Congratulations to our newest Fellows!
Since 2005, our Health Leadership Fellows program has been building and strengthening a network of collaborative leaders across health-related organizations in western and central New York. The goal is to enhance regional capacity to address community health issues.
On Monday, November 17, 2025, members of Cohort 11 of the program officially graduated. The ceremony, held in the Memorial Art Gallery auditorium in Rochester, NY, celebrated 42 professionals from a variety of health care and community-based organizations in western and central New York. Cohort 11 is the largest and most diverse cohort in the history of the 20-year program.
“Two decades ago, our founding trustees developed the Health Leadership Fellows program because they knew that a strong, collaborative network of leaders would be instrumental in tackling health care challenges and improving the lives of people in our region,” said Nora Suric, PhD, President of the Health Foundation for Western & Central New York. “We congratulate and celebrate this year’s graduates. They understand that collective strength comes from working together. And we know that the community partnerships they will continue to build will have an impact every day.”
2025 Health Leadership Fellows
Tania Anderson, Bousquet Holstein PLLC
Melissa Archer, SENSES Medical Wellness
Michael Austin, Universal Primary Care
Larissa Bachman, Pinnacle Community Services
Ian Barrett, Kaleida Health
Andrea Blowers, Herkimer County Public Health
Lisa Booz, Ronald McDonald House Charities of Western New York
Quonitra Bullock, SUNY Upstate Medical University
Jessie Butts, Catholic Charities of Onondaga County
Molly Carr, Jewish Family Services
Ashley Conti, Healthy Community Alliance
Jackie Cooper, Seven Valleys Health Coalition
Rahsaan DeLain, Evergreen Health
Noel De La Rosa, Journey’s End Refugee Services
Jessica DesRosiers, Alzheimer’s Association of Central New York
Aly Evans, Foodnet Meals on Wheels
Amanda Gesing, YWCA Jamestown
Merlyn Hammer
Brandi Haynes, Community Action Organization of Western New York
Lindsay Herndon, Cazenovia Recovery Systems
Raziya Hill, Every Bottom Covered
Marianne Hoover, Ovarian Cancer Project
Heather Hudson, Food Bank of Central New York
Renee Hungerford, Community Action Organization of Orleans and Genesee Counties
Minnie James, Erie County Department of Social Services
Lisa Johnson, Compeer Buffalo
Rachel Johnson, Half Hood Half Holistic
Sunny Jones, Onondaga County Health Department, Syracuse Healthy Start
Nekia Kemp, Police Athletic League of Buffalo
Karen Kinter, Oak Orchard Health
Jill Mattson
Summer Merrick, Early Childhood Alliance, Help Me Grow Onondaga
C. Michael Osborne, Catholic Health System
Christine Paul, Madison County Rural Health Council
Saramona Przybyla, University at Buffalo School of Health and Public Health Professions
Daphne Ross, Say Yes Buffalo
Kate Shanks-Booth, Tompkins County Youth Services Department
Jose Soto, Ardent Solutions
DeWan Stroud, BestSelf Behavioral Health
Brittany Tranello, Erie Niagara Area Health Education Center
Kelly Marie Wofford, Erie County Department of Health
Amanda Zwirecki, Endeavor Health Services
Team Projects
The rigorous, 18-month program culminates in a group capstone assignment, consisting of both a paper and a presentation at the graduation ceremony. Fellows team up and work on an inter-organizational project focused on solving a specific health-related problem to improve community outcomes. Teams are encouraged to anticipate system-based limitations and leverage existing resources when developing their solutions.
Here are the seven team projects* for Cohort 11:
The 10-3-3 Brain Challenge (Team Keeley; Joanne Haefner, advisor)
A project to highlight the early signs and symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease and dementia, while providing proactive strategies for maintaining cognitive function.
The Advocacy Bridge: Connecting Families to Policy, Power, and Health (Team Dani; Brittany Perez, advisor)
A training initiative to inspire 18- to 29-year-olds to advocate for ways to improve quality of life by reinforcing the connection between civic participation and community health outcomes.
Care Essentials for All (Team Rebecca; Tammy Marshall, advisor)
An initiative to increase access to essential personal care products for older children and adults on a low income and living with incontinence in Cortland, Onondaga, and Tompkins counties.
Fresh Start (Team Nate; Tanya Staples, advisor)
An initiative to address a critical yet often overlooked social determinant of health: access to hygiene and personal care resources. The focus was on youth from low-income households in Orleans County.
Golden Grooves: Promoting Dance for Older Adults (Team Coach Beard; Tammy Marshall, advisor)
A community-based initiative using movement and dance to improve the mental, physical, and emotional health of adults ages 60 and older.
Men’s Mental Health (Team Sam; Chandra Redfern, advisor)
A project to reduce the stigma of men’s mental health challenges through a targeted survey and informational resources for male members of the western New York community.
What’s Lead Got to Do With It (Team Roy Kent; Tracy Sawicki, advisor)
A project to educate professionals who work with children ages three to eight in the communities of Allegany, Cattaraugus, Chautauqua, and Erie counties about the signs and symptoms of lead exposure and poisoning.
We thank the panel of experts who offered feedback on the presentations:
Bram B. Briggance, PhD – Founder and Principal of Briggance Consulting
JaNay Queen Nazaire, PhD – Co-founder and CEO of BLK GRVTY
Diane Oyler, PhD – Executive Vice President of the Health Foundation for Western & Central New York
Cohort 11 Fellows are now officially members of the Fellows Action Network (FAN), a forum that empowers Fellows to work collaboratively on critical health-related issues on behalf of western and central New York communities.
Cohort 11’s graduation marks a significant transition in leadership of the Fellows program as well. Nancy Blaschak, former Executive Director of the Greater Buffalo Chapter of the American Red Cross and a Cohort 3 Fellow, directed the program from 2015 to 2025. At the end of this year, she officially passed the baton to two new co-directors: Tracy Sawicki, Executive Director of the Peter and Elizabeth Tower Foundation and a Cohort 2 Fellow, and Dr. Marie Cannon, President & CEO of the Community Action Organization of Western New York and a Cohort 5 Fellow. We thank Nancy for her decade of dedication and passion, and we’re excited to see the program continue to flourish under the direction of Tracy and Marie!
Learn more about the Health Leadership Fellows program here.
*Team names were based on characters from the TV show Ted Lasso.
