12/18/07 The Board of Directors is pleased to announce that it has changed the name of the Foundation for the Retarded of the Desert. Effective December 18, 2007, the name of the non-profit agency is DesertArc. The non-profit agency will no longer be known as a Foundation. It is officially named “DesertArc Corporation” but the name DesertArc will be used exclusively to refer to the agency.

The primary impetus for the name change is to eliminate the word “retarded” from the agency’s title. Many clients, parents and supporters have been asking for a name change because through time the word “retarded” has taken on a negative and derisive connotation. A secondary reason for the name change is to signal that the agency is committed to reinventing itself to be one of the premier nonprofit agencies in the Desert with a strong commitment to providing exceptional, cost effective services for developmentally disabled people and their families.

The name “DesertArc” was chosen by the Board with a unanimous vote. It was selected from among many contenders primarily because it already exists as the non profit’s web address, the term ARC is the most frequently occurring nomenclature for other California and national nonprofits that serve the developmentally disabled population, and DesertArc intends to join the California and national ARC organizations to take advantage of the services and opportunities those organizations offer their memberships. Funds will be budgeted next fiscal year to join. It should be noted that the letters of the acronym ARC California stand for Advocacy, Respect and Care.

DesertArc will be phasing in the use of the name DesertArc in its marketing materials, publications, website, signage and other areas. It will take many months for all of the changes to be implemented since they are extensive and costly. At this time, business cards, stationery and the main signage on the front of the building have been changed out to reflect the new name and theme.

DesertArc is developing a marketing plan to inform the community about DesertArc and the important services DesertArc provides for developmentally disabled people who live in the area.

DesertArc would welcome donations from anyone who would like to help the organization fund a professional marketing plan to get the word out and complete the transition to the new name. It is estimated that the cost of this plan and transition will range from $50,000 to $75,000 by the time it is done. (760.346.1611 73-255 Country Club Drive, Palm Desert, CA 92260)

The agency has intended to change its name for the past several years and over this time created focus groups and taken suggestions from various sources, including members, employees, clients, parents and other community members. Until recently, no consensus for a new name had been reached over that time. With the goal of adopting a new name prior to 2008, the Board of Directors created a name change committee several months ago. The committee did extensive research using information available from various sources and deliberated at several meetings before arriving at its recommendation to change the name to DesertArc. The Board of Director accepted this recommendation in a meeting held at the end of November.