Staff

Max Anderson is a first-generation American and lifelong New Yorker. Growing up at an intersection of ethnic identities and social systems, Anderson developed a passion for personal growth through linguistics, communication, and cultural mash-ups.

As Deputy Director, Anderson focuses on strategic planning, building community partnerships, training up-and-coming leaders, and oversight of administrative and financial matters.

Prior to joining Open Buffalo in 2014, Anderson spent about 10 years working at daily newspapers, most recently covering city governance, economic development, and criminal justice (focusing on community-police relations) as an editorialist for Rochester’s Democrat and Chronicle newspaper. He is proud to have helped create that newspaper’s award-winning Unite Rochester project.

In his spare time, Anderson volunteers on a number of nonprofit boards, primarily contributing to strategic planning, public communications, and community engagement. He also occasionally takes on freelance communication and promotional projects (writing, editing, and graphic design) and enjoys teaching boxing and martial arts.

Anderson has a dual bachelor’s degree in International Relations and French from SUNY Geneseo and a master’s degree in Magazine, Newspaper and Online Journalism from the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University. A passion for continuous learning and skill-building has led Anderson to also take advantage of several impactful professional development opportunities, including:

• Harvard Kennedy School of Executive Education - Leadership, Organizing, and Action: Leading Change certificate (2015)
• Center for Story-Based Strategy - Advanced Training (2016)
• Karen Lee Spaulding Oishei Fellowship for Leaders of Color/Rockwood Leadership Institute - Art of Leadership training (2022)
• Canisius College Center for Professional Development - Core Competencies for Community Health Workers (2016)
• Prisoners Are People, Too - Restorative Justice circle keeper training

Photo by Blanc Photographie.