2025 Women’s Leadership Conference

July 21-24, 2025

Join us for the 2025 Women’s Leadership Conference, presented by the Muskogee Chamber of Commerce and Muscogee Creek Nation Casino. This hybrid event features a series of inspiring speaker sessions and networking opportunities designed to empower women leaders.

Speaker Lineup Sponsored by OG&E: 

Retired Colonel Michele Peeler Harper is a trailblazing Army aviator who, over a 30-year career, became the first woman to command a Black Hawk company, an aviation battalion, and an aviation brigade in the North Carolina National Guard. Raised in Hendersonville, North Carolina, she was inspired by stories of pioneering female pilots and pursued her dream of flying helicopters through the ROTC program at Appalachian State University. Harper graduated in 1993 and chose to serve in the National Guard, where she found fulfillment in missions ranging from hurricane relief to combat deployments in Iraq.

Throughout her service, Harper balanced the demands of military life with her role as a mother to three sons. Her story, featured in the documentary “When Is Your Service Enough,” highlights the challenges faced by women striving to excel in high-stakes careers while nurturing their families. After retiring as a colonel in May 2023, Harper shifted her focus to full-time motherhood, embracing the opportunity to be present for her sons before they embark on their own journeys.

 

For more than four decades, Alison Anthony has built a career around connecting people, inspiring collaboration, and driving impact. From her early days as a Campfire Counselor in Enid to her current role as President and CEO of Tulsa Area United Way, Alison has remained committed to empowering others and strengthening communities. Since joining TAUW in 2017, she has led efforts to raise over $184 million and, during the organization’s 2024 centennial, established a $12.6 million endowment to ensure a lasting legacy. Prior to United Way, Alison held leadership roles at Williams, overseeing HR, Diversity, Communications, and Community Relations, and previously worked for Oklahoma State University and in the staffing industry.

A lifelong learner with a BA and MA in English from OSU, Alison has embraced leadership development opportunities, including Harvard’s Talent Pipeline Development Program. She has served on numerous boards such as Leadership Oklahoma and the Tulsa Regional Chamber and has received several prestigious honors, including the Pinnacle Award, the Journal Record’s Circle of Honor, and the 2025 Leadership Oklahoma Distinguished Graduate Award. With five children, five grandchildren, and her husband Mark Wilson by her side, Alison remains grounded in her values, making sure the people and causes she cherishes always know they matter.

 

Lauren is a graduate of Northeastern State University with a Bachelor of Arts in Communication Studies and a minor in Marketing. She is a Certified Clogging Instructor and Choreographer. She currently works for the State of Oklahoma at the Bureau of Narcotics as their Public Information Manager. Lauren serves as a proud adoption advocate on her community service initiative she calls “Adoption as Oklahoma’s Option”. At Miss America 2025, Lauren was named a Top 10 finalist. As Miss Oklahoma 2024, Lauren traveled the state speaking to over 50,000 people, traveling over 48,000 miles, and making over 260 appearances.

Lauren has traveled to 46 states and is eager to cross off the remaining 4!

 

Christe L. Jordan-Sweat, a native of Oklahoma and graduate of Millwood High School in Oklahoma City, holds a degree in Social Work from the University of Kentucky. Her career in corrections began at the Fayette County Jail in Lexington, Kentucky, before she returned to Oklahoma to work with the Oklahoma County Juvenile Bureau. Over the years, she held several positions and ultimately retired as Chief of Court Services in 2013.

In 2015, she earned a master’s degree in Human Services and went on to join Core Civic, where she served as Facility Director for three men’s Department of Corrections facilities and a women’s halfway house between 2015 and 2020. In 2022, she became Assistant Warden at a federal men’s facility in Elizabeth, New Jersey. Ms. Sweat returned to Oklahoma in July 2023 to accept the role of Deputy Warden at Dr. Eddie Warrior Correctional Center in Taft, officially starting in October. Just a few months later, she was appointed Warden on January 24, 2024.

 

Event Details:

  • Dates: July 21st – 23rd (Virtual), July 24th (In-Person Luncheon)
  • Format:
    • Monday – Wednesday: Virtual speaker sessions via Zoom at 10:00 am, they are recorded for later viewing
    • Thursday: In-person networking and luncheon hosted at Indian Capital Technology Center. Doors will open at 11:00 am, Lunch at 11:30am. Program will begin promptly at noon.
  • Additional Activities:
    • Monday: Common Grounds coffee hour from 7:30-9:00am at The Break (no registration required)
    • Wednesday: Ladies Night Out networking from 4:00-6:00pm at Three Fork Harbor River Center (no registration required)
  • Women In Leadership Recognition:
    • To nominate a woman in leadership to be recognized during the Women’s Leadership Conference, Click Here.

Tickets:

  • Office All Access Pass – $250: Unlimited virtual sign-ins to speaker sessions, session recordings available, and leadership tool kits (if applicable)
  • Personal All Access Pass – $100: Access to all virtual speaker sessions, session recordings available, and leadership tool kits
  • In-Person Luncheon Ticket (Thursday) – $40: Includes lunch, program, gift, and networking. Limited availability.
    • Thursday’s Luncheon is SOLD OUT. If you would like to be added to the waiting list, Click Here.

 

Register Here

Sponsored By:

Firstar Bank – Green Country Behavioral Health Service – Refresco – Saint Francis Hospital, Muskogee

Georgia-Pacific – Northeastern State University

Connors State College – Love Bottling Co.