Round Rock Chamber Announces Leadership Class

Participants prepare to increase their leadership capabilities

ROUND ROCK, Texas – The Round Rock Chamber today announced the 2020 Leadership Round Rock and Ascend participants. The chamber’s leadership programs are designed to help current and emerging leaders understand the dynamics of the community and the role leadership plays in its long-term success. Graduates emerge from the program with an unprecedented level of community awareness as well as insights that they can apply in the workplace. By developing a strong and diverse pool of community leaders, the chamber is ensuring that Round Rock’s future will meet or exceed its successful past.

The 2020 Leadership Round Rock class consists of:

Kolbi Andresen, YMCA of Greater Williamson County

Taylor Buchanan, Community Impact Newspaper

James “Jim” Burke, Wells Fargo Bank

Julie Burton, Willow Real Estate, LLC

Elaine Childress, A+ Federal Credit Union

Zachary Flores, Don Quick & Associates, Inc.

Jessica Gonzalez, The Ring

Celina Henry, Baylor Scott and White Health Round Rock

Tyler Humes, Lott Brothers

Layne Kohlhoff, Atmos Energy

Brian Kuhn, City of Round Rock

Alvin Lankford, Williamson Central Appraisal District

Justinamarie Mojica, Affiliated Bank

Jessica Mosman, Financial Integrated Solutions

Jodee OBrien, United Way of Williamson County

Lisa Pierce-Jones, City of Round Rock

Antonio Prete, Waeltz & Prete

Mark Sabella, Halff Associates, Inc.

Tiffany Sturman, Williamson County Children’s Advocacy Center

Matthew Teifke, TRE Homes

Ella Thorpe, St. David’s Round Rock Medical Center

Wesley “Wes” Tidwell, Ascension Seton Williamson

Nicholas Turner, Dell Technologies, Inc.

Christine Valdovino, City of Round Rock

Edward Youmans, Pizza Delight

“Our leadership programs are an important component of the chamber’s talent development efforts.” said Amy Mizcles, the chamber’s vice president of community enhancement. “We look forward to watching this cohort of participants grow in their knowledge of Round Rock and strengthen their already stellar abilities to positively impact our city.”

Leadership Round Rock consists of ten, full-day sessions occurring from January through December. Past participants are serving in roles ranging from CEOs to elected officials. The program sets the tone for responding to change by challenging participants to identify their own passions, take ownership of their surroundings, and get involved in making a difference.

Ascend is a young professional program that develops a pipeline of leaders for Round Rock through four pillars; personal development, community engagement, peer-to-peer, and community impact.

The 2020 Ascend class consists of:

Garrett Blount, Watkins Insurance Group

Deana Cavanaugh, Lott Brothers Construction Company

Tyler Deck, Deck Law Firm PLLC

Charles Gaines, Abilene Christian University

Claire Mackowiak, Baylor Scott & White – Round Rock

Regina Munson, Anchor-Ventana Glass

Lucia Murguia, Garver

Aneil Naik, City of Round Rock

Amy Norris, Edward Jones

Benedict Patrick, HDR Engineering, Inc.

Amin Salahuddin, EIXSYS, LLC

William “Trey” Swor III, Joeris General Contractors

Jonathan Voight, VeraBank

Charles Waters, Bancorp South

Brad Wiseman, City of Round Rock

“The chamber extends our congratulations to these community leaders, and we thank them for the commitment of time they will dedicate this year,” said Jason Ball, the chamber’s president and CEO. “The business community recognizes that leadership development programs like Leadership Round Rock and Ascend reduce turnover. Employees that participate generally remain in their company and are more satisfied in their community, and engage in other professional and philanthropic organizations.”