The People of Oklahoma Oil & Natural Gas Begin a New Era of Leadership at the OERB

Heather Powell serves as Chairman and Dara McBee named Executive Director as the OERB builds on more than three decades of industry-led investment in Oklahoma

The Oklahoma Energy Resources Board (OERB), voluntarily funded by the people of Oklahoma Oil & Natural Gas, is entering its next era of leadership with Heather Powell serving as Chairman of the Board of Directors and Dara McBee joining the organization as Executive Director.

The leadership transition marks a renewed focus on how the OERB can build on its longstanding success, strengthen the value it delivers to the industry that funds it and expand its impact across Oklahoma. The next chapter will preserve the programs and principles that have made the OERB a national model while taking a fresh look at where the organization can make an even greater difference.

Founded in 1993, the OERB was the first organization of its kind and has become the national gold standard for voluntarily supported oil and natural gas programs. Through the voluntary investment of Oklahoma oil and natural gas producers and royalty owners, the OERB has restored historic well sites, invested in classrooms and students across the state, strengthened energy education and helped Oklahomans better understand the people and industry powering their state.

Powell, President and CEO of Ventana Exploration and Production LLC, brings more than two decades of oil and natural gas industry experience to the Chairman role. She leads Ventana’s acquisition efforts and previously held leadership responsibilities across land, business development and regulatory affairs at RKI Exploration and Production before its merger with WPX Energy. She began her career at Chesapeake Energy.

“For more than 30 years, Oklahoma’s oil and natural gas industry has voluntarily invested in something larger than itself: our land, our schools, our communities and our state’s future,” Powell said. “The OERB has an extraordinary legacy, but we are not interested in standing still. We have an opportunity to build on what works, take a fresh look at where we can deliver even greater value and ensure the OERB remains a model for what industry leadership and stewardship can accomplish.”

McBee joins the OERB from the Hamm Institute for American Energy at Oklahoma State University, where she led external affairs, strategic partnerships and initiatives focused on strengthening American energy leadership. Her work brought together leaders across energy, technology and other sectors around major issues shaping the nation’s energy future, including the growing energy demands of artificial intelligence.

She brings more than 15 years of experience in Oklahoma’s energy sector, including more than a decade at the OERB, where she helped lead statewide communications, public engagement and industry initiatives.

“The OERB is one of Oklahoma’s great success stories because the people of this industry chose to create it, fund it and continue investing in it year after year,” McBee said. “That foundation gives us an incredible opportunity. Our responsibility now is to honor what has made the OERB successful while asking where this organization can have even greater impact for Oklahoma over the next 30 years.”

“Both Heather and Dara bring the experience, perspective and commitment this organization needs for its next chapter,” said OERB Board Member, Greg Shepherd. “Heather understands this industry from the ground up and has a clear vision for the OERB’s future. Dara knows the organization and the people behind it, and returns with a broader perspective on the opportunities ahead. Together, they are well positioned to build on the OERB’s legacy and make an already successful organization even stronger.”

Under Powell and McBee’s leadership, the OERB will remain firmly committed to environmental restoration, education and public awareness while identifying opportunities to strengthen its programs, partnerships and statewide impact.

The next chapter of the OERB will be defined not simply by preserving its legacy, but by increasing the value it delivers to Oklahoma and the industry that created it. That work will include a renewed focus on demonstrating the value of the industry’s voluntary investment, strengthening engagement with the producers and royalty owners who fund the OERB, and ensuring the organization continues to evolve alongside Oklahoma and its oil and natural gas industry.

“We want every dollar invested in the OERB to matter,” McBee said. “That means measuring our impact, responding to the needs of our state and our industry, and making sure Oklahomans understand not only what oil and natural gas make possible, but who makes it possible. These are Oklahoma companies, employees, producers and royalty owners investing directly back into the state they call home.”

The OERB is governed by a 21-member board representing Oklahoma’s oil and natural gas industry and is funded through a voluntary one-tenth of one percent assessment on oil and natural gas production. The program has become a national model for industry-led environmental stewardship, education and public engagement.

Powell said the next chapter will remain grounded in the principle that has sustained the OERB since its creation: the people of Oklahoma Oil & Natural Gas investing in Oklahoma.

“We have a strong organization, an industry that believes in giving back and a state with enormous opportunity ahead of it,” Powell said. “Our job is to put those strengths to work and make the next chapter of the OERB every bit as consequential as the first.”

About the Oklahoma Energy Resources Board

The Oklahoma Energy Resources Board is voluntarily funded by Oklahoma oil and natural gas producers and royalty owners to improve the state through environmental restoration, education and public awareness. Since 1993, the people of Oklahoma Oil & Natural Gas have invested in communities across the state while establishing the OERB as a national model for industry-led stewardship. For more information, visit OERB.com.