Building Ideas

Rob is Co-Chair of Taft’s Sports Law Group and Chair of the firm’s Cincinnati Business practice. He is widely recognized as principal counsel to private equity and venture capital funds, growth-oriented companies, sports franchises, and research institutions. His practice focuses on leading equity financings, securities offerings, complex commercial transactions, mergers and acquisitions, and other strategic initiatives. Rob regularly advises global and national clients on the structuring and execution of significant business transactions. Rob is actively engaged in civic and professional leadership at both the national and local levels. He serves as Chairman of the Board of Directors of the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center and is a board member of the FC Cincinnati Foundation. Reflecting the international scope of his practice, he also serves on the Board of Interlex, a global association of leading law firms. In Ohio, Rob is a member of the Executive Committee of the Cincinnati Chamber of Commerce and has previously served as Chair of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra and President of the Association for Corporate Growth (ACG) Cincinnati. Rob earned his bachelor’s degree from Duke University and his MBA from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University. During his undergraduate studies, he completed comparative law coursework at New College, Oxford University. He received his J.D. from Washington University School of Law, where he also clerked at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission during his final term. Rob grew up in Kobe, Japan.

Meet Scott Schuster, a passionate champion of education and lifelong learning whose visionary leadership is reshaping Cincinnati’s nonprofit scene. As Vice President of Philanthropy and President of the Cincinnati Museums Foundation, Scott spearheads bold fundraising strategies that help the Cincinnati Museum Center spark curiosity and wonder across science, regional history, and beyond. Under his guidance, CMC successfully wrapped its largest campaign ever—raising over $123 million to unveil 20 state-of-the-art exhibits, galleries, and research labs—and launched “Project Treasures,” a new $40 million initiative ensuring the museum’s historic and scientific gems remain protected for generations to come.A career fundraiser at heart, Scott’s talent for building authentic, mission-driven relationships has powered transformative projects everywhere he’s served, including Archbishop Moeller High School and the University of Cincinnati Foundation, where he played a pivotal role in a $120 million construction project for UC’s Lindner College of Business. Today, he continues to inspire the next generation of marketing leaders as an Adjunct Assistant Professor at UC, while also serving as a Great Parks of Hamilton County Board of Park Commissioner. Named one of Cincinnati Business Courier’s “Forty Under 40,” Scott Schuster blends passion, expertise, and a commitment to community—making him a driving force behind nonprofit innovation and a must-listen voice for anyone interested in the power of philanthropy.

Regina Carswell Russo is Founder/CEO of RRight Now Communications, a strategic communications firm. Regina helps clients remove barriers to effective communication. With more than 30 years of communications, journalism, and media relations experience, Regina's clients include Duke Energy, Fifth Third Bank, United Way of Greater Cincinnati, The Port, Procter & Gamble, the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, the City of Cincinnati and Cincinnati Public Schools. After retiring from broadcast journalism after 23 years, 15 years here in Cincinnati at FOX19, Regina transitioned to arts marketing as Director of Communications and Marketing at the Cincinnati Art Museum and Chief of Communications at the Contemporary Arts Center, where the Cincinnati Business Courier recognized her accomplishments with a C-Suite Award. Regina brings innovation and creativity to solve complex communication problems for her clients in crisis communication, media relations, media interview coaching, brand reputation, and multicultural stakeholder engagement. RRight Now Communications' fastest growing client base is C-Suite women, helping them craft and elevate their authentic voice in their corporate leadership. Regina’s vast number of Board appointments and awards include:• National Association of Television Arts and Sciences Emmy Nominee• Five Associated Press and Michigan Association Broadcaster Awards• Cincinnati Magazine/ 2021, 2022, 2023 Power 300-Most Powerful Business Leaders• 2022 YWCA Career Woman of Achievement• Board Trustee, Cincinnati Opera (Executive Committee, Nominating Commitee)• Ragan Communication/ PR Daily Communicator of the Year Award 2021 Regina is a native of Detroit, and lives in Cincinnati with her husband and two sons.

Chad Munitz joined FC Cincinnati in May 2022 as its Chief Development Officer where he manages the club's Real Estate growth ambitions including the creation of a large-scale mixed-use district adjacent to TQL Stadium. Chad added oversight of the club's business development arm, Aligned Ventures, to his remit in January 2024, which includes all non-MLS soccer revenue initiatives. Prior to FC Cincinnati, Chad held leadership roles in Real Estate and Economic Development with Towne Properties, the Cincinnati Center City Development Corporation (3CDC), the City of Cincinnati and the Ohio Department of Development (ODOD). He has directed over $800 million in development and led transformative projects like Fountain Square and Washington Park, playing a key role in the revitalization of Cincinnati's downtown urban core. Chad graduated from The Ohio State University with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration, Information Systems. He is a native of New Philadelphia, Ohio and resides in the City of Cincinnati neighborhood of Northside with his wife and daughter.

Luke Blocher is General Counsel and Chief Strategy Officer for the Cincinnati Development Fund. The CDF is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit lending institution that fills a gap not covered by traditional lenders. They provide funding for real estate development in under-served markets in the Greater Cincinnati area. They also offer facilities and equipment funding for nonprofit organizations in the Greater Cincinnati region. At CDF Luke is responsible for legal and strategy functions, including management of the affordable housing lending and New Markets Tax Credit programs. He oversees compliance, data collection and reporting required by all CDF funders. He joined CDF in 2022. His previous experience includes working in the Attorney General's office of the State of Ohio, Senior Counsel at Taft Stettinius & Hollister and Deputy City Solicitor, City of Cincinnati. A Cincinnati native, he is an alumnus of St Xavier High School, Amherst College and Columbia Law School in New York City. He resides in Cincinnati's Clifton neighborhood with his wife and family.

A strong advocate for people, Keizayla Fambro is a seasoned political strategist and community leader with a passion for social justice, policy, and community engagement. Keizayla, is the Chief of Staff in the office of Cincinnati Mayor Aftab Pureval. She strategically supports and manages the Mayor's administration, while also serving as the Mayor's top advisor. Prior to this role, Keizayla served as the Senior Political Advisor for the Ohio Organizing Collaborative, running one of the country's largest voter registration efforts while strategizing and managing campaigns. She also was the Political Director for Mayor Aftab's mayoral campaign. Keizayla resides in Mt. Airy, with her daughter Kylie and dog Bentley!

As President and CEO of Visit Cincy (formerly known as the Cincinnati USA Convention & Visitors Bureau), Julie Calvert leads the region’s destination marketing and management organization. Her strategic vision and collaborative approach help maximize the size and impact of Cincinnati’s visitor economy and expand the region’s travel, tourism, and convention industries. Prior to her appointment as CEO, Calvert served as Executive Director of Source Cincinnati (Cincinnati Experience), where she led the charge to connect the region with national media and elevate the “Cincinnati Story” into the global spotlight. In that role, she created a coalition of like-minded, visionary funders. She built and engaged a board of directors and tapped our best regional resources and outside experts to establish Source as the region’s only organization focused solely on global reputation management. Calvert has spent her career developing and executing strategies that drive awareness, build reputation, mobilize resources, and spark economic vitality in the region. She started as a media reporter and editor, worked as a senior advisor at one of Cincinnati’s top communications firms and served as Vice President of Communications and Strategic Development for the CVB from 2001-2016. While there, she was the driving force behind the CVB’s national marketing, communications and reputation-building strategies and was instrumental in the Bureau’s record-setting results in attracting and hosting some of the world’s most high-profile conventions. With a profound appreciation of our region’s rich diversity, Calvert has a track record of finding ways to celebrate the varied voices, backgrounds and viewpoints that make up our Cincinnati tapestry. She helped build the CVB’s Supplier Diversity Program and multicultural marketing channel. And she made diversity a key part of Source Cincinnati’s strategic vision, from the people it engages to the stories it tells about the region. In 2019, she was honored with the APEX award from Black Meetings & Tourism. In 2015, Calvert spearheaded civic communications efforts for the 2015 Major League Baseball All-Star Game hosted in Cincinnati, raising the city’s national profile during one of the signature events in all professional sports. In 2019, Calvert was included in the Cincinnati 300, a compilation of the city’s top 300 business leaders, along with a spot in the Power 100, a list of the 100 most influential business, political and community leaders in the Cincinnati region. In 2020, amidst the Coronavirus pandemic, Calvert was tapped to chair the Ohio Governor’s Statewide Task Force on Travel and Tourism to craft safe reopening strategies and protocols for the industry. She serves on board of Destinations International, the Hamilton County Commission on Women and Girls, the Board of the Cincinnati Music Festival, a former Cabinet Member for the ArtsWave Annual Community Campaign and has volunteered in leadership roles with several other regional non-profit organizations. Calvert earned a bachelor’s degree from Miami University and resides in Anderson Township with her husband Chris and two sons.

Rob Zimmerman is in his third year as Head of School at his alma mater, Cincinnati Country Day School. He was born in Dallas, lived in Atlanta as a young child, and grew up in Cincinnati since the 3rd grade (residing in Indian Hill, literally across the street from CCDS, where his parents still live and host Sunday family dinners). He is a proud 1998 graduate of Country Day, attended Vanderbilt University for his undergraduate degree (BA, English), and continued his studies at the University of Cincinnati College of Law (JD).Rob practiced as a commercial litigator at Dinsmore & Shohl LLP for 16 years, handling a wide range of business disputes, including breach of contract, corporate governance, securities, intellectual property, and real estate matters. He served on the board of trustees at CCDS for a number of years and stepped in as Interim Head of School in 2021. Following a national search process, he was appointed as Head of School. To quote Rob, "I feel outrageously lucky to be able to do what I do every day."