Melva Fair is currently employed as the Chief Executive Officer of Community Living And Support Services. Employed for the past 33 years, Ms. Fair has supported varying disability populations in the areas of residential, life skills education and vocational support. Her specific employment experiences include a residential counselor, life skills educator and supervisor, coordinator/director of services, consultant and public speaker on community and disability issues, information/referral and marketing. Prior duties included overseeing the development and technology departments at CLASS, and teaching at the Community College of Allegheny County Non-Profit Professional Development Academy.
Additional responsibilities have included serving on various committees such as the Disability Consulting – Life Care Planning Committee, Education Consulting, Transition Planning, and Domiciliary Care Committee with Allegheny County Area Agency on Aging, and other committees. Melva served on the Board of Directors for the Brain Injury Association of Pennsylvania and the Greater Pittsburgh Supported Employment Association (GPSEA). She assisted in the development of a values clarification manual entitled “Values, Rights and Responsibility: A Delicate Balance” and has co-authored four articles: “Living, Working and Playing: A Holistic Approach” and in (2009) “Social Capital: A View from the Field” was published in the Journal of Vocational Rehabilitation. “Independence and Life Care Planning” was published in the Journal of Pediatric Rehabilitation in (1998) and “Self-Efficacy and Interdependence as Predictors of Life Satisfaction for People with Disabilities: Implications for Independent Living Program” (2007) was also published in the Journal of Vocational Rehabilitation. She also co-authored the manual “Together is Better: Creating a Community Where Each Belongs.”
Ms. Fair currently serves as the Adjunct to the Staff for the School of Social Work at the University of Pittsburgh and serves on the Advisory Board of the School for Rehabilitation Sciences. From 2012 – 2014, she served on the Women’s Leadership Advisory Council (WLAC) at Robert Morris University.
Melva is a graduate of Carlow College with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology and Special Education. She also graduated from Robert Morris University with a Master Degree in Non-Profit Management. Ms. Fair is a strong advocate of community inclusion and supports the agency’s mission of Working Toward A Community Where Each Belongs.
