This year, we have shared how Tulsa is building the systems needed to put 15,000 more young people on a path to economic mobility. With a vision grounded in data and shared accountability, the newly launched Children’s Cabinet within the Mayor’s Office of Children, Youth, and Families (MOCYF) is a driving force in turning that vision into action.
The Cabinet is the backbone of a citywide strategy to bring partners together around a singular purpose: building the conditions where every child, regardless of background or zip code, has the support and opportunities they need to thrive. It’s a space where school districts, community organizations, city agencies, and families can align, around not only programming, but around policies, investments, and shared outcomes that move the needle at scale.
At ImpactTulsa, we’ve always believed that systems change happens when the people closest to the work come together with the power to act. The Cabinet is that table. It creates a formal structure for decision-making that is cross-sector, community-rooted, and relentlessly focused on outcomes.
Over the next six months, the Cabinet will be responsible for:
- Launching a coordinated Year One work plan to advance the city’s cradle-to-career priorities
- Aligning cross-agency data to identify gaps and opportunities at both the neighborhood and systems level
- Centering family and youth voice to ensure the work reflects lived experiences and community-defined solutions
- Tracking progress toward Tulsa’s shared goal of increasing youth economic mobility
We are not just duplicating what’s already working, instead we are organizing and scaling it. We’ve seen the power of collective action through our work with the Community Action Forums, MBK Tulsa, and early childhood partners. Now, through the Cabinet, we can better connect the dots between what’s happening on the ground and what’s possible at the systems level.
Our role at ImpactTulsa is to keep the focus clear: helping Tulsa become a place where systems work differently and more effectively for children, youth, and families. That means building bridges across silos, using data to drive strategy, and creating feedback loops that hold us all accountable to the same goals.
We’ve said it before, and it’s worth repeating, this office stands as a step forward in a broader citywide movement that’s been gaining momentum for years. What’s different now is the infrastructure to take that momentum further.
Tulsa is positioning itself as a model for how cities can organize their efforts around what matters most: ensuring every child has the chance to succeed, not by chance, but by design.
This is the work ahead of us and we’re honored to be doing it alongside so many dedicated partners.