Empowering Tulsa’s Youth to Pursue Economic Mobility

The City of Tulsa has an ambitious goal of placing 15,000 additional children and youth on pathways to economic mobility by 2030. Youth workforce development is central to this vision. The FUSE Executive Fellow will conduct comprehensive analyses, convene key cross-sector stakeholders, and develop an actionable strategy to strengthen Tulsa’s youth workforce ecosystem. As a result of this work, Tulsa’s young people will gain access to dignified, sustainable career opportunities in their hometown and beyond, creating meaningful economic mobility regardless of their educational pathway.

Fellowship Dates: October 27, 2025 – October 23, 2026

Salary: Executive Fellows are FUSE employees and receive an annual salary of $80,000. Fellows can also access various health, dental, and vision insurance benefits. This amount is not representative of market-rate salaries for the experienced professionals in our program but is intended as compensation for a year of public service.

ABOUT THE FUSE EXECUTIVE FELLOWSHIP

FUSE is a national nonprofit dedicated to increasing the capacity of local governments to work more effectively for communities. We embed private sector executives in city and county agencies to lead projects that improve public services and accelerate systems change. Since 2012, FUSE has led over 400 projects in 58 governments across 26 states, impacting a total population equivalent to 1 in 10 Americans.

When designing each fellowship project, FUSE works closely with government partners and community stakeholders to define a scope of work that will achieve substantive progress toward high-priority local needs. Projects address today’s most pressing challenges and opportunities, including affordable housing, economic mobility, climate resilience, public safety, infrastructure, technology, and more.

FUSE conducts a full executive search for each individual project to ensure that the selected candidate has at least 15 years of professional experience, the required competencies for the role, and deep connections to the community being served.

Executive Fellows are embedded in government agencies working with senior leaders for at least one year of full-time work. Prospective responsibilities may include thorough data analytics and research, developing enhanced operations and financial models, building change management and strategic planning processes, and/or building broad coalitions to support project implementation efforts. Executive Fellows are data-driven and results-oriented and able to effectively manage complex projects. They build strong relationships with a broad array of stakeholders, foster alignment within and across various layers of government, and build partnerships between governments and communities.

Throughout the fellowships, Executive Fellows receive training, coaching, and professional support to help achieve their project goals.

PROJECT CONTEXT

Earlier this year, Tulsa’s mayor set an ambitious goal of putting 15,000 children on a pathway to economic mobility by 2030. He subsequently founded the Mayor’s Office of Children, Youth, and Families and the Tulsa Children’s Cabinet to lead and coordinate progress toward this goal. This represents the latest phase in the City's long-standing commitment to children—particularly those from historically underserved communities—as part of its strategy for building long-term economic prosperity. For example, in 2023, the Obama Presidential Center named Tulsa a My Brother’s Keeper Model Community due to its decades of work applying evidence-based approaches to uplifting young men and boys from underrepresented communities.

So far, the City of Tulsa and its partners have been particularly successful with early interventions for children’s pathways to economic mobility. For example, between 2013 and 2019, the City and its partners conducted a comprehensive campaign to increase Pre-K enrollment. This resulted in a 33% increase in enrollment for historically underserved children. Now, the City wants to build the other end of the economic mobility pipeline: paid internships, apprenticeships, job training, and higher education. In Tulsa, the current post-secondary landscape is fractured and difficult to navigate. Many of Tulsa’s most promising job sectors (e.g., advanced manufacturing, aerospace, and IT) have a variety of entry points into the industry. Formalized training programs that local youth can easily access would create sustainable, relevant opportunities for long-term careers. This will require extensive partnerships and mutual investment in infra