Leadership Rochester and how to train the next generation of leaders

By Evan Dawson,

Published January 7, 2025 at 2:34 PM EST

Five smiling people wearing headphones sit around a table in a radio talk studio: A woman front left has braided red hair in a ponytail and is wearing a black headband, gold hoop earrings, a black and white dress, and a black blazer; a woman front center has braided black hair in a bun and is wearing glasses, a white collared shirt under an orange vest, tan pants, and brown boots; a woman back left has grey shoulder-length hair and is wearing glasses and a grey sweater; a woman back center has long braided black hair and is wearing gold earrings, a maroon top, and black blazer; a man at right has short dark hair and is wearing glasses, a blue button-down shirt and a purple floral tie. — (foreground) Natasha House, Ashley Cross, (background) Molly McGowan, and Camille Simmons on Connections with Evan Dawson" on Tuesday, January 7, 2025

A smiling man with short dark hair wearing a blue button-down shirt and a grey blazer. He is holding a pair of eyeglasses. The word "Connections" appears on the left side of the photo in vertical letters.

The Rochester City School Board has elected a new president. Commissioner Camille Simmons takes over the leadership position from Cynthia Elliott.

As it happens, we had already planned a conversation with Simmons about an upcoming leadership symposium. She talks about how she views her new position as board president, and she joins a panel to discuss how the symposium is designed to teach the next generation of Rochester leaders.

Our guests are all graduates of Leadership Rochester:

Camille Simmons, president of the Rochester City School Board and executive director of Leadership Rochester
Ashley Cross, Ed.D., executive director of HOPE585
Molly McGowan, co-director of executive education at RIT
Natasha House, assistant director for diversity initiatives for career services at RIT