Lisa Ackerman
A native of California, Lisa worked in the retail and real estate site selection for almost 20 years. Lisa was a co-founder of Integration Technologies and AnySite Software which was sold to MapInfo Corporation in 2003. Working with customers like Wal-Mart, Burger King and Shell Oil, Lisa has consulted and sold large solutions for planning and managing the site selection process.
In 1999, Lisa and her husband Glen received the news that their 2 ½ year old son had been diagnosed with autism. At the time it was the recommendation from multiple physicians that the family find “institutional placement” for their son. Refusing to consider this option, they began their research to find answers for their son. One year later they launched a parent support group in their home with 10 families who were living with autism. As a result of this dedicated group, The Autism Community in Action (TACA) was founded in November 2000.
In March 2004, Lisa retired from her real estate career to assume a full-time volunteer role as Executive Director for TACA. She transitioned from volunteer to a full-time professional capacity in July 2008 managing a national non-profit organization headquartered in Irvine, Calif. From a grass roots beginning in Southern California, under Lisa’s leadership almost $30MM has been raised to help fund TACA’s mission and helping over 80,000 families across the U.S.