Suzanne Crisp is the lead for community living and transition programming for the ILRU New Community Opportunities Center. She is also Director of Program Design and Implementation for the National Resource Center for Participant-Directed Services where she manages and oversees aspects of design and implementation for programs promoting participant-directed home and community-based services. She assesses existing programs to determine compliance and efficiency, develops products to enhance understanding of the implementation of participant direction, performs diagnostic program reviews, and attends national conferences, meetings, and panels representing Boston College. Also, serving as the lead coordinator between Boston College and the Administration on Aging's Nursing Home Diversion grants, she provides technical assistance to the Veteran's Administration Home and Community Based Services initiative.
In the areas specific to participant direction, Ms. Crisp coordinates with Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to examine Federal authorities to create Medicaid programs, manages efforts under the Money Follows the Person initiative and assists program staff to develop quality management strategies. Formerly, a Senior Research Leader with Thomson Reuters, she provided extensive technical assistance to state Medicaid programs on all program design facets at the direction of CMS. She also served as a State Liaison Mentor for the Cash and Counseling National Program Office and assisted the Administration on Aging with information and research to develop quality self direction strategies for the Federally funded National Community Living Incentive. She joined Thomson Reuters in 2003 following a detail to CMS' Central office where she served in the capacity of Director of Integrated Services. During her detail to CMS she participated in the development of the Federal Independence Plus initiative. She also served as the Assistant Director to the Arkansas Division of Aging and Adult Services where she implemented and managed the first Cash and Counseling National Demonstration and Evaluation Project, managed three home and community waiver programs, and oversaw the Older Americans Act, Ombudsman and Adult Protective Services Programs. As a result, Ms. Crisp has unique expertise in participant direction given her wealth of experience in this area both at the state and Federal levels. She has a degree in Social Work from Arkansas State University.
