Lou Tisler

Executive Director

Lou Tisler has been involved in community and economic development for over 30 years. In 2018, he was named the Executive Director of National NeighborWorks® Association, a DC-based, national trade association for NeighborWorks groups, affordable housing and community development groups across the nation.  NNA’s mission is to unite housing and community development practitioners to advocate for housing and economic opportunities for individuals, families, communities, and neighborhoods across the country.  He has built bipartisan, bicameral relationships that have resulted in obtaining funding and policy achievements on the Hill.  He is a nationally recognized leader in community and economic development having developed and implemented replicable programs for foreclosure prevention, home buyer education, affordable housing and reverse mortgage counseling. Mr. Tisler also worked for National Community Reinvestment Coalition (NCRC), Neighborhood Housing Services of Greater Cleveland (NHSGC), the First Suburbs Development Council, and Westown Community Development Corporation.  Mr. Tisler has garnered organizational visibility that has included NPR’s Marketplace, The Economist, the Christian Science Monitor, the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, the USAToday and other various media outlets allowing for exposure and awareness of the impact and needs of the affordable housing industry. Mr. Tisler was awarded the Distinguished Activist Award by Community Shares in 2016, chosen as “One to Watch” by the Cleveland Plain Dealer, as well as one of the 50 “Fascinating Alumni” by Cleveland State University for their 50th Anniversary.  He was also chosen to the American Marshall Memorial Fellowship, providing a unique opportunity for policy and opinion leaders from 14 European countries and the US to gain an in-depth understanding of societies, institutions, and peoples across the Atlantic, including an immersion of the European Union in the countries of Belgium, Denmark, Spain, Poland and Germany. Mr. Tisler is a graduate of Cleveland State University with a BBA in Finance, an MBA in Management and Labor Relations, and completed the Achieving Excellence Program, John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, Executive Education.  He has resided in Greater Cleveland for over 40 years with his wife and two incredible daughters.