News and Knowledge

Roberto T. Datorre, Esq., recently joined OAR’s Board of Directors. He is not, however, new to OAR and its mission. He and his wife, Elizabeth, first met OAR as members of the RUN FOR AUTISM teams for the 2013 Philadelphia Rock and Roll Half Marathon and then again for the 2015 Marine Corps Marathon. Just last month, Datorre and his family traveled to Alexandria, Virginia to participate in OAR’s inaugural Active For Autism 5K.

He joined the RUN FOR AUTISM as the father of a son with autism, R.J., who is now 11. “OAR’s RUN FOR AUTISM has helped me meet so many wonderful families who, like ours, are blessed with an autistic family member. It seems that every day I meet a new autism family. Each family has their own stories of struggles and successes. Each family is another source of inspiration.”

He and Elizabeth are also parents to Catherine, 13, and Chris, 7. The family lives in Elizabethtown, Pa.

Datorre is executive vice president of Commonwealth Charter Academy Charter School (CCA), a public cyber charter school serving over 9,500 students in grades K through 12 across Pennsylvania. Over 20 percent of the school’s students are special education students, including students with autism. Having joined the school in October 2018, Datorre is excited to have the “ability to create programs and foster relationships with organizations that can help us support students and families all over Pennsylvania, including those with autism. What we do at CCA can help improve public education in Pennsylvania and in other states.”

Prior to his position at CCA, Datorre worked in state government for 13 years in several different roles, including most recently as deputy chief counsel in the Department of Education.

Datorre noted that he has had many opportunities to serve others in his professional and personal life and enjoyed the chance to contribute to the wellbeing of his community. Serving on the OAR board, he believes, would have even a greater significance for him. He hopes, during his service on the board to “share information with families about the resources OAR offers, help promote RUN FOR AUTISM, and help expand Hire Autism. The ‘one more mile’ attitude that I have developed as a runner and let bleed into the rest of my life is what I bring to my new role with OAR and the goal to help expand programs dedicated to serving the autism community.”