The Tulsa Regional Chamber has added a twist to its Tulsa’s NextGEN Talent (TNT) Expansion initiative.

For the first time, employer representatives from Tulsa – Leonelle Thompson of Williams and Cynthia Simmons Taylor of Wallace Design Collective – joined the Chamber’s workforce and talent strategies team on a trip to Missouri in April.

Along with Rue Ramsey, the Chamber’s vice president of workforce and talent strategies, and Lynette Isaac, director of workforce and talent strategies, they visited career services, deans and leadership at four universities: Park University; University of Missouri-Kansas City; Missouri State University; and Missouri Southern State University.

“Traveling out of state to tell Tulsa’s story and work to broaden our talent base is important to the economic health of our region,” said Ramsey. “But having representatives from Tulsa employers join our Tulsa’s NextGEN Talent Expansion initiative says to us that we are growing the qualified talent pool in ways they find valuable.

“We want to thank Leonelle and Cynthia for being such great ambassadors for Tulsa and what the city has to offer in workforce opportunities.”

In its second year of traveling to universities within a six-hour drive of Tulsa, the TNT initiative seeks to expand the qualified talent recruiting pool by focusing on career pathways that are traditionally difficult to fill.

Brainstorming with university officials, Thompson and Taylor explored avenues to engage students beyond the typical career fair, helping them raise their companies’ profile for 2025 summer internships and entry-level jobs.