Jacquelyne Finley, President

Jacquelyne Finley has always been active in the community since childhood when her mother required the family to pass out can goods with manual can openers to vagrants underneath Nimitz Highway in Honolulu, HI. Most call her Jakky, but she also has a nickname ‘Tush’. Jakky credits her mother and father with instilling passion for activism into her heart. She is an ordained Agnostic Minister from Universal Life Church who substantially adores multiple viewpoints, but believes in pragmatics over theoretical solutions. Jakky states her organizational skill is the biggest contributor to her self-motivation, intelligence, flexibility, and patience. She is currently the president of LWV in OK County and a volunteer of the LWVUS Framing the Future Transformation Committee. She has extensive volunteering hours including but not limited to working with the following organizations:

• John Marshall High School
• Community Activism All Star Team
• Pan African Designs
• RBG Mentality
• The Ashley Renae Hamilton Foundation
• Northside Knights Football of New Direction Ministries
• Oklahoma African Heritage Network Inc
• Trinity Missionary Baptist Church
• Possibilities, Inc (Leadership I & II)
• Nappy Roots Books

Jacquelyne currently has two degrees from Oklahoma State University @OKC and a third degree from the University of Central Oklahoma. They are in Business Management, Applied Technology with emphasis on Macroeconomics, and General Studies from Adult Education and Safety Sciences with a minor in Business Administration. Jacquelyne’s interest in the League of Women Voters is centered on its dedication and commitment to nonpartisan education as well as her passion to see all Oklahomans exercising their right to choose our elected judges, school board members, and city council persons.

Chivonne Davis, Secretary

Chivonne Davis is an Air Force military brat who has spent a large deal of her life in between Louisiana and Oklahoma. As an official card-carrying member of John Lewis’s “Good Trouble” club, her greatest passion is helping members of her community see the power that they have to create real and substantial change with their vote.  In between working and completing her degree, Chivonne can be found volunteering at places such as Habitat for Humanity or the City Rescue Mission. “My biggest hope is that I leave this space better than I found it for the people that will follow behind me”. 

Tasneem Al-Michael, Treasurer

A community-justice advocate and creative at his core, Tasneem Al-Michael is an artivist, educator, social-good entrepreneur, and organizer from Oklahoma City, Oklahoma by way of Bangladesh.

As an organizer, Tas has served at the local, state, and national levels in the electoral arena and issue-based campaigns. He aspires to help break barriers in underrepresented communities by recognizing their collective power and uplifting their stories to become changemakers. In addition to his day job at the Oklahoma Policy Institute, Tas regularly spends his time serving on boards advising both non-profit and for-profit entities. He is a founding Board Member of the Greater Oklahoma City Asian Chamber of Commerce, co-owner of Dacca, a Bengali-owned international-fashion company, board member at Avery Chapel AME Development Corporation, and board member 3rd Act Theatre Company. Lastly, Tas is an educator serving as the Leadership and Liberal Arts Coach at Mercy School Islamic Institute.

BOARD MEMBERS

Chris Myers

Christopher Myers is the Director of Curriculum and Instruction for Opportunities Industrialization Center of Oklahoma County, Inc. (OIC), a student centered, nonprofit adult education center. Beginning his tenure in the classroom as an instructor, Mr. Myers was able to manifest academic success for learners with a wide variety of social challenges including ADHD, autism, and dyslexia.  By his 5th year with OIC, Myers played an instrumental role in raising the graduation rate well over 800% while assisting nearly 500 learners across metro Oklahoma City with obtaining their High School Equivalency Diploma.  His unique ability to connect with his target audience, while academically leveling them up, has garnished national attention as he was featured in articles by both StoryCorps and National Public Radio (NPR) .  A Clark Atlanta/Georgia State University graduate, Myers holds a Bachelor's Degree in Journalism. In addition to being the facilitator for the business consultation component of the OIC Business Academy, Myers also serves on the boards of M&R Latino Services as well as The League of Women’s Voters.

Abbey Richards

I am offering my candidacy for the LWV of Oklahoma County Board in order to actively assist in the growth and success of the League of Women Voters in Oklahoma County.  There is so much potential and an opportunity to build our impact over the next two years.  I have worked with the Oklahoma County League previously on bylaws reform and am glad to proivde my assistance in areas of voter education, governance and organizational strengths as both my academic background and career have well-prepared me for these issues.  I also serve on the State Board of the League of Women Voters and have assisted with finance, budget, convention, and nominations committees during my tenure.  My hope is to spend more time engaging with voter services and voter advocacy in the OKC community and less time in meetings. For me, the goal is to be actively building civic engagement in our community around the issues at the core of the LWV: Empowering Voters. Defending Democracy. 

Ayesha Sattar

Dr Ayesha Sattar completed her residency in adult psychiatry from Griffin memorial hospital in Norman, Oklahoma and was trained in child and adolescent psychiatry at Oklahoma University. She practices general Psychiatry in OKC and has been a part of various non profit organizations. She serves on the board of Sadqa for All Foundation, a charitable organization led by Muslim women, is a member of Oklahoma Muslim Women for Humanity and has served with Many Faiths Together committee of Interfaith Alliance participating in various volunteer projects with the organization.

Rodney Thornton

Rodney Thornton co-founded Untapped Potential to help create a pathway and give a voice to the African American, Biracial, and LGBTQIAP+ community. Mr. Thornton worked on several campaigns that focused on change, economic growth, education, and overall higher quality of life for Oklahomans. He has received his Associate degrees in Applied Science, Biochemistry, and Engineering at Oklahoma City Community College. Then, he went on to get his B.A. in Political Science and Public Administration, MPA from the University of Central Oklahoma, and MBA from Oklahoma Christian University. Rodney is currently working on a Doctorate in Higher Education and Human Services leadership policy at Oklahoma State University. Mr. Thornton is the co-owner of Thornton Construction and Co-owner of The Washington Guide, an unbiased news organization dedicated to freedom of speech. Mr. Thornton has experience in higher education with the TRIO program and also served in Government, Community Relations, and Fundraising roles for the University of Central Oklahoma. He has served in State government and local city government as the Assistant Manager of Economic Development and Plan with the City of Spencer. He volunteers on criminal justice reform, public school teacher pay raises, and wage equity campaigns.  Mr. Thornton lives in Norman with his two fur babies; is an avid reader, idealist, and community planner in his free time.

Nancy Ward

Nancy Ward was a founding member of the national self-advocacy organization, Self-Advocates Becoming Empowered (SABE) and served as the first Chairperson. She began her career with Advocacy First of Lincoln in 1979. She assisted with building the self-advocacy movement in Nebraska before moving to Oklahoma in 1997 to build Oklahoma People First. Nancy has served as the Information Coordinator for the Medicaid Reference Desk which was a website that had each state’s Medicaid system on it; you could also go to a part of the website and see a list of people to be potential roommates. She currently works for the Oklahoma Disability Law Center as the PAVA Advocate in Oklahoma. Where she educates people with and without disabilities about the voting process, she also helps people register to vote. Helping people understand why voting is the easiest way to advocate for yourself because she has voted since she was 21. Ms. Ward is currently a Master Trainer for Self-Advocate Leadership Training I & II, Let’s Make a Plan: Are You Ready for an Emergency and Taking Control of Your Health, and Developmental Disability Awareness a member of the Center for Learning and Leadership’s (CLL) Consumer Advisory Committee, and has been a Self-Advocacy Coordinator Intern for CLL.
Nancy Ward says "As an advocate of voting rights for people with disabilities for more than 20 years, and as a person with a disability myself, I feel it's important to exercise my right to vote at the local, state, and national levels.  I believe the League's strict nonpartisanship and focus on voter education prepare me to serve my community as a member of the LWVOKC Board because I am better informed.

Ramona Waylon Diaz

Ramona is a resident of Oklahoma City. She is a public schoolteacher and is passionate about equitable public education. She believes in empowering all citizens to act on their civic duties. Ramona is also a lifelong musician and enjoys serving Oklahoma City through organizing her community choir.