Staff

Wendy Thomas joined Leadership Tulsa as its Executive Director in January 2002 and was formerly the Executive Director of the Arts & Humanities Council of Tulsa. She is a graduate of the University of Tulsa and has a Master’s Degree in Arts Administration from the University of Wisconsin, Madison.

During her time at Leadership Tulsa, she has greatly expanded the organization’s programs and impact on the community, culminating with the opening of the 7800 square foot Leadership Tulsa Center in Gunboat Park. In 2022, the Leadership Tulsa board gave her the “Herald Givens Heart of LT Award” for her twenty years of service to the organization.

Wendy has an extensive resume serving on local nonprofit boards and has been an adjunct professor at the University of Tulsa teaching nonprofit administration in the arts management program. She is a frequent consultant to area non-profits for board development and strategic planning and lectures frequently about Generations in the Workplace.

In June 2017 she was awarded by the Association of Leadership Programs as “Preceptor,” the highest honor in her field. She has also received the Women in Communications Newsmaker Award, the Tulsa Business Journal’s Woman of Distinction, the Typros Boomtown awards and most recently was named a “Community Gem” by the Junior League of Tulsa.

Marcia Bruno-Todd directs the implementation of Leadership Tulsa programming and workshops to connect leaders with impactful service opportunities that contribute to a thriving community for all. Her experience spans across K-12 and the university setting including Tulsa Public Schools, Teach for America and Oklahoma State University.

Marcia supports non-profits with diversity, equity and inclusion strategies and consults on developing authentic community partnerships. She proudly serves as a board member for YWCA Tulsa, MetCares Foundation and the city’s Sales Tax Overview Committee. Featured in Forbes Women for her work in bridge-building across sectors, she invests her talents in the leadership development of the diverse communities of Tulsa.

She is a graduate of Oklahoma State University and has a Master’s in Public Administration from Arkansas State University. Marcia dedicates her time to connecting people with the resources and networks to build a thriving Tulsa for all.

Kendall joined the Leadership Tulsa team in April 2016. Born and raised in Tulsa, Kendall graduated from the University of Tulsa with a Bachelor of Arts in Arts Management. Kendall previously worked at Holland Hall for five years as the assistant to the director of the Walter Arts Center and for the office of Institutional Advancement. After a brief stint in the for-profit sector, she returned to Holland Hall to coordinate its 10-year independent school accreditation. When she’s not managing the LT office, Kendall enjoys singing and performing in local theatre productions. She is the resident stage manager for Tulsa Repertory Musicals, where she also serves on the board.

Ed Sharrer joined the Leadership Tulsa team in December 2019 as the Project Manager responsible for bringing the Leadership Center online. He most recently served as executive director of Kendall Whittier Main Street, a nonprofit aimed at restoring the Kendall-Whittier area as a thriving, walkable commercial district, and as the manager of the City of Tulsa’s Destination District program. Ed’s background also includes serving as a city planner, staffing the Tulsa Preservation Commission, and running his own freelance creative and web design firm. Ed has been a Tulsan since he was 4 years old. He graduated from The University of Tulsa with a Bachelor’s in Marketing and the University of Oklahoma with a Master’s in Urban Design.

Michael is a Tulsa product, graduating from Booker T. Washington High School. He then went on to Pittsburg State University in Kansas where he received his bachelor’s and master’s Degree in Communications.

Michael returned to Tulsa after graduating in the spring of 2014 and started working for Tulsa Job Corps Center. At Job Corps he worked with young adults ages 16 to 24 and as the Career Transitions Manager, he assisted youth with their career placements after completion of the program. He started working for Workforce Tulsa in May of 2018 as the Business Services Manager.

Michael has a passion for helping job seekers acquire long term employment with quality employers and connecting employers with quality employees. Michael joined the KIPP Tulsa staff in 2019 as a physical education instructor and head football coach. In 2020 he became the Dean of Students for KIPP Tulsa High School.

Michael has a deep passion for helping youth to reach their fullest potential – academically, emotionally, physically, and socially. He will continue to serve the youth at KIPP Tulsa through after school sports activities. Michael is excited to to work with and learn from a diverse groups of individuals to help make an positive impact for a better Tulsa.

Faith is a believer in the power of leadership development. She is serving as the 2021-2022 Tulsa Service Year Fellow and will use her programming experiences to help create, evaluate, and facilitate processes to improve impact and efficiency at LT. She was named a 2021 Oklahoma NextGen Under 30 recipient for nonprofits for her service as a student advocate at The University of Tulsa. A recent graduate of TU, Faith developed a passion for creating inclusive and equitable spaces. She served as the 2020-2021 TU Student Association president and as the founding president of the Asian American Student Association. As a Tulsa native, Faith is deeply connected to her community and is looking forward to diving deeper into the world of local nonprofits.

Andrew Spector is Co-Founder and Program Director of Tulsa Changemakers, a youth leadership program that empowers young people to make meaningful change in their communities. He joined the Leadership Tulsa team as Program Manager in 2017 after completing two years of service with Teach For America, where he was a 6th grade teacher for Tulsa Public Schools. Andrew is originally from Bedford, Massachusetts and is a graduate of the Honors College at College of Charleston. At his graduation, Andrew received the college’s highest honor, the Bishop Robert Smith Award, for his demonstrated leadership and academic excellence. Andrew serves as Board Member for the Hillel of Northeastern Oklahoma and Jewish Federation of Tulsa, tutors with Reading Partners, and is a member of Interfaith Youth Core’s Alumni Speakers and Trainers Bureau. In 2018, Andrew was honored with ionOklahoma’s NextGen Under 30 Award.

Jake Lerner is a co-founder of Tulsa Changemakers, a youth leadership development and action program that empowers young people to make meaningful change in their schools and communities. Jake is originally from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a degree in Philosophy, Politics and Economics. In collaboration with the Wharton Social Impact Initiative, Jake co-created and facilitated social innovation and leadership identity workshops for high school students as well as undergraduates. He has also worked as a content advisor for Global Youth Empowerment’s entrepreneurship boot camp in Dubai. Jake is a 2015 Teach For America Greater Tulsa Alumnus. In his free time, Jake plays basketball, writes poetry, and co-runs an interfaith dialogue event for adults called Radical Amazement.

Lydia Jeong is a 2021-22 TSY Fellow serving as Program Manager of Tulsa Changemakers. She is a proud Korean-American, and a recent graduate of The University of Tulsa with a dual degree in Arts Management and Music. Her values of racial equity, arts advocacy, and equitable outcomes for youth have been largely molded by her work with ImpactTulsa and Tulsa Ballet, as well as her multicultural identity. Lydia has served in many roles: a K-5 teacher of classical music, founder of Delta Gamma – Tulsa chapter’s first DEI taskforce, graphic designer for community inclusion project, “We Are All Connected,” and a certified facilitator in Results Based Facilitation. In her role with Changemakers, she is ecstatic to support and mobilize Tulsa youth to become catalysts for measurable impact in their communities now and in the future.