7th Annual INTERRUPT RACISM™ Summit

Born in 1934 in Albion, Michigan, Dr. Ruth Elaine Holland Scott learned early the value of hard work, determination, and perseverance. Growing up, she faced challenges, but she never allowed them to stand in her way. At just 13 years old, Ruth began working and saving money for college. During her senior year of high school, she earned a scholarship through a statewide debate team competition, opening the door to an education at Albion College.

She graduated from Albion College in 1956, cum laude, and began her career as a junior high school teacher in Cleveland, Ohio. It was there that she met her husband, Bill, also an educator and music teacher. Their shared commitment to education brought them to Rochester in 1969, where Dr. Scott joined the Rochester City School District, eventually serving as Dean of Women at Madison High School. Her commitment to education soon expanded into community leadership. She became head of the 19th Ward Community Association, and her volunteer work on Jimmy Carter’s presidential campaign further fueled her passion for public service and politics.

In 1977, Dr. Scott made history as the first African American woman elected to the Rochester City Council. In 1986, she made history again, becoming the first Black president of the City Council. But public service did not end with her retirement from elected office. In 1991, she founded Scott Associates Consulting, Inc., providing consulting services in organizational effectiveness and leadership coaching.

In 2014, Dr. Scott published her memoir, The Circles God Draws. And at 92 years young, she is still writing, still contributing, and still making a difference.

Dr. Scott’s life is a testament to what it means to lead with purpose, serve with commitment, and never stop making an impact.

Kerry Gant is an educator, school administrator, restorative justice practitioner, and community advocate with more than 25 years of experience supporting young people and families. Throughout her career, she has worked to create educational spaces where young people feel seen, valued, and supported while still being held to high expectations. Her work is grounded in restorative practices, racial equity, and the belief that accountability should create opportunities for reflection, repair, and growth. 

Kerry also serves on the Board of Directors for the Center for Community Alternatives, where she advocates alongside people and families impacted by incarceration. Her broader community work includes mentoring young people and helping bring the Alternatives to Violence Project (AVP) into educational settings, giving youth practical tools to navigate conflict, strengthen relationships, and become leaders within their communities. She has also created opportunities for youth civic engagement and contributed to reentry advocacy through work connected to the Rochester Education Justice Initiative, RMAPI, and the Vera Institute of Justice. 

Across each of these roles, Kerry is committed to addressing the connections between education, racial inequity, and the criminal justice system. She believes meaningful change happens when we listen and empower those most affected by systems rooted in systemic racism, build relationships across communities, and help people of all ages recognize their own voice and power. 

Constance Mitchell-Jefferson, a Rochester native, is the daughter of Urban League of Rochester co-founders and community activists John and Connie Mitchell. Their influence across the city’s economic, housing, workforce, education, and community development shaped her wide-ranging career and accomplishments. 

She built a multi-decade career spanning corporate marketing, career coaching, diversity consulting, and public service. After earning a bachelor’s degree in marketing from Philadelphia University and a master’s degree in organizational management, magna cum laude, from Roberts Wesleyan College, she advanced minority representation and equity across Rochester. As an employment counselor with the Urban League of Rochester and city manager for INROADS, Inc., she advised and mentored and coached hundreds of minority college students and helped major corporations develop diverse recruiting pipelines. 

At the American Red Cross, she managed diversity marketing and was selected as one of 30 national diversity consultants supporting Hurricane Katrina relief. She later founded CMJ Business Solutions and Synequity, whose name reflects its focus on partnership, fairness, and justice. Through Synequity, she advises small businesses, nonprofits and municipalities on strategies, processes, and workforce practices that advance organizational success and economic parity. 

In 2014, she entered public service as the Minority and Women-Owned Business Enterprise (MWBE) Officer for the City of Rochester. She transformed local procurement through a four-pronged framework that embodied supplier diversity and equitable spending throughout the process, positioning Rochester as a municipal procurement leader. She also founded the MWBE Consortium of Upstate New York and advocacy organization for MWBE businesses, in 2019, became the City’s Purchasing Agent, continuing to promote competition and local business development. After retiring from the City in June 2025, she opened Synequity. 

Her honors include certificates and awards from the Mayor and City Council recognizing her work to establish City Ordinance 2018-54, Rochester’s MWBE and supplier-diversity procurement law; the Rochester Business Journal Icon Award; the Rochester Women’s Network W Award for Economic Development; the City of Rochester Trailblazer Award; Walker’s Legacy National Award for Women in Economic Development; and the Urban League of Rochester Legacy Award in Business Development and Entrepreneurship. 

Walida Monroe-Sims is a dedicated human services professional, community advocate, and Rochester, NY native with over two decades of experience empowering underserved populations.

She currently serves as a Program Manager in Housing for the City of Rochester, following her previous role as the Director of Public Services overseeing AmeriCorps Programs. A writer for Rochester Woman Online Magazine, Walida holds a BS in Human Service Management and a Master’s in Psychology with a concentration in Behavioral Health.

In 2018, Walida alongside her husband, Edward, and daughter, Amari, co-founded the nonprofit organization Unspoken Elephants Incorporated. The organization focuses on breaking the stigma of silence surrounding trauma, providing unhoused outreach, promoting financial literacy, selfefficacy, healthy futures, and linking community members to vital resources.

Expanding on this mission, she and her husband host the weekly radio show “When the Elephant Speaks Wednesdays” on 106.3 FM Rochester Free Radio to foster meaningful dialogues around community healing. Deeply committed to systemic change, collective impact, and educational equity, Walida serves on numerous boards and coalitions that promote community wellness. She is an active parent and student advocate, a proud member of Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority Incorporated (Theta Omega Sigma Alumnae Chapter), and a faithful Deaconess in training at Greater Harvest Church.

Grounded by her personal and professional motto—"Meet people where they are, without judgment, so that individuals can reach their highest quality of life"—Walida dedicates her life to creating pathways from education to employment and helping others help themselves. Outside of her work, she treasures spending time with her husband, their eight children, her family, her grandchildren, Soros and enjoys traveling, shopping, and community fellowship. Driven by her commitment to honor God in all her endeavors, Walida strives to be a transformative voice of leadership rather than a mere echo of the status quo.

Carla N. Perez is an immigration attorney at JustCause, where she leads the Immigration Unit and works to expand access to immigration legal services for underserved communities throughout the Rochester area. 
 
Carla focuses on building the capacity of the legal community to serve immigrant families at a time when the need for immigration legal services continues to grow, and immigration attorneys and legal service organizations are often at capacity. She recruits, mentors, and trains pro bono attorneys and volunteers, develops immigration trainings and legal clinics, and connects volunteer attorneys with opportunities to provide critical legal representation to immigrants and families facing complex immigration matters. 
 
Through her leadership, Carla has helped expand JustCause’s network of attorneys and volunteers while strengthening partnerships among law firms, nonprofit organizations, and community partners. She develops educational programs, resources, and procedures that equip attorneys and community advocates to respond to an increasingly complex immigration landscape and help ensure that more individuals have access to legal assistance. 
Carla’s work reflects her commitment to empowering immigrant communities not only by connecting individuals with legal representation, but by building a broader network of advocates equipped to meet the growing need for immigration services. 
 
Carla earned her J.D. from the University at Buffalo School of Law in 2014 and her B.S. from Syracuse University in 2008. 

Septimus A. Scott is a Rochester-based behavioral health practitioner, researcher, and community builder. He serves as a Behavior Intervention Specialist and is completing his master's thesis on gun violence prevention in the Clinical Psychology (Research Emphasis) program at SUNY Brockport. His research evaluates seven Rochester gun violence prevention programs to better understand what drives lasting community impact. Mr. Scott is also pursuing a PhD in Clinical Psychology. He is the founder of the Greater New York Revitalization (GNR), a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, and the Chief Executive Officer of Prime Media LLC, a marketing and strategy agency serving mission-driven organizations. He chairs the Racial Equity Leadership Committee at the Center for Dispute Settlement and leads Iron Minds, a weekly training program at Diverse Mosaic Community Center. His work is grounded in the belief that mental wellness, economic opportunity, and community safety are inseparable.