Marilyn Vann graduated with distinction from the University of Oklahoma, receiving a Bachelor of Science in engineering. She worked as a production engineer in the petroleum industry for two years after her graduation. As a production engineer, Marilyn prepared spill prevention plans for EPA compliance as part of her duties. Marilyn's duties required familiarization with Oklahoma regulatory laws regarding drilling, equipment installation, and plugging of water wells, oil wells and gas wells, and salt water disposal wells.
Subsequently, Marilyn worked for the United States Treasury Department as a General Engineer team leader, retiring after 32 years of government service in 2014. As part of her duties, Marilyn was required to review and analyze EPA laws and regulations including the Clean Air Act regulations requiring revision of refinery process units in order to make low sulfur diesel and low sulfur gasoline (and modifications of construction equipment to lower sulfur) as well as emission control equipment to meet EPA guidelines for storage tanks and Clean Water Act regulations. Marilyn's duties as a team leader included reviewing environmental impact statements associated with design of infrastructure including pipelines, reviewing consent agreements between public companies and the US Department of Justice and the EPA-necessary to end litigation on issues involving violation of EPA law – agreements which sometimes required restitution (not necessarily by cash payments) to Federal recognized tribes. As a Federal government employee, Marilyn completed several appraisals of real estate including both land, apartment buildings, and commercial buildings over her career requiring her to become familiar with city and county building codes and processes and permits necessarily to obtain certificates of occupancy.
Marilyn also had several temporary manager positions, and took several classes thru the government for management and team leadership, expert witness training, accounting, legal research training, and oil and gas and real estate appraisal training. For her agency, Marilyn worked on task forces to write and update training materials, and trained engineers new to her agency as a coach.
From time to time, Marilyn interacted with employees of the EPA, Texas Railroad Commission, Oklahoma Corporation Commission, and Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality on various projects. Marilyn's duties included legal research, report writing, plant tours (manufacturing plants, refineries, automotive plants, oilfield instillations), and meetings with professionals of various disciplines including engineers, appraisers, attorneys, and accountants.
From time to time, Marilyn presented at engineering, accounting, legal conferences, and seminars on Treasury Department issues including those with environmental aspects. Marilyn’s education and career as an engineering team leader emphasized, teamwork, research, planning, goal setting, and the ability to work with persons of all races, backgrounds, and nationalities.
As a real estate investor and landlord for more than 20 years, Marilyn is familiar with HUD requirements (including Section 8) regarding evaluation, and remediation of Lead Based Paint. Marilyn is a member of the Oklahoma City Real Estate Investors Association and has taken courses to analyze issues which lower property value including those associated with development of rural land.
