ANCOR to Welcome Lydia Dawson as Director of Policy, Legal & Regulatory Analysis

ANCOR and its Government Relations team are thrilled to share with our members that Lydia Dawson will join the ANCOR staff as the association’s Director of Policy, Legal & Regulatory Analysis.

Many of our readers already know Lydia as she is a long-time ANCOR member and leader within the State Association Executives Forum. She is currently finishing out her tenure as Executive Director of the Idaho Association of Community Providers, and before that served as Executive Director for the Maine Association for Community Service Providers. In both of these roles, she contributed her expertise as an attorney, speaker and trainer, and disability rights advocate not only to the states she served, but also to ANCOR’s efforts at the national level.

This newly created position on the ANCOR staff is an essential component of our broader government relations strategy. Lydia’s primary focus will be on staying abreast of federal legislative and regulatory developments that relate to I/DD and Medicaid policy and translating those developments into actionable insights for ANCOR members and other advocates seeking to advance our shared vision of fully inclusive communities for people with I/DD.

Although Lydia’s position will be housed on the Government Relations team, Lydia will work with teams across the organization, including working closely with the Communications team by contributing strategic guidance on messaging complex legal and regulatory information in meaningful ways.

Prior to her work as a state association executive, Lydia served as a staff attorney with Maine’s protection and advocacy agency representing individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. She earned her Juris Doctor from Roger Williams University School of Law with a concentration in public interest, and her Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from the University of Maine.

Lydia will join ANCOR’s staff remotely, working from her home in Boise, Idaho, starting July 19. We cannot wait to formally welcome her to the team, and we look forward to introducing her to all members of the ANCOR community soon!