Airika Crawford

Airika Crawford, MSW, joined the Meadows Institute with over 14 years of experience working within child welfare and higher education institutions. She has comprehensive knowledge and expertise in macro social work practice, program development, qualitative and quantitative research methods, nonprofit management, child welfare case management, project management, outreach, recruitment, and retention of underserved populations. 

 Before the Meadows Institute, Airika served as the Senior Director of the Bexar County Fostering Educational Success Program, where she played a key role in developing impactful educational programs for students with foster care experience. Her contributions were instrumental in transforming several community leaders’ visions into a robust program with a significant collective impact on the educational outcomes of these students. Her work also caught the attention of Jenna Parro and Kate Volti who are leading work on the intersection of mental health, education, and foster care, and Airika’s work further inspired their efforts in North Texas.  

Airika holds a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from Wayne State University, an MSW from the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor, and is currently pursuing a doctoral degree in Higher Education Leadership at The University of Texas at San Antonio. Airika is a proud mother of three kids. They are her greatest motivators, fueling her passion for providing transformative systems and equitable access to higher education for minoritized populations.