Thirty leaders from health and human services organizations throughout western and central New York graduated from the Health Leadership Fellows program at a ceremony held at The Memorial Art Gallery in Rochester, NY on April 29, 2019.
Launched in 2005, the goal of the Health Leadership Fellows program is to produce a network of diverse, highly-skilled leaders who learn to lead collaboratively from both within and outside of their organizations and will become advocates for improved health for older adults and children impacted by poverty.
The 18-month program provided the fellows with opportunities to participate in sessions on personal leadership, leading change, results based leadership and accountability and the leader as a communicator. In addition to the four residential retreats, each fellow met monthly to complete intercession work aligned with the theme of each residential session, and to develop a collaborative inter-organizational project in a small team setting.
Graduates in the eighth class of Health Leadership Fellows include:
From central New York:
Katie Bronson, Home Headquarters
Patricia Carey, Upstate Cerebral Palsy
Bridget Dolbear, Oswego County Opportunities
Jodi Martin Oswego, County Health Department
Brandiss Pearson, St. Joseph’s Health College of Nursing / Syracuse Community Health Center
Rebecca Shultz, Onondaga County Health Department
Manika Suryadevara, SUNY Upstate Medical University
Lauren Wetterhahn, Central New York Care Collaborative
From Western New York:
Betsy Behrend, Say Yes Buffalo
Denise Bothwell, Elderwood at Lancaster
Renee Cadzow, D’Youville College – Center for Research on Physical Activity, Sport, & Health
Aaron Carlson, The Dale Association
Judette Dahleiden, Catholic Charities of Buffalo
Gary Damon, Jr., Center for Employment Opportunities
Joseph DiStasio, Lake Shore Behavioral Health
Concetta Ferguson, People Inc.
Beth Gosch, The WNY Foundation
Marc Howe, Neighborhood Health Center
Pamela Kefi, Deaf Access Services
Jane Mogavero, Patrick P. Lee Foundation
Jessie Mossop, Jericho Road Community Health Center
Rebecca Newberry, Clean Air Coalition
Karen Nicolson, Center for Elder Law and Justice
Brittany Perez, Center for Inclusive Design and Environmental Access (IDeA)
Karen Pusateri
Karen Rybicki, Erie County Dept. of Social Services
Karl Shallowhorn, Community Health Center of Buffalo
Constantina Spiropoulos, Main Pediatrics
Joyelle Tedeschi, Catholic Charities of Buffalo
Saralin Tiedeman, Millennium Collaborative Care
Since 2005, the Health Foundation has graduated 208 health leadership fellows from its program. Graduates of the program continue their work as members of the Fellows Action Network, where they work collaboratively to improve care for vulnerable older adults and children in poverty, as well as collectively tackle other critical health issues facing western and central New York.
A ninth cohort of the Health Leadership Fellows is currently in progress. For more information, email info@hfwcny.org. For more information, email info@hfwcny.org.
