The Oklahoma Eagle Newswire
“As we approach our fifth year in supporting better education outcomes for all students in the Tulsa region, Carlisha Williams is the perfect leader for the next phase of our work,” said Kathy Taylor, Impact Tulsa Founder and chair of the Leadership Council. “Carlisha is not only steeped in education policy but is a nonprofit leader, native Tulsan, social enterprise strategist and best-selling author. Her lifelong passion and commitment to quality education opportunities for all children and her significant management experience in high-performing organizations, will provide leadership to both our dedicated ImpactTulsa team and our more than 50 community partner organizations.”
ImpactTulsa’s unprecedented partnership aligns 15 public school districts and community leaders across the Tulsa area around data that shows opportunities for immediate action. The partnership works collectively with a vision of guaranteeing a high-quality education for all students. ImpactTulsa focuses on six education outcomes including kindergarten readiness, third-grade reading, high school graduation, and postsecondary entry and completion. The partnership has proven success with increasing pre-K enrollment and FAFSA completion as well as identifying and spreading best practices to increase student attendance.
“It is an honor to join the ImpactTulsa team to serve our students and community in my hometown alongside Tulsa’s world-class education, business and philanthropic leaders,” said Carlisha Williams. “I enter this work standing on the shoulders of giants who have made tremendous strides for systemic change in public education. I am grateful for the foundation that has been set and the talented team I have the privilege to work with in moving the organization forward. As a connector of ideas, people, agencies, and educational institutions, I am a firm believer in the power of collaboration. Together, we can and will transform education outcomes and opportunities for youth in our city. ”
Carlisha brings a variety of experience in leading nonprofits, fundraising and establishing relationships in the community. She brings experience in traditional public school, charter and international education work. She most recently worked with Tulsa Legacy Charter Schools as Executive Director.
Justin Harlan, Executive Director of Reading Partners and member of the ImpactTulsa Leadership Council said “I’m thrilled about Carlisha being hired as Executive Director at Impact Tulsa. She has always been an advocate for Tulsa’s kids and brings a strong history of leveraging data to make decisions, which will be perfect for the partnership between Impact Tulsa and Reading Partners. The work of third-grade readiness is difficult, but I’m confident in Carlisha’s leadership to get us closer to our shared goals.”
As ImpactTulsa is about to embark on their fifth community impact report, they are recognized as the expert and community convener in local education data and leading continuous improvement in collaborative education partnership. ImpactTulsa’s recent work in chronic absenteeism was recognized by national expert Attendance Works. They have received local, state and national recognition for their data-driven strategies.
ImpactTulsa has increased their data capacity and is using more advanced predictive data models to advance policy changes. The Leadership Council of ImpactTulsa is comprised of business, education, philanthropic and faith leaders who work together to change the direction of pre-K through career outcomes.
About Impact Tulsa
ImpactTulsa is an unprecedented collective impact partnership working with 15 public school districts, nine postsecondary institutions, and a wide array of local leaders from the education, business, civic, nonprofit, philanthropy and faith communities. The common vision is to guarantee all Tulsa-area students a high-quality education. Work is focused on improving six education outcomes in partnership with existing institutions and existing resources. ImpactTulsa partners measure what matters, share best practices and align resources behind what works to improve student success. ImpactTulsa is one of 70 communities comprising the successful StriveTogether Network, which supports transformation in education outcomes. For more information visit www.impacttulsa.com.
