is an entrepreneur who believes in the power of storytelling. She enjoys speaking in public and has done so many times. Charity will graduate with her Master's in Mass Communications in May 2023.

Jia Hwei Ng

Data is everywhere around us. But without a story, no one will know what the data has to say. In this talk, Jia shares why data storytelling matters to ALL of us and how it can create change.

Dr. Jia Ng is a board-certified nephrologist and an Assistant Professor of Medicine. She is also the founder of PublishedMD Consulting, where she coaches clinicians on how to build their authority and achieve their academic goals. Currently, she is an active clinical researcher and has received more than $1 million of grant funding from the National Institutes of Health and Foundational Grants.

Ellis Gordy

As anti-trans legislation sweeps across the United States, proud trans man Ellis Gordy gives a brief and historically grounded example of how transgender people are not a new phenomenon, and reminds his listeners that transgender people cannot be ignored or eliminated.

Ellis Gordy is a graduate student at the University of Tulsa studying Museum Science and Management. He is a professional thinker and amateur researcher with an interest in bringing suppressed queer narratives into the spotlight. When he's not working towards a visible queer past and a safer queer future he can be found playing TTRPGs, video games, and as a mediator between his partner and their cat in an ever-waging psychological war.

Aaron Ball

Aaron Ball is currently an instructor in the Department of Geosciences at the University of Tulsa, where he teaches introductory courses in geology and serves on the alumni Geoscience Advisory Board. He earned a Master of Science in Geology and a Bachelor of Science in Geosciences from the University of Tulsa. Some of his awards during his studies include the University of Tulsa NOVA Fellowship, Oklahoma Geological Foundation Graduate Fellowship, Chevron Graduate Fellowship, and Tulsa Geological Society Foundation Outstanding Student Award. He is an AAPG Department of Professional Affairs Certified Petroleum Geologist. He volunteers as the treasurer for the Geoscience Foundation of Tulsa, a charitable organization that recognizes outstanding students and teachers of earth sciences.

Mikey Manghum

Thanks to technology, we have more access than ever before to financial literacy information, and we can set up automated savings or investment accounts at a few clicks of a button. Yet anxiety, worry, and concern over financial direction persists; it doesn’t quite add up. Could it be that we’re going about the pivotal first steps of true wealth creation all wrong?

Mikey Manghum, MBA is the Founder/Owner of Manghum Consulting, as well as Senior Vice President of INSPiRE Financial Group. Mikey's purpose is to develop leaders that develop leaders. The most energizing work Mikey gets to do is cultivating "lightbulb" moments for others that improve their trajectory; most often, that centers around equipping first-generation wealth creators to live and leave their legacy. Born and raised in the UK, Mikey made his way to Tulsa in 2009 to play college basketball and study Finance At Oral Roberts University, where he also completed his MBA. Mikey credits much of his mindset and approach to business and leadership to his experience playing basketball at the collegiate and international levels.

Rhiannon Baker

Using her own personal experience with trauma as a starting point, this talk discusses what forgiveness is and is not, as well as steps on how to learn to forgive the unforgivable. After escaping from the hands of her kidnapper at age 19, Rhiannon Baker suffered from PTSD for a number of years. While she used to be silent about her trauma, she now shares her traumatic experience and its aftermath so that it may be a learning tool for others. She is a local attorney and non-profit volunteer who advocates for other victims and survivors. She has a passion for mental health awareness and victims’ rights advocacy. Rhiannon is in the process of finishing her book—part memoir, part personal development—and hopes to have it published by the end of 2023. You can find her on LinkedIn as Rhiannon K. Baker.

Elmer Dixon

His image—holding a rifle on the steps of the Washington state capitol building—is one of the most iconic photographs from the Black Power movement and was recently featured as the lead in image on the new Netflix series “Dear Mama" about the life of Tupac Shakur.

Elmer Dixon co-founded the Seattle Chapter of the Black Panther Party to provide armed patrols to protect Black people from police beatings and killings.

Now, half a century later, Dixon is currently President of Executive Diversity Services, an organizational development firm in Seattle, Washington. He shares his life journey as a revolutionary and transition to a sought after leader in diversity consulting.

PERFORMERS

Anna Claire McMullen

Anna Claire is an aerialist of over four years, performing for the past three years. She is well-versed in circus arts, but she is most passionate about performing lyra, also known as the aerial hoop. She spends her time on the ground focusing on her studies at the University of Tulsa as a biochemistry and biology double major. She plans to continue her studies in veterinary school and hopes to conduct biochemical research in the veterinary field.  You can find her on Instagram @annaclaire.aerial

Song Credit: “High Line” by Tyson Motsenbocker, ©2020.  For more of his music, visit https://www.tysonmotsenbocker.com/