Tracey Crawford

WORK HISTORY

EDUCATION

ABOUT TRACEY CRAWFORD

Tracey Crawford is the Executive Director at Northwest Special Recreation Association (NWSRA) and the President of Special Leisure Services Foundation (SLSF). Crawford’s 34 years of professional experience in parks and recreation includes Inclusion Coordinator/Therapeutic Recreation Specialist and Assistant Director at Fox Valley Special Recreation Association (FVSRA) in Aurora, IL; the Manager of Inclusion Services, Superintendent of Recreation, Superintendent of Development and Interim Director at Northern Suburban Special Recreation Association (NSSRA. Bachelor of Science degree in TR University of Iowa. A CTRS and a CPRP. Past Chairman for IPRA Board of Directors, a Past President of the branch of NRPA that was dedicated to therapeutic recreation. Serves on the IPR Foundation (IPRF) Board, the IPRA Diversity Leadership Task Force, the American Therapeutic Recreation Association (ATRA) as Past President and on the Illinois Recreation Therapeutic Association (ILRTA) Board as the ITRS Liaison. Was a on the Rolling Meadows Rotary Club and awarded the Paul Harris Fellow Award. Tracey serves on the Rolling Meadows Chamber of Commerce Board. Crawford was awarded the Robert Artz Lifetime Achievement Award for Illinios Park and Recreation professionals. Received the Meritorious Service Award from NTRS, the National Institute on Recreation Inclusion (NIRI) Excellence in Inclusion Award, IPRA Chairman’s Award three times raising the visibility of diversity, equity, and inclusion issues. Awarded the Daily Herald Business Ledger’s Influential Woman in Business Award, inducted into the American Academy for Park and Recreation Administration (AAPRA), served as the Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (JEDI) Committee Co-Chair,President Elect of the Academy Board of Directors, Community Leader of Year by the Rolling Meadows, Illinois Chamber of Commerce, the Professional of the Year for ILRTA. Serve on the IPRA Diversity Leadership Task Force, co-created the Safe Zone Conversation Model, used in over 100 park and recreation agencies in Illinois and nationally. She has authored or co-authored diversity, equity and inclusion articles published in the Illinois Park and Recreation magazine, NRPA Magazine, Illinois Park and Recreation Magazine, the Recreation Access publication, and the chapters on inclusion and inclusion administrative through Human Kinetics which was published in 2011 and 2022. Subject Matter Expert on DEI for Berry Dunn, an accounting and managing consulting firm, BCG Learning Solutions and Co-Owner of Black Girl Moments, LLC.