Vanessa is a planner and community development professional who is dedicated to empowering and supporting communities. After receiving her master’s degree in Regional City Planning from the University of Oklahoma’s College of Architecture, Vanessa’s professional and academic opportunities have allowed her to design and lead approaches to address equity challenges, coordinate community engagement opportunities for marginalized groups, domestically and internationally consult urban planning related projects, collaborate on planning initiatives, and activate both spatial and social environments. She is also experienced in developing and implementing engagement strategies that reach into multi-faceted communities, including Black communities, trauma exposed adults and families, business spaces, advocacy groups, state and local governments, and more. Her robust education and experience in community engagement, planning, and crisis management give her unique and valuable insight to initiate and sustain change.

For 41 years, Ron Frantz focused on the historic preservation of Oklahoma’s landmarks and the revitalization of the State’s Main Streets, neighborhood commercial districts, and streetcar suburbs.  As an architect intern, he first worked in the small towns of Guthrie, Chandler, and Pawhuska, Oklahoma, while restoring a bungalow in the Paseo Neighborhood of Oklahoma City.  As a licensed architect, much of his professional career was with the Oklahoma Main Street Center at the Oklahoma Department of Commerce and the Christopher C. Gibbs College of Architecture at The University of Oklahoma.  Through this work, Ron worked with community organizations and revitalization programs in almost 200 cities, towns, and neighborhoods in Oklahoma including Oklahoma City’s Automobile Alley and Plaza District, Okmulgee, Ponca City, Altus, Newkirk, Cordell, Hobart, and Woodward.  He serves on advisory committees with the state agencies or programs ranging from the Oklahoma Main Street Center and the Oklahoma Arts Council to the Oklahoma State Historic Preservation Office. Ron has bachelor’s and master’s degrees in architecture from The Tulane University of Louisiana in New Orleans, Louisiana.

Phil is a Regional and City Planning Masters student who loves all places where people gather. Phil is interested in all elements of quality urbanism, but most especially in food systems planning and active transportation. When Phil isn’t reading about cities, he is usually tending to his backyard garden/chickens, riding his bike, logging films on Letterboxd, or pretending like he will actually learn to sew this weekend. 

Growing up in the vibrant city of Tehran, Anahita‘s attention was always drawn to the historical and contemporary buildings that surrounded her. Growing up in a region rich in diversity and culture, she found herself pondering various aspects of design as she encountered these architectural wonders. As she traveled to different cities within her country, she came to the realization that architecture is, at its core, the art of solving problems. While her mind operated more like that of an engineer, she possessed a deep sense of artistic appreciation that eventually led her to pursue a degree in architectural design at the Iran University of Science and Technology.  During her undergraduate studies, Anahita‘s passion for designing buildings was undeniable, but she couldn’t ignore the feeling that something essential was missing. It was during this time that she discovered the concept of sustainability and the profound influence of nature that could be seamlessly integrated into architectural designs. She firmly believed that outdoor spaces held equal importance in promoting public health and well-being, if not more so than indoor spaces. Consequently, she decided to embark on a journey to study landscape architecture for her master’s degree at the University of Oklahoma. This decision allowed her to merge her architectural background with the natural world, paving the way for more innovative and holistic designs for the future.

Sanjita is currently pursuing her Master’s in Regional and City Planning. Her passion for city planning began during her undergraduate studies in architecture. While working as a trainee architect in the Metropolitan City of her home country, Nepal, she developed a strong interest in community engagement and transportation networks.