The Rural Outreach Center welcomes new executive director
The Rural Outreach Center (ROC) in East Aurora is pleased to announce the hiring of Lynda Battaglia, LCSW, as its new executive director. She will replace Frank Cerny, MDiv, PhD, founder and current director of The ROC.
Lynda is a strategic behavioral health executive with over 25 years of leadership experience in the nonprofit and government sectors. She will be leaving her position as Director of Mental Health & Community Services for Genesee County where she has overseen clinical operations, strategic planning and community outreach across a predominantly rural region.
Her career has been marked by advancing access, equity and system integration in rural and underserved communities in New York State. She has led complex public-sector organizations, secured and managed multimillion-dollar funding streams, and built cross-sector partnerships that improve population health outcomes. She has had a particular emphasis on the development and installation of suicide prevention programming.
Her 14 years with the New York State Office of Mental Health positioned her as an advisor to state and local government, with extensive experience influencing policy, leading regional initiatives and driving sustainable program development.
Lynda holds an adjunct faculty position in the School of Social Work at the University at Buffalo, where she has designed and taught graduate-level courses in crisis assessment and forensic social work and prepared clinicians for community-based and systems-level practice.
The ROC offers social services, and mental and physical health care to the rural population of southern Western New York. The ROC model of care emphasizes the empowerment of individuals to identify and address areas of their lives that will improve their health and well-being while holding them accountable for their progress.
The ROC’s Rural Development Hub facilitates the development of housing, transportation, food access and workforce development while addressing health disparities in rural southern Western New York. These activities have established The ROC as a thought leader in improving the lives of individuals and communities in rural areas. Lynda is well-positioned to continue and expand this leadership role.
TalentRise, an executive search and leadership development firm based in Buffalo, led the national search that resulted in this hire.
