Keynote SpeakerMick Cornett

Mick Cornett is a businessman and former four-term mayor of Oklahoma City. In 2018, he was named to Fortune magazine’s list of The 50 Greatest Leaders in the World.

In 2024, he was named the Canizaro/Klingbeil Chair for Urban Development by the Urban Land Institute. Cornett spent 20 years as a television sportscaster, news anchor, and sports play-by-play broadcaster. Following the Oklahoma City bombing in 1995, he shifted his focus to public service and later served as a full-time college professor before winning a seat on the Oklahoma City Council in 2001.

In 2004, he won the citywide election for mayor, beginning a series of record-setting political victories. His re-election percentage of 87% in 2006 remains the highest in city history. During his tenure, Oklahoma City experienced an economic renaissance that continues today. He based his leadership philosophy on “creating a city where highly educated young people will choose to live.”

In January 2012, he was First Lady Michelle Obama’s personal guest at the State of the Union Address in Washington, D.C. Cornett is best known for helping bring an NBA franchise to Oklahoma City and for addressing the city’s health and wellness challenges. His leadership in passing the transformational MAPS 3 initiative spurred enormous private investment into the city. More than 80,000 new jobs were created in Oklahoma City during his tenure.

Newsweek named him one of The 5 Most Innovative Mayors in America. The European-based World Mayor Organization ranked him the second-best mayor in the world, and Governing magazine recognized him as a Public Official of the Year. He also served as president of the United States Conference of Mayors from 2016 to 2017. In 2018, he chose not to seek a fifth term as mayor.

Mick Cornett holds a journalism degree from the University of Oklahoma and an MBA from New York University.