Dennis Allen
Chief Executive Officer
Dennis Allen has served as the chief executive officer of Hattie Larlham since 1988. In this role, he has helped shape Hattie Larlham, which once provided services to 180 families, into a $35 million nonprofit that provides award-winning programs and services to more than 1,500 people with developmental disabilities throughout Ohio.
Highlights of Allen’s accomplishments include launching in 2001 the Hattie Larlham Research Institute to conduct case studies and pioneer new practices in the care and treatment of people with developmental disabilities.
One of the most successful programs to come out of the Research Institute is the Hattie Larlham Autism Preschool. Under Allen’s leadership, this educational initiative provides evidence- and individual-based services to preschool-age children with autism. The preschool incorporates the HighScope education curriculum and the SCERTS model into the classroom. The program also provides transactional support to assist in the successful transition of the preschool child to kindergarten.
Allen has also successfully spearheaded social- and micro-enterprise initiatives that have created seven cafes; two dog day cares; a bakery; and the Creative Arts program, which has given a voice to people with disabilities who never before were able to artistically express themselves. All of these ventures were developed to employ and provide new opportunities to people with developmental disabilities.
Allen, a true advocate for individuals with disabilities, has guest lectured at the University of Akron on topics in speech and language pathology for people with disabilities. He has presented at national conferences on topics in research and development of services and interventions for individuals with severe disabilities and medically fragile conditions.
He is a two-time Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year regional finalist, a Smart Business Visionary and a Leadership Ohio Excellence in Health Care winner.
Allen has served as a board member on the Ohio Provider Resource Association (OPRA), a member of the Governor’s Task Force for Autism, a past board member of the Greater Akron Chamber of Commerce, and a member of the Ohio Health Care Association (OHCA) Medicaid Committee. He has presented testimony before various committees of the Ohio General Assembly on Medicaid and disabilities issues.
