memberprofiles

Malik Evans is a Vice President with M&T Bank. He manages has been with M&T since 2002. The University of Rochester graduate believes that financial literacy and economic empowerment, in concert with a quality education, are key to improving the lives of citizens in the community. Mr. Evans regularly presents financial literacy seminars that focus on money management, business development and basic banking. Business development is a regular part of Mr. Evans’ job, and he enjoys assisting current and new businesses in securing financing for their operations. The Rochester resident believes bankers are a vital part of the community. “Bankers provide the catalyst for making dreams come true -- from investing in the future to buying a home to starting a business.”

A passionate believer in the power of education, Mr. Evans ran for and became the youngest member ever elected to the Rochester Board of Education in 2003. He currently serves as Vice President. Mr. Evans holds a political science degree from the University of Rochester. He serves on the boards of several organizations, including the Monroe County Fair and Recreation Association, the University of Rochester Trustee Alumni Council, the Catholic Family Center Homeless and Housing Panel, and the Rochester Area Community Foundation Board of Directors where he serves on the Distributions Committee. Mr. Evans was a Legislative Aide to then-City Council Member Wade S. Norwood, and he was a member of former Rochester Mayor Bill Johnson’s Commission on Race and Ethnicity.

Mr. Evans’ dedication to community service began while he was a student at Wilson Magnet High School. He served on the New York State Youth Advisory Council and was a founder of the City/County Youth Council, which he chaired for five years. The Council developed more than 20 workshops around leadership development and team building for youth, including the annual “Steppin’ Up To Solutions” youth conference, which has spread to communities across the country.

“The importance of community service cannot be over-emphasized. It was a lesson I learned at a young age and it is a personal ethic I continue to embrace,” Mr. Evans said.

Van Henri White
Board Vice President

18 Grove Place
Rochester, NY 14605
271-6780

Van.white@thelegalbrief.com

Board Liaison to:
Franklin Campus
Monroe High School
Schools 19, 36, 41, 50, 54, 57

Term Expires
December 2009

In 1990, Van White returned to his hometown (he attended Number 50 and 22 Schools as a child) to work as a Monroe County Assistant District Attorney. In 1994, Van left the District Attorney's Office to serve as Mayor William A. Johnson’s Special Counsel on Crime and Violence Initiatives. In his role as the City's “Crime Czar,” White did everything from close down drug houses to start original youth violence prevention and intervention programming like Late Night Basketball, Teen Court and Pathways to Peace. Long after Van left City Hall, these groundbreaking programs continue to positively impact area school children.

After leaving City Hall, Mr. White opened up his own private law firm where he began specializing in cases involving school safety issues -- the most significant of which was Givens v. RCSD. That case (involving the only student killed on City School District property) redefined the legal responsibilities of school districts when it comes to school safety.

In 2006, believing that he could have a greater impact on improving school safety, by working from “within the system”, Van ran a successful campaign for a vacant seat on the City of Rochester School Board. Since being sworn in January 2007, Van has already become an outspoken advocate for improving school safety, graduation rates, decreasing truancy rates, and attacking the problem of lead poisoning -- which is proven to have a detrimental and devastating effect on the academic performance of urban children.

Mr. White is the father of a recent District graduate and the parent to another child who is currently enrolled in a District school.

Thomas Brennan

32 Lake View Park

Rochester, NY 14613

254-8953

TBrennan1957@aol.com

Board Liaison to:

Edison Campus
Marshall High School
Schools 7, 15, 23, 34, 35, 39

Term Expires
December 2009

Tom Brennan, 50, makes local history of sorts by serving on his third elected Rochester area school board. Prior to being elected to the city school board in 2005, Tom was twice elected to serve on the Hilton school board (1983-1987) and board colleagues across western Monroe County elected him to the BOCES II board (1990-1994). He helped guide both districts through periods of landmark reform.

A fourth-generation Rochesterian, Tom returned to Rochester in 1995, and was publisher of the Tenth Ward Courier community newspaper in the late 1990s. He has run his own marketing and consulting service for business and public affairs clients since 1982.

Tom held a variety of journalism and public relations jobs in the Washington, D.C. area. Work as a weekly newspaper reporter garnered him an award from Newspaper Institute. He published more than 100 articles before he was 21 years old (freelance credits include assignments from The Saturday Evening Post and The American School Board Journal). Tom did speechwriting for the late presidential candidate Paul Tsongas (when he was a senator). He is a certified adult literacy tutor and trained crisis counselor. He has studied History and Religion at Radford College and Georgetown University.

Melisza Campos

131 W. Broad Street

Rochester, NY 14607

262-8525

meliszacampos@hotmail.com

Liaison to:
East High School
Family Learning Center
Schools 1, 5, 9, 12, 17, 22

Term Expires
December 2011

Melisza Campos is Vice President of Operations and Instruction of the Dale Carnegie Rochester office. She is a multi-course certified Dale Carnegie trainer. In Melisza's current position, she is focused on training, corporate solutions and operational management. Dale Carnegie partners with organizations to increase performance by designing solutions to empower their people with skills and attitudes to change behavior. Melisza has been an award winning Training Consultant and trainer for Dale Carnegie for more than four years. Melisza has been an organizational entrepreneur in the sense that she has created and is now heading a global corporate initiative to retain young professionals in the Dale Carnegie network. She is a graduate of the State University of New York at Geneseo.

Melisza believes she serves as a strong voice for the Latino community as well as the Rochester community. She ran a victorious campaign in 2007. Her goal is to build consensus on common goals for the district, focusing on student achievement, school safety and resource allocation. She has a passion for the youth of the community and is determined to ensure they are provided a great education. Ms. Campos serves as chair of the Community and Intergovernmental Relations committee and is part of the Quality Assurance and Board Governance committees.

In Melisza's spare time, she serves as a board member for the Bivona Child Advocacy Center, is a member of Latinas Unidas and volunteers for the Rochester Hispanic Youth Baseball League and Ibero American Action League. She is a founder of Latin American Democratic Organization (LADO), which is designed to get young Latinos involved in the political realm and in the community. Melisza was also the youngest delegate to represent New York State in the 2000 convention in Los Angeles. She is honored to be the youngest female to be elected to the Rochester City Schools Board of Education.

She has a passion for the City of Rochester and is enthused to take an active role in the community. Melisza and her husband David live in Rochester and are committed to this community.

Cynthia Elliott

131 W. Broad St.

Rochester, NY 14514

celliott1225@yahoo.com

Board Liaison to:

Charlotte High School

School Without Walls Commencement & Foundation Academies

Nathaniel Rochester

Young Mothers & Interim Health Academy

Schools 2, 14, 58

Term Expires
December 2009

Cynthia Elliott has a passion for Rochester’s children and families who are economically and socially disadvantaged. She is committed to this population attaining self-sufficiency.

Cynthia has spent over 30 years as a community activist in the Rochester community. She began her career at the age of 19 at the FIGHT organization where she participated in voter registration drives, political campaigns, and advocacy efforts. While attending college Cynthia worked part time as an Educational Consultant in the Youth Department at Lewis Street Center connecting youth to educational and career opportunities. Cynthia also served on its Board of Directors at the age of 20. Her last position at Lewis Street was Director of Day Care where she formalized academic programming for children between the ages of 18 months to 12 years old.

Currently, Cynthia is the Assistant to the Executive Director at Baden Street Settlement where she provides leadership to youth and educational programming. Cynthia is also responsible for grant writing, program evaluation and reporting. Lastly, Cynthia provides staff support to Baden’s Board of Directors and committees, the board’s capital campaign and represents the Executive Director in the community.

Cynthia graduated Monroe Community College with an Associates Degree in Liberal Arts, a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Management from St. John Fisher College, a Master’s Degree in Public Administration from SUNY Brockport, a Master of Arts in Human and Organizational Systems from Fielding Graduate University and is currently working on a Ph.D in Human and Organizational Systems at the same institution.

Cynthia is a born again Christian who enjoys reading, religious, philosophical and political argument as well as music. Cynthia is single and has a number of nieces and nephews who she adores.

Original Written January 10, 2006; Revised: May 29, 2007

Willa Powell

395 Canterbury Road

Rochester, NY 14607

442-8360

wpowell@rochester.rr.com

Liaison to:
School of the Arts
Jefferson High School
Schools 6, 16, 29, 33, 44, 52
Florence Brown Pre-K Center

Term Expires
December 2011

Willa Powell was first elected to the Board of Education in 1997 and served a four-year term. As a Board member, she advanced policies strengthening parent involvement in the District and ensuring equitable school choice for all parents and students. She has long been an advocate for strong leadership in Rochester schools, accountability for performance, and support for student achievement.

Mrs. Powell is a contract computer programmer. She is also a retired Captain and Personnel Officer with the United States Army Reserves, which she joined in 1983. She earned her bachelor’s degree in accounting from Rochester Institute of Technology.

She and her husband, Donald, have three daughters: Anna, Margaret, and Abigail, and one son, Alexander (Benjamin Donald, born 2004). Anna attended NRCS and School of the Arts; she is now a student at RIT. Margaret now attends School of the Arts and Abigail attends School 23.

Commissioner Powell is a PTO member at School 23 and School of the Arts, and has served as a PTSA officer at NRCS and as a representative to the District Parent Council. She is a member of Metro-Justice and the International Cesarean Awareness Network, and a board member of the national organization Citizens for Midwifery. She has also served as an elder at Westminster Presbyterian Church.

Allen Williams

131 W. Broad Street

Rochester, NY 14607

262-8525

Liaison to:
Dr. Freddie Thomas High School
Native American Resource Center
Northeast and Northwest College Preparatory High Schools at Douglass Campus
Schools 25, 28, 30, 46, 46

Term Expires
December 2011

Allen Williams is an advisor in the Wealth Management Group at TIAA-CREF. TIAA-CREF is a financial services company that manages the pensions and investments for academic, medical, cultural and research institutions throughout the United States.

Allen was elected to the Board in 2007. He ran on a platform of raising student achievement, increasing parental involvement and providing financial oversight of the District's finances. His goal is to provide the financial and fiscal oversight to ensure that the district becomes a good steward of the public's funds. Allen also wants to align the District's spending with the dual goals of raising student achievement and closing the achievement gap. Allen brings to the Board nearly 30 years of financial, accounting, and strategic planning experience. He has previously worked at JP Morgan & Co., the United States International Trade Commission and the Xerox Corporation.

In addition to serving on the Rochester City School District Board of Education, Allen also serves on the Board of the Landmark Society of Western New York, the ARC of Monroe County and the Urban League of Rochester Economic Development Corporation. As a result of serving on these and other boards Allen has gained valuable experience and learned the importance of developing sound policies to guide the strategic vision of an organization.

He is married to Teresa D. Johnson. They have two sons, both of whom attend Rochester City Schools.

Allen received his BA in Economics from the University of California Irvine and his MBA in Finance from the University of Chicago Graduate School of Business.