Kathy Taylor (politician)

Kathryn Louise Taylor (born September 29, 1955 ) was elected the 38th mayor of Tulsa, Oklahoma on April 4, 2006, in the city's largest voter turnout for a mayoral election. She defeated Republican incumbent Mayor Bill Lafortune to become Tulsa's second female mayor.

Early life and Career
Taylor grew up in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma and graduated from John Marshall High School. Taylor earned her bachelor's degree as well as her Juris Doctor from the University of Oklahoma.

Taylor worked as an attorney for a private firm in Oklahoma City from 1981 until 1988. She then moved to Tulsa in 1989 and became vice president and general counsel of Thrifty Car Rental. Taylor eventually bought National Car Rental from General Motors. She and her husband eventually sold the company and started the Lobeck Taylor Foundation. Taylor was appointed in 2003 by Governor Brad Henry to serve as Secretary of Commerce, Tourism, and Workforce Development.

Mayor of Tulsa
As Mayor, Taylor oversaw the completion of Tulsa's "Vision 2025" projects including the development of the BOK Center. Taylor also pushed a $450 million street bond issue and the construction of a new downtown baseball park, ONEOK Field.

She oversaw the move of Tulsa's city hall which was a shift that brought more energy and business to Downtown Tulsa.

As Mayor of Tulsa, she led Tulsa through the worst recession in 70 years, developed a funding package that ensured the retention of Tulsa’s largest employer, American Airlines, preventing a loss of over 5,000 jobs and managed negotiations for 5 collective bargaining agreements.

Mayor Taylor also led the response to the most significant ice storm in Oklahoma history, with more than 75 percent of Tulsan's without power. She led the efforts to secure support for at-risk citizens, restoring power and procuring reimbursement by FEMA.

On June 4, 2009, Taylor announced that she would not seek re-election. On September 30, 2009, Oklahoma Governor Brad Henry announced that Taylor would become his top education adviser after her term as mayor ended on December 7. Taylor was inducted into the Oklahoma Women's Hall of Fame in 2011.

In January 2013, Taylor announced that she would run again for her old job as mayor of Tulsa in the 2013 election. In the mayoral primary election on June 11, 2013, in which the city used a new non-partisan election system for the first time, Taylor finished first with 42.1% of the vote, ahead of her successor Dewey F. Bartlett Jr., who had 34.2%. She and Bartlett met in a runoff election on November 12, 2013, and Bartlett prevailed, receiving about 55% of the vote.

Career and Community Impact
In the same year as her reelection campaign, Kathy Taylor continued investing in Tulsa. She co-founded ImpactTulsa and served as the nonprofit’s CEO. Additionally, Taylor was an inaugural recipient of the Order of the Owl from the University of Oklahoma College of Law, the highest honor bestowed upon alumni.

In 2014, Taylor served as the Chair and Director for Reading Partners in 2014. In 2016, the University of Tulsa honored her in the College of Law Hall of Fame. Taylor returned to the Office of the Mayor in 2017 as the Chief of Economic Development.

The YWCA recognized Taylor as the Anna C. Roth Legacy Award winner in March 2018. The Tulsa Area United Way awarded her the Clydella Hentschel Women in Leadership Award in 2020. She continued her business endeavors that year and co-founded VEST. She would go on to be named a Fulbright Specialist in 2023.

Chief of Education Strategy and Innovation
Upon exiting the office of Mayor of Tulsa, Taylor served as Chief of Education Strategy and Innovation in the cabinet of Oklahoma Governor Brad Henry.

Dean of Collins College of Business, University of Tulsa
In 2021, Kathy Taylor was appointed Interim Genave King Rogers Dean of the Collins College of Business at the University of Tulsa. TU President Brad Carson made this position effective July 1, 2021. On October 14 of the same year, the appointment was formalized as permanent. Taylor served in this role for three years until announcing that she was stepping down in 2024. During Taylor’s tenure at the helm of the college, three interdisciplinary new centers – the Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, Center for Energy Studies, and Center for Real Estate Studies – were created. The college also launched the Hurricane Venture Fund, raising millions to invest in student, faculty and alumni start-up businesses, revamped the energy management curriculum for a rapidly changing industry, and earned an AACSB reaccreditation.

The Lobeck Taylor Family Foundation
Taylor and her husband, Bill Lobeck, founded The Lobeck Taylor Family Foundation in 1997. They founded the organization to promote entrepreneurship in Tulsa and eliminate barriers that stand in the way. The Foundation utilizes its LT Operating Foundation, a 501(c)3 principally funded to support small businesses. The organization founded Tulsa’s famous food hall, the Mother Road Market. Additional programs such as Kitchen 66 and the Shops at Mother Road Market provide business opportunities for entrepreneurs. Kathy has remained dedicated to the foundation and advancing entrepreneurship opportunities in the city of Tulsa throughout her career.

Board Service
Taylor served on multiple boards for nonprofits and businesses throughout her career.

·     1981: American Bar Association (to present), Oklahoma Bar Association (to present)

·     1992: International Franchise Association (5 years)

·     1993: University of Oklahoma Alumni Association (2 years)

·     1996: Resonance Center (1 year), Thomas Gilcrease Museum (3 years)

·     1997: Simon Estes Education Foundation (1 year), Tulsa School Friends (2 years)

·     1998: Philbrook Museum of Art, University of Oklahoma College of Law (10 years)

·     1999: Holland Hall Preparatory School (1 year), Street School (1 year), Grand River Dam Authority (2 years), Juliette Law Society (2 years)

·     2001: University of Oklahoma Foundation (3 years), University of Tulsa (4 years), Tulsa Opera Ball, Philbrook Museum of Art (1 year)

·     2006: Community Service Council of Greater Tulsa (2 years), Tulsa Friends of Fairgrounds (2 years)

·     2011: Oklahoma Heritage Association (4 years)

·     2013: ImpactTulsa (5 years)

·     2014: Reading Partners (4 years)

·     2015: USS Tulsa (LCS16) (to present)

·     2016: University of Oklahoma David L. Boren College of International Studies (5 years)

·     2018: StichCrew (to present)

·     2019: Tulsa Area United Way, Tulsa Public Facilities Authority (to present)

·     2020: 36° North (4 years), VEST (to present)

·     2022: AACSB Women Administrators in Management Education (to present)

·     2023: U.S. Global Leadership Coalition Oklahoma Advisory Committee (to present), Tulsa Area United Way (to present)