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Connections

Community leaders address weekend violence in Rochester

Downtown Rochester skyline.
Max Schulte
/
WXXI News

12:00: Community leaders address weekend violence in Rochester

1:00: 'Connections Summer Sessions:' Local students team up with NASA astronauts

What should local leaders do to prevent violence in the community? A 14-year-old girl and a 35-year-old woman were killed last weekend in two separate incidents. In both cases, authorities say shots were fired into large groups of people. We talk with community leaders about the tragedies and what it will take to stop future violence. In studio:

  • Beatriz LeBron, executive director of the Father Tracy Advocacy Center
  • Miguel Meléndez Jr., president of Rochester City Council and member of the Northeast Safety Committee
  • Jerome Ward, CEO and owner of Chisel Collective LLC 

Then in our second hour, "Connections Summer Sessions" continues with special rebroadcasts about how kids see a changing world. In this episode, we're joined by two local high school students who traveled to Houston, where they met with NASA astronauts. Sloane Keller and Luke Schulte are students at Fairport High School who participated in the NASA HUNCH program. The initiative pairs NASA mentors with students who research solutions to real-world problems faced by NASA. This hour, we talk with the students and their mentors about their work on a lunar sample container, their trip to Texas, meeting the Artemis II crew, and more. Our guests:

  • Sloane Keller, sophomore at Fairport High School and participant in the NASA HUNCH program
  • Luke Schulte, junior at Fairport High School and participant in the NASA HUNCH program
  • Donna Himmelberg, chemistry teacher and NASA advisor at Fairport High School
  • Florence Gold, project manager for NASA HUNCH Academy
  • Gene Gordon, former NASA HUNCH mentor and retired Fairport Central School District teacher

"Connections" is livestreamed each day on the WXXI News YouTube channel. Watch here.

Connections
Evan Dawson is the host of "Connections with Evan Dawson." He joined WXXI in January 2014 after working at 13WHAM-TV, where he served as morning news anchor. He was hired as a reporter for 13WHAM-TV in 2003 before being promoted to anchor in 2007.
Megan Mack is the executive producer of "Connections with Evan Dawson" and live/televised engagement programming.

Connections with Evan Dawson

Connections is our daily, live talk show. It airs live weekdays, noon-2 p.m., and re-airs at 9 and 10 p.m. You can also find us wherever you find your podcasts.

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