Cass Parker

Mission: To serve people with intellectual and developmental disabilities to achieve their full potential and to participate in community life. Vision: A community where disability is a distinction without a difference, where individuals will have choices on how they live, learn, work, worship, and play. The Arc Jacksonville has served our community’s citizens with intellectual and developmental disabilities since 1965. The organization began within a grassroots movement to provide educational opportunities for special needs persons who were not well-served by the public education system. Over the decades, The Arc program has evolved and expanded to offer a wide range of services today within community settings. Today The Arc has an annual operating budget of $7.6 million, serves approximately 400 individuals daily and provides employment for approximately 130 staff members as well as service opportunities for 24 AmeriCorps and 6 VISTA members. Services are rendered from three main locations and five group homes. In addition to the direct services provided through our programs, The Arc Jacksonville serves as a source of information and support for the entire Northeast Florida area through its advocacy program, called A.S.K. (Advocacy, Support and Knowledge).