ROCHESTER, N.Y. — The Rochester Police Accountability Board will hold a news conference on Friday morning where Lesli Myers-Small, the board’s candidate for executive director, will lay out her vision.

The conference starts at 10 a.m. It comes after City Council held a confirmation hearing for Myers-Small, a former Rochester City School District superintendent, to ask about her long-term plans for the board. They also asked what it means to be equitable and operate independently.

Another topic that came up was the circumstances surrounding her departure from RCSD. Myers-Small left the district two years ago before her contract was up after she was accused of sexual harassment by another administrator.

“The bottom line is that sometimes leadership and boards and their trustees have a difference of opinion, and in my humble opinion it was best to really move on and not continue to have that tension,” Myers-Small said. “…One of the things that was glaring was that I was accused of harassment on the job and any leader anytime when you have that type of allegation, it certainly is very difficult.”

She told council members that an unbiased investigation into the accusations of sexual harassment found that they were unsubstantiated. Regarding the Rochester Police Department, Myers-Small said the PAB’s relationship with them should not be hostile.

“I want to clarify one point, that accountability and transparency within law enforcement does not imply an adversarial stance toward law enforcement. Like any profession, law enforcement can face challenges that may require an impartial review,” she said.

While the board’s mission and objective may be to investigate police misconduct, it does not have the power to discipline Rochester Police officers. Myers-Small spoke on the need for cooperation between the police department and the board.

“When we talk about equity, when we talk about inclusion, it’s ensuring that all the voices at the table have a say and that we’re not just providing lip service, but that we’re genuinely engaging to ensure that the information and the feedback. Even if we don’t take it, we make sure that it’s acknowledged and we make sure that it’s heard.”

Council member Michael Patterson says he would like to see Myers-Small become the permanent executive director, as well as the PAB becoming a private entity. That would mean the board’s staff would  no longer work for the city.