Road to Rural Prosperity

In Episode 8 , Host AJ Griffin talks with Dr. Ariel Lufkin of Mercy Healthcare about providing quality healthcare in rural areas of Oklahoma- lessons that can apply across our state and across much of rural America. Today's Episode is presented by the Oklahoma Public School Resource Center.

Guests Tyson Ochsner, Shane Robinson and Paul Weckler join host Ron Hays in this Episode looking at the OSU Rural Renewal Initiative. The future of many rural communities in Oklahoma, as well as elsewhere in the U.S. and around the world, is jeopardized by natural resource degradation, climate change, drought and sociocultural trends. Those threats are draining away human talent, expanding a technology gap between rural and urban society and leading to rural population losses. This initiative will identify and create ways to enhance the natural, human and technological capital in rural areas by bringing together interdisciplinary research teams to conduct community engaged, solution-oriented research on behalf of rural Oklahoma. The resulting solutions are likely to have global applicability.

Episode 6 comes from the 2019 Tulsa State Fair, where host Ron Hays talks first with Roy Lee Lindsey of oKPork about making sure that the animals brought to the fair and other public events are healthy and disease free- followed by a conversation with one of the high achievers at the 2019 Show- the owner of the Grand Champion Market Hog- Pace MIttelstaedt, a Senior from Amber Pocasset FFA.

Episode Five of the Road to Rural Prosperity features host Ron Hays talking with Blayne Arthur, Oklahoma Secretary of Ag. The Secretary talks about her journey to the office of the Secretary within the Kevin Stitt Administration and the opportunities that are ahead for Rural Oklahoma and those that are a part of Agriculture that live and work in Rural Oklahoma.

The Executive Chairman of BancFirst, David Rainbolt, sat down with hosts Ron Hays and Tyler Norvell to talk about Oklahoma's Economy, including the economic health of Rural Oklahoma as well as a closer look at the Step Up Campaign that Rainbolt was a key player in in 2018. Rainbolt also offers his vision of where Oklahoma has the potential to go in the years ahead. Today's Podcast is powered by the Oklahoma Public School Resource Center and the Petroleum Alliance of Oklahoma.

Ron Hays talks with Teresa Rose Crook of the Communities Foundation of Oklahoma about efforts to make rural Oklahoma a Top Ten Place to live and work as Oklahomans help one another through charitable giving.

In the second episode of the Podcast series, the Road to Rural Prosperity, host Ron Hays talks with Brent Kisling of the Oklahoma Department of Commerce about how the state of Oklahoma is working to become Top Ten in every measure possible.

This podcast looks at the efforts by Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt to establish a culture in Oklahoma to become Top Ten in all ways. Ron Hays talks with the Governor about his drive to become Governor- and the first eight months in office- and what's ahead.