Pat Lawler
Since 1980, Lawler has served as CEO of Youth Villages, which has grown from serving 25 youths daily to offering hope to more than 26,000 young people each year as one of the largest private providers of services to troubled children and their families in the country. He has established specialized treatment programs involving more than 3,000 employees in 84 locations across 20 states and the District of Columbia. Lawler began his career at 18 as a counselor at Tall Trees Guidance School and then worked at the Juvenile Court of Memphis and Shelby County for five years before becoming CEO of Youth Villages. He is a frequent guest lecturer at business schools such as Harvard and Columbia University. The White House has cited Youth Villages as an example of “effective, innovative nonprofits” that are “high-impact, result-oriented” organizations. In 2016, Lawler was named a Master Entrepreneur by the Memphis Society of Entrepreneurs.
