Meet the new additions to our staff and board

Oklahoma Policy Institute is pleased to announce the addition of Courtney Cullison to its staff and Susan Chambers, MD to its Board of Directors.

Courtney Cullison has been hired as a policy analyst focusing on issues of economic opportunity and financial security. Before coming to OK Policy, Courtney worked in higher education, holding faculty positions at the University of Texas at Tyler and at Connors State College in eastern Oklahoma.

A native Oklahoman, she received an Honors B.A. in Political Science from Oklahoma State University, and an M.A. and Ph.D. with emphasis in congressional politics and public policy from the University of Oklahoma. While at OU, Courtney was a fellow at the Carl Albert Congressional Research and Studies Center. As a professor she taught classes in American politics, public policy, and research methods and conducted original research with a focus on the relationship between representatives and the constituents they serve. Courtney can be contacted at clcullison@okpolicy.org.

“We are very excited to add Courtney to our staff,” said David Blatt, OK Policy’s Executive Director. “In a highly-talented field of candidates, Courtney stood out for her strong research background, long-standing familiarity with many of the social and economic policy issues we work on, and first-hand experience with the legislative process. We know she will further enhance our ability to conduct high-quality research and have an impact on policy debates and decisions in Oklahoma.”

Courtney is a citizen of the Cherokee Nation and previously served as a tribal intern in the Office of the Tribal Council. Courtney also has experience as a congressional staffer in the U.S. House of Representatives, working as the legislative correspondent for Tom Coburn (R- Oklahoma) and as a fellow in domestic social policy for Rep. Henry Brown (R- South Carolina).

This new addition brings OK Policy’s full-time staff back up to nine, following the departure last December of DeVon Douglass, who joined the office of Tulsa Mayor G.T. Bynum.

The organization has also added Dr. Susan Louise Chambers to its Board of Directors. Dr. Chambers has been in private medical practice for 30 years and is a founding member of OKC Gyn/Ob Inc. and Lakeside Women’s Hospital in Oklahoma City. She is also a founding member of  MedEncentive, a cost containment/information therapy healthcare company.

“Susan Chambers brings extensive experience as a successful and widely-respected physician and business owner to OK Policy’s board,” said Board chair Ann-Clore Duncan. “We are delighted to add an expert in health care to our board of Oklahomans who represent diverse professional, geographic, and partisan backgrounds.”

Dr. Chambers obtained a BS in Biology from Southern Methodist University and her MD from the University of Oklahoma College of Medicine, and then completed her residency in Obstetrics and Gynecology at the OU Health Sciences Center. She and her husband, Kyle Toal, MD have three children attending college in Oklahoma. A member of St. Luke’s United Methodist Church, Susan’s extensive community involvement includes service with World Neighbors, Oklahoma City National Memorial, the Institute for the Economic  Empowerment of Women (IEEW), OU Medical School Admissions Committee, and the Oklahoma Board of Medical Licensure.

OK Policy now has a 12-member Board of Directors. In addition to Chambers and Duncan, other members are Felicia Collins Correia, Linda Edmondson, John Feaver, Ken Fergeson, Chuck Garrett, Holbrook Lawson, Vince LoVoi, Don Millican, Joe Siano, and Andrew Tevingon.

OK Policy is an independent, non-partisan based think-tank that promotes adequate, fair, and fiscally responsible funding of public services and expanded opportunity for all Oklahomans by providing timely and credible information, analysis, and ideas.