BLOOMINGTON, Ill. – Illinois First Assistant Deputy Governor Ryan Croke was presented the 2025 IARF Champion Award by Josh Evans, President & CEO during the Association’s 2025 IARF Educational Conference & Expo at the Bloomington Normal Marriott Hotel and Conference Center.
The IARF Champion Award recognizes individuals, groups, and/or organizations that put forth significant effort(s) to support, advance, and/or raise awareness of the importance of community-based services and supports for persons with intellectual/developmental disabilities and mental illnesses.
“This year, Governor J.B. Pritzker Administration made an important investment in frontline staff serving and supporting persons with disabilities, increasing Direct Support Professional (DSP) wage rates by 80 cents an hour,” said Josh Evans, IARF President. “First Assistant Deputy Governor Croke has always been a champion for Human Services throughout his career and helped lead the charge on securing additional funds for the state’s IDD system during the Appropriations process. This leadership and support translated to major wins for DSPs, persons with I/DD, and disability services in Illinois.”
First Assistant Deputy Governor Croke earned a Master’s Degree from the University of Illinois – Champaign Urbana, and worked as the Associate Chancellor and as an Adjunct Faculty member at the University of Illinois Springfield. He was the Executive Director for the Illinois Network of Centers for Independent Living, Chief of Staff for the Illinois Department of Human Services, and currently works for the Office of the Governor of the State of Illinois. He and his wife Brook are the proud parents of four children and live in Springfield..
“The work that DSPs do is necessary, important and life changing,” Croke said. “I am deeply honored to have been recognized by IARF, but the real credit belongs to people with disabilities, their families, and the organizations like IARF who work every day to improve our state. I look forward to working closely with IARF and other advocates to bring dignity and progress to communities across Illinois. People with I/DD deserve all the same tools and resources that we want for our family members, friends, and neighbors in Illinois.”
The 2025 IARF Educational Conference & Expo: Leading, Learning, and Innovating was attended by over 350 organizational leaders, clinicians, professionals, and para-professionals from community-based providers of services and supports for children and adults with intellectual/developmental disabilities and serious mental illnesses from across Illinois.
In addition to Croke, State Representative Christopher “C.D.” Davidsmeyer, Representative Laura Faver Dias, and Senator Adriane Johnson were also honored with the 2025 IARF Champion Award for their legislative leadership and advocacy.