BROOKE SCHNEIDER was recently appointed by Syracuse Mayor Ben Walsh to serve as senior public information officer in the city’s Office of Communications. Her work for the city concerns public-policy communication, media relations, digital-content creation, and community engagement support. In this role, she is responsible for planning, preparing, and communicating critical information on government activities, services, programs, projects, and objectives to Syracuse residents, and community partners. In her previous job in the private sector, Schneider worked as an account executive at the international-communications agency BCW Global. She planned and directed media content and strategies while leveraging engagement across multimedia channels. With a background in public diplomacy, global communication, and international relations, Schneider spent time in Brussels, Belgium, working with the communications unit of Global Union Federation, Education International (EI). Her work supported EI’s communications efforts to promote education policies and initiatives that ensure quality education is available to every student in every country and upholds the interests of teachers and other education employees on the international level. Schneider also worked in New York City on the New York public affairs team at BerlinRosen, a firm specializing in strategic communications, creative services, digital strategy and media relations. Schneider received her bachelor’s degree in public relations from the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communication at Syracuse University. She also completed her master’s degree in public administration from the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs, with an emphasis on international development administration.

KELLY MONTAGUE was appointed by Mayor Walsh to serve as Syracuse’s public information officer, specifically focused on city infrastructure. She will be responsible for a wide range of public information and communication activities supporting the Departments of Public Works, Engineering, Water, and Fleet Management. In this new role, Montague will provide vital information to residents by producing a range of public communications and content for web, print, and social media, related to activities and public projects affecting roads, sewers, pedestrian traffic, and public spaces. She will develop and distribute public information to proactively educate and engage City of Syracuse residents and media in ongoing and upcoming major infrastructure projects and initiatives, such as supplemental sidewalk snow removal, snow safety, road reconstruction, and I-81 construction. Montague, a Syracuse native, moved to Washington, D.C. after her graduation from Syracuse University, receiving her bachelor’s degree in geography and minoring in environment and society. She spent time building her career first with National Geographic Maps and then the D.C. Office of the Chief Technology Officer, working to establish the District’s GIS mapping and enterprise services. She moved back to Syracuse in 2017 to work as a GIS analyst at environmental-consulting firms. In her most recent role as marketing and design assistant at the Erie Canal Museum, Montague created and assessed community-outreach opportunities, produced multimedia assets for the Erie Eats: The Erie Canal Foodways Project, and aided in the development of the museum’s marketing.

BILL HOLZHAUER has joined Barclay Damon as of counsel, serving in the firm’s environmental, energy, and white collar & government investigations practice areas. His primary office location will be in Syracuse. Holzhauer has more than three decades of experience leading environmental and ethics-compliance programs. He joins the firm from National Grid, where he was the U.S. director of ethics and compliance. In this role, he managed the U.S. team of ethics, compliance, and records-management specialists for the international gas and electric utility. During his 13-year tenure there, he developed the Ethics Liaison Network, which was recognized as a best-in-class ethics program. Prior to that role, Holzhauer was assistant general counsel for litigation and environmental matters for National Grid. He established and implemented a robust environmental-compliance program, headed up efforts to certify power plants to ISO 14001, and crafted the first-ever corporate responsibility report for National Grid. At Barclay Damon, Holzhauer concentrates his practice on advising clients regarding environmental compliance and remediation. He also has experience with the development of internal compliance programs of all types, preparing and administering a code of ethics, as well as overseeing internal investigations.