Youth Villages
Executive Director
| Executive Director | Mr. Patrick Lawler |
|---|---|
| pat.lawler@youthvillages.org | |
| Term Start | November 1988 |
| Patrick's Experience: When it comes to helping children with emotional and behavioral problems succeed, Youth Villages CEO Patrick Lawler believes that doing whatever it takes is the only thing that works. That's what led him to transform a small residential program in Memphis into a national organization that now has 3,300 employees helping more than 30,000 children, families, and young people every year in 23 states and the District of Columbia. Celebrating his 42nd year as chief executive officer, Lawler has led Youth Villages to positively impact children's lives across the country through direct services, partnerships and initiatives built around the core beliefs that every child deserves a loving, supportive family and each child has the potential to become a successful adult. Lawler is a 2020 recipient of the National Jefferson Award for Outstanding Public Service Benefiting the Disadvantaged - called the Nobel Prize for service - awarded by Multiplying Good, the nation's leading nonprofit fueling personal growth and leadership through public service. The first recipient in 1973 was Cesar Chavez. Other honorees have included Bill and Melinda Gates, Paul Newman and Joanne Woodard, Barbara Bush, Geoffrey Canada and Brian Stevenson, lawyer and social activist whose book became the film "Just Mercy." Lawler is a Results for America's Nonprofit Fellow, a group founded in 2016 to harness the collective experience, insights, and recommendations of a select group of well-known and well-respected nonprofit chief executives committed to evidence-based solutions to inform public policy and improve the impact of public investments. He also joins other national nonprofit leaders as one of philanthropist Mario Morino's Leap of Reason Ambassadors. The group is committed to bringing high performance solutions to address society's most challenging problems. He was recognized as one of "America's Best Leaders" by U.S. News & World Report in conjunction with the Center for Public Leadership. |
|
Senior Staff
| Name | Title |
|---|---|
| Ms. Charmaine Kromer | Chief Operations Officer |
| Mr. Cliff Reyle | Chief of Staff |
| Dr. Fred Thomason | Chief Medical Officer |
| Mr. Greg Gregory | Chief Financial Officer |
| Mr. Jody Paine | Chief Operations Officer |
| Mr. Richard Shaw | Chief Development Officer |
| Jessica Foster | Chief Strategy Officer |
| Scott Palmer | Chief Information Officer |
| Ms. LaTonya Pendleton | Chief of Human Resources |
Staff
| Full Time Staff | 253 |
|---|---|
| Part Time Staff | 31 |
| Volunteers | 2,733 |
| Contractors | 0 |
| Retention Rate | 68% |
Plans & Policies
| Does your organization have a Fundraising Plan? | Yes |
|---|---|
| Does your organization have a Strategic Plan? | Yes |
| Years Strategic Plan Considers | 5 |
| When was the Strategic Plan adopted? | July 2018 |
| Does your organization have a Management Succession Plan? | Yes |
| Does your organization have a Policy and Procedure Plan? | Yes |
| Does the organization have a Nondiscrimination Policy? | Yes |
| Does the organization have a Whistle Blower Policy? | Yes |
| Does the organization have a Document Destruction Policy? | Yes |
Evaluation
| Is there a formal evaluation for... | Frequency (if applicable) | |
|---|---|---|
| CEO/Executive Director | Yes | Annually |
| Senior Management | Yes | Annually |
| Non-Management | Yes | Annually |
Affiliations
| Affiliation | Year |
|---|---|
| AFP (Association of Fundraising Professionals) | 2005 |
| Center for Nonprofit Management Excellence Network | 2005 |
| Child Welfare League - Accredited Member | 2005 |
| Community Health Charities | 2005 |
| Community Resource Center - Nashville | 2005 |
| Middle Tennessee Association of Child Care | 2005 |
| Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce | 2005 |
| Nashville Youth Alliance | 2004 |
| Tennessee Association of Child Care | 2005 |
| Tennessee Conference on Social Welfare (TCSW) | 2005 |
External Assessments and Accreditations
| Assessment/Accreditation | Year |
|---|---|
| Child Placing Agency | 2005 |
| Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO) - Behavioral Health Care Accred. | 2004 |
| Residential Child Care Agency | 2005 |
| Tennessee Department of Mental Health and Developmental Disabilities | 2005 |
Awards
| Award / Recognition | Organization | Year |
|---|---|---|
| Annual Award | Tennessee Association for Marriage and Family Therapy | 2004 |
| CEO Patrick Lawler named one of America's Best leaders | U.S. News & World Report | 2006 |
| In July 2010, Casey Family Programs released a study detailing how Youth Villages had partnered with the state of Tennessee to safely reduce the number of children in foster care by 34% over 10 years | Casey Family Programs | 2010 |
| One of 8 'Guiding Light' models in the U.S. with programs that successfully reduce the incidence of juvenile crime | American Youth Policy Forum | 2001 |
| Recognition of Youth Villages' In-Home Treatment Model as the most successful in treating emotionally troubled youth | Coalition for Juvenile Justice Annual Report | 2000 |
| Released a case study exploring Youth Villages' innovative treatment approach, use of research in program development and targeted growth strategies (available at www.hbs.edu) | Harvard Business School | 2009 |
| Since 2004, the Foundation has invested $21.25 million in Youth Villagesto develop and implement its strategic plan. | Edna McConnell Clark Foundation | 2014 |
| The NonProfit Times and Best Companies Group have named Youth Villages as one of the 50 Best Nonprofit Organizations to Work For in the United States. | The NonProfit Times and Best Companies Group | 2011 |
| Youth Villages named one of the best adoption-friendly workplaces among many well-known American nonprofits | Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption | 2008 |
| Youth Villages was recognized as a results-oriented nonprofit that is transforming communities with innovative and promising ideas | White House | 2009 |
| CEO Patrick Lawler received the National Jefferson Award for Outstanding Public Service Benefiting the Disadvantaged | Multiplying Good | 2020 |
CEO/Executive Director/Board Comments
| A message from CEO Pat Lawler in a recent Middle Tennessee newsletter: I remember turning 18, thinking I knew everything. I was ready to change the world. I was confident, optimistic and motivated to explore new things. Even if things didn't go as planned, I had family an others who supported me - a safety net for emotional support, financial help or simple motivation. I was independent, but also had a place to go when I suffered a setback. Children aging out of foster care don't have the support network or financial help that other teens do. They don't have what most at that age take for granted. Many times, they don't have a parent or mentor to rely on. Considered adults, they have no one to help ensure they do the things necessary for their future success. I'm so proud of our LifeSet program simply because it addresses that glaring need, arguable at a young person's most critical moment, and it's beginning to get noticed. We've partnered with the State of Tennessee to help ensure every child aging out of foster care has access to LifeSet. We've also renamed the program to better represent what it does for young people: help them get ready, get set, for life. I would be remiss if I didn't mention also the program's success is dependent upon you as well - companies and individuals who complement our staff's work with these young people, showing them how to put their best foot forward when looking for a job.In many cases, it's simply showing a young person what is out there for them to achieve. I'm thankful many of our corporate partners take time from their bust schedules to invest in the success of children in our programs.In that way, all of our youth in the LifeSet program can go into the world with the same wide-eyed enthusiasm we did when we were younger. Their thanks for your efforts is shown by their success, and Youth Villages thanks you for enabling them. |
