"The Life Development Institute is seeking to become the first nonprofit in Phoenix with our mission to build a new campus and affordable housing apartment complex for adults with hidden disabilities. Securing a Fellowship through the Trust will allow me the free time to adequately explore and evaluate the most viable alternatives for us to consider."
- Rob Crawford, CEO, Life Development Institute
Fellow Biography
As CEO of the Life Development Institute for the last 24 years, Rob Crawford has responded to the immense community need for support services that allow young adults with learning disabilities to enhance their knowledge, skills and resources to live independently. LDI is recognized nationally for its exemplary literacy program for those with learning disabilities.
Mr. Crawford received a Masters in Education from Northern Arizona University and Bachelor of Science in business administration and marketing from the University of Phoenix. He has served on a variety of local and national boards including the Learning Disabilities Association of America and the National Adult Literacy and Learning Disability Center, National Institute for Literacy.
Field Notes
Mr. Crawford has not completed his fellowship. The following is a short summary of his sabbatical.
Through his Piper Fellowship, Mr. Crawford will explore how to expand opportunities for independent living services through affordable housing alternatives. To determine the best strategies for metropolitan Phoenix, he plans to examine three different models including mutual housing association complexes, which provide safe, permanently affordable housing with a strong sense of community and resident empowerment; cohousing projects, characterized by private dwellings with extensive common facilities; and the nation’s only known housing development designed for adults with severe learning disabilities located in Hyannis and Mashpee, Mass.
Mr. Crawford also will attend two conferences: the Arizona Affordable Housing Conference and The Enterprise Foundation Network Conference, where he will explore funding resources to hire an expert advisor to complete a comprehensive local market study. His fellowship will conclude with a strategic planning retreat with staff, board, community partners, current and former students, and parents.
Contact Information
Rob Crawford
Chief Executive Officer
Life Development Institute
623.773.2774
rcrawford@life-development-inst.org
www.life-development-inst.org