Listen Frontier

Ebony Johnson replaced former superintendent Deborah Gist in September.

It was a chaotic start - TPS, the state's largest school district with more than 30,000 students, was under the threat of takeover by the state board of education, as state Superintendent Ryan Walters targeted Gist and TPS with criticism and ultimatums.

Gist eventually stepped down, Johnson was appointed, and tensions cooled slightly.

"I feel like right now, leadership is needed in a way that it's never been needed before, and I'm honored to do that," Johnson told The Frontier.

Karen Keith worked as a television reporter before moving to the local chamber of commerce and later a post in the mayor's office. She now serves as one of three Tulsa County Commissioners.

Next up? Possibly the most powerful position in local city government.

On this episode of Listen Frontier, Keith talks with us about her past, why she wants to be mayor, and what she thinks she can accomplish.

Rep. Monroe Nichols, D-Tulsa, is one of the more outspoken members of Oklahoma's Legislature. Now he wants to take his talents to Tulsa's City Hall where he would become Tulsa's first Black mayor.

The election isn't for 12 months, but Nichols declared his candidacy early in order to get a head start campaigning, and, he said, to give him the time to dive more deeply into the issues facing Tulsa. On this edition of Listen Frontier, we speak with Nichols about his time in the Legislature, as well as his plans for Tulsa and his thoughts on the economy and education.

Sen. James Lankford, now Oklahoma’s Senior Senator following the retirement of Jim Inhofe, took time this week to speak with The Frontier about immigration, abortion, the McGirt decision and the state of “Trump-ism” in the Republican Party.

placeholder