Speakers

Melissa Ahlgrim serves as the State Director of Literacy Policy and Programs at the Oklahoma State Department of Education, where she leads statewide efforts to improve language and literacy outcomes for Oklahoma students. During her 30 years in education, she has served as a classroom teacher, instructional coach, curriculum coordinator, and state education leader. Today, her work focuses on helping Oklahoma schools turn research, policy, and best practices into effective instruction for students. Melissa is also President and Co-Founder of The Reading League Oklahoma and serves on the board of Project Transformation Oklahoma. At the heart of her work is a simple goal: ensuring every Oklahoma student has the literacy skills needed to succeed in school and beyond.

Barrett Huddleston is the Chief Executive Officer for Mad Science of Central Oklahoma, the state's largest delivery based educational enrichment company having served over 800 schools statewide through assemblies, workshops and special events. He also serves as the owner and Chief Curriculum Officer of Finer Arts of Oklahoma, specializing in delivering Literacy and Fine Arts programs. Barrett has served as host to the McBride Lecture for Faith and Literature (David Henry Hwang), Reviews Editor for Ecumenica, A Journal of Theater and Performance and has directed, performed and produced over thirty professional and academic productions, including the Red Eye Theater, Minnesota Fringe Festival, Minnesota Showboat and Lyric Theater of Oklahoma. In recent years, he has directed and written for Edmond History Museum, where he received National Recognition for his contributions in script writing and directing. He appears frequently as "Professor Bungle Botch" on KOCO's "The Porch"

Please join us as we host the Oklahoma Turnpike Authority. OTA executive director Joe Echelle will share information about Oklahoma's system of toll roads, share details about the recent conversion to a cashless system and explain what's included in OTA's ACCESS Oklahoma long-range plan, ultimately making it easier for drivers to travel around the state.

 

He began his career with the Oklahoma Department of Transportation as an engineer in training in 2001. In 2003, he became a draftsman for ODOT and then a construction surveyor for the department in 2006. In 2008, he was promoted to resident engineer in Stillwater and subsequently advanced to be the construction engineer for ODOT’s Division 4, managing more than $200 million in annual construction projects. He was instrumental in the construction of the Interstate 40 Crosstown project in Oklahoma City along with the deconstruction and bridge beam recycling efforts of the old crosstown expressway bridge.

 

Echelle, a registered professional engineer, has received several awards for highway construction and design from the American Concrete Paving Association and the Asphalt Paving Association. He sits on the board of the Oklahoma Highway Construction Materials Technician Certification Board and is a member of the International Bridge, Tunnel and Turnpike Association.

 

Echelle worked as an adjunct faculty member at Oklahoma State University, his alma mater, teaching surveying to more than 1,100 civil engineering and construction management majors from 2008 to 2020. He earned a bachelor's degree in civil engineering from Oklahoma State University in 2005 and an MBA in 2010.

We will be meeting at and touring the new YMCA and preparing cards for the recepients of Edmond Moblie Meals next week.

In place of our regular meeting, Rotarians will be delivering meals through Edmond Mobile Meals. Sign ups available closer to this event.