Schreiber Pediatric Searches for New Leader, William Jefferson Announces Departure in August 2012

(LANCASTER, Pa.) – Schreiber Pediatric Rehab Center President William Jefferson has announced his plans to step down as the organization’s chief executive at the end of August 2012.

“This has been the most rewarding job I’ve ever had and it will be very difficult to leave,” said Jefferson. He has been serving as the not-for-profit’s leader since 1997 and has watched many of the children receiving services grow up. “The impact we have on these children’s lives is invaluable,” then he added humbly, “I hope I’ve had a hand in it.”

Jefferson assumed leadership of the Center in 1997 after working for thirty-one years at Lancaster General Hospital in a number of management positions. At the time of his retirement from the hospital, Jefferson served as Vice President of Community Mission and was responsible for many of the hospital’s innovative community outreach programs, many of which are still used today.

In 1994, while working as President of Lancaster General Hospital – Susquehanna Division, Jefferson served as Schreiber Pediatric’s Interim President. Moved by the experience, he resigned from Lancaster General Hospital in 1997 to become the Center’s President and Chief Executive Officer. One of Jefferson’s main objectives when he initially joined Schreiber was branding the institution as the area’s premier provider of rehabilitation services for families, children and adolescents.

When asked about the Center’s future, Jefferson voiced his confidence in the Center’s ability to thrive and enhance its services under the next President. He stated, “I’ve worked with great people in the healthcare industry and the staff here at Schreiber is truly exceptional.”

The Board of Directors Search Committee, under the guidance of Board President, Jim Darby, will seek an individual who has the skills and knowledge to navigate the ever-changing healthcare field and lead the Center toward its next seventy-five years of service.

Darby noted that the Center, under Jefferson’s leadership, has continued to enhance and expand the quality of its services and programs despite extremely challenging financial circumstances. As such, the search committee will be looking for similar qualities in his replacement. Darby is hopeful to find Jefferson’s successor several months before his retirement to help provide a smooth transition of leadership.

Upon retirement, Jefferson plans to spend time volunteering in the community, traveling with his wife Betty and fly fishing.

Schreiber Pediatric Rehab Center is a nationally recognized not-for-profit organization that provides physical, occupational and speech-language therapy, as well as educational and recreational programs for nearly 4,000 children in Lancaster County living with congenital and acquired disabilities and developmental delays.

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