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<p>WILKES-BARRE &#8212; When Donna Sedor met the participants of The Arc of Luzerne County&#8217;s TRACE program, she knew she found the right job.</p><p>&#8220;They all said hello and they were sure to say goodbye when they were leaving,&#8221; Sedor, Arc&#8217;s new executive director, recalled with a smile. &#8220;I love our clients and I love working with them.&#8221;</p><p>TRACE &#8212; the agency&#8217;s Transition to Community Employment (TRACE) program &#8212; is a 12-month work readiness initiative developed by The Arc of Luzerne County and delivered through Luzerne County Community College for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD) and autism.</p><p>To date, the TRACE program has successfully completed five classes and is now hosting the sixth. Of the 40 graduates, 32 are gainfully employed at minimum wage or higher.</p><p>Sedor started her new job in mid-December and Tuesday she talked about The Arc and her plans moving forward.</p><p>The Luzerne County agency is a chapter of The Arc of the U.S., which is collectively the nation&#8217;s largest organization advocating for the rights of people with intellectual disabilities.</p><p>The Arc assists intellectually, developmentally, and physically disabled people, with the goal &#8220;to help everyone live the life they deserve by providing the support they need.&#8221;</p><p>&#8220;We want to be our clients&#8217; voice,&#8221; Sedor said. &#8220;We work every day to connect people with disabilities with activities they enjoy and want to do.&#8221;</p><p>Sedor said 16.4 percent of Luzerne County residents have some type of disability. She intends to expand programming geographically and in number of participants.</p><p>Sedor also plans to work with county colleges and universities regarding training programs for Arc clients.</p><p>&#8220;We are in the process of determining where the needs are,&#8221; Sedor said. &#8220;We are also going to reach out to our state legislators to see what is going on legislative-wise.&#8221;</p><p>Sedor said The Arc serves more than 500 clients. She hopes to start an alumni network for them so they can better stay in touch.</p><p><strong>Hundreds served</strong></p><p>The Arc of Luzerne County, founded in 1952, provides advocacy, community education, outreach, independent monitoring, and individual and family support services.</p><p>Last year alone, it assisted 146 individuals with ID/DD, 158 families, and had more than 3,500 contacts with professionals on behalf of the people it serves.</p><p>The agency hosts the only community resource center (CRC) in the northeast region dedicated to materials relevant to people with I/DD and related disabilities. The CRC houses a lending library containing books, videos, DVDs, and other educational tools available to the public. Computers with internet access are available during business hours for use by anyone.</p><p>Sedor has extensive experience with non-profits, including serving as the director of development for the Women&#8217;s Resource Center, director of development for the Wyoming Valley Children&#8217;s Association and vice president of the Greater Wilkes-Barre Chamber of Commerce. She also worked in the public relations area of C-TEC Corp. (now Frontier Communications).</p><p>Sedor holds a degree in communications from Wilkes University and studied Organizational Management at Misericordia University.</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">Donna Sedor is the new executive director of The Arc of Luzerne County, which is devoted to helping residents with intellectual and developmental disabilities. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/web1_donna_sedor1_faa-1-.jpg</photo0><caption0>Donna Sedor is the new executive director of The Arc of Luzerne County, which is devoted to helping residents with intellectual and developmental disabilities. </caption0><photoCredit0>Fred Adams | For Times Leader </photoCredit0></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Bill O&#8217;Boyle</p><p>boboyle@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Bill O&#8217;Boyle at 570-991-6118 or on Twitter @TLBillOBoyle.</p></shirttailMeta></div>

Arc of Luzerne County’s new executive director opens up about plans