Jeni Dolan
Executive Director
Jeni is the leader of our small but mighty team. She grew up between Hawaii and California and attended The University of Tulsa, where she pursued a degree in Deaf Education. Jeni first began working with Operation Aware after rejoining the workforce as a mother and served as a Prevention Educator for 11 years before taking on the role of Executive Director.
Known for her funny stories and outgoing personality, Jeni loves to meet new people and present to all audiences. She is inspired by watching the program in action and seeing its significant impact on youth.
When she is not overseeing operations, Jeni enjoys taking photos, spending time with her family, and serving with the Broken Arrow Schools Foundation, BA Basketball Booster Club, and Oklahoma Performing Arts.
Jeni hopes to be remembered as someone who cares about people, works hard to do things well, and supports others in achieving their goals.
Mackenzie Staples
Director of Programs
Mackenzie is the mastermind behind the scenes of our school operations, making sure we reach over 10,000 Tulsa-area students each year. A Tulsa transplant from Dallas, Texas, Mackenzie’s positivity and charm make her a natural communicator and lover of education. When she has a break from the busy tasks of programming, she serves on the PTA and Teacher Appreciation Committee for her children’s school.
Mackenzie loves to spend weekends with family and friends, exploring fun community events, traveling, and attending her kids’ soccer games and music events. At any given time, she can also be found organizing and planning her next project, which can range from renovating home decor to perfecting gift ideas. Recently, she has returned to her original love of creating and all things art and is loving the creative outlet it provides.
Mackenzie would like to be remembered for making others feel loved, respected, and heard.
Apryl leggett
Community relations manager
Apryl grew up in Mississippi and moved to Oklahoma in 2020, and is a proud alumnus of The University of Southern Mississippi, The University of West Alabama, and now Unity College. She has worked in several different industries and has loved working in nonprofits.
She oversees the events and grants for the organization. Her goal is to ensure Operation Aware can continue to impact students all over Oklahoma.
She gets excited about learning, which is demonstrated by the number of degrees she has, marine animals, and trying new adventures. She also has a vast amount of knowledge about random pop culture. She once wanted to be a marine biologist so she could swim with sharks and dolphins. In addition, she loves getting out in the community and being around others.
Apryl loves being around family and friends, concerts, eating, reading, and coloring. Her friends call her the human jukebox because she always sings the songs that play everywhere she goes.
Tina Zympas
Tina was born in Greece and grew up in New York City. Her first profession took place in the aviation industry. She was in the industry for many years and explored places all around the world. While exploring and travelling Tina discovered yoga in one of her visits to India and after a few classes she was hooked. As a result, she has been practicing yoga for the last 25 years.
After settling down she moved and lived in Wyoming for 15 years with her husband and kids. This is where she found her passion for teaching. Because her two boys were in school and she needed a job around their schedule, she decided to become a Substitute Teacher. She was a dedicated and enthusiastic Substitute Teacher with a passion for education and a commitment to creating a positive and fun learning environment. She continued to substitute and teach, even after moving to Tulsa in 2020.
Eli Ghere
Eli was born and raised in Oklahoma; he has had many different jobs from dog trainer to stagehand. However, he found a love for teaching when he became a substitute teacher and that eventually led to his position on the operation aware team.
Eli always tries to enjoy life, Eli enjoys spending time with friends and family, trying on Hawaiian shirts to see what he can add to his collection, spending time learning fun animal facts and learning more about life on earth.
You can always find Eli in his hammock sipping on an Arnold Palmer. Eli hopes to inspire the next generation into making the right choices so we can have a better future together.
