Posted on May 22, 2025
Strong leadership is more important than ever in uncertain times.
Gregory Miller
President/CEO Penn-Mar Human Services
ANCOR (American Network of Community Options and Resources), the leading voice in Washington for community-based providers like Penn-Mar, held their Annual Conference in San Diego last month.
This year was particularly special for two Penn-Mar team members who were publicly recognized for their leadership and commitment to providing supports for people with disabilities. It was a proud moment for our organization and an honor for me to be able to see both women receive the recognition they so deserved at this prestigious industry gathering.
After two years of training, Jen Skelly, our Director of PA Operations, graduated from the ANCOR Foundation Leadership Academy, where she took advantage of its training, mentoring and networking opportunities to help her grow as an influential leader in the field and to foster continuous growth for Penn-Mar’s team members.
At the conclusion of the training, participants were required to create a Capstone Project on the topic of their choice. Jen wanted to focus on something that would directly benefit Penn-Mar. She put all her efforts into a presentation entitled, “Advancing and Sustaining Leadership Development Activities at Penn-Mar.”
Within 24-hours of her presentation she was contacted by organizers at The ANCOR Foundation to develop and co-present a Conference seminar on her training experience called “Reimagining Leadership Development; Insight from the ANCOR Foundation Leadership Academy class of 2025.”
Another Penn-Mar team member, Christal Lovelist, was honored at the Conference as the Direct Support Professional (DSP) of the Year for Maryland. Over 500 DSPs from across the nation were nominated for this Award and Christal was one of only 53 chosen and recognized for their hard work and dedication to supporting people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD).
Christal joined us in 2023 and made an immediate impact. An active participant in our Career Ladders Program with DSP-1 Certification, she supports 80 people in our Freeland Maryland Day Program. She is known for her innovative Day Program activities and willingness to cover shifts for Residential DSPs. Christal always goes above-and-beyond to meet the needs of the people she supports with compassion and creativity.
With its 2500 national members and the excellent programming at the annual Conference, ANCOR enhances providers’ ability to support individuals with IDD to be fully included and empowered in their communities. The association is a tireless champion for DSPs. They value the essential services DSPs provide and understand that they are not just a part of what providers do but the main component.
There was a lot of talk at the Conference about “uncertainty” as it relates to Medicaid funding. There is no question that cuts to that revenue stream would have a significant impact on how we deliver our services.
ANCOR does an outstanding job of making sure our federal legislators understand the importance of stable funding for programs that support people with disabilities and we as a provider will continue to collaborate with them to advocate for our fair share in federal budgets.
At Penn-Mar we’re guided by our Core Values. We are not one to walk around saying, “The sky is falling,” even during the toughest of circumstances. Our team members know we have an important job to do and are ever vigilant using the resources we have at hand in the most effective manner possible.
And in times of uncertainty, the strong leadership we cultivate becomes even more valuable as we navigate unknown territory. It can be scary, but it can also open the door to unforeseen opportunities.
My message to all of you following the many conversations last month with fellow industry professionals is that we at Penn-Mar will not be leading with fear but with innovative thinking and problem solving.