Luanne Welch is an experienced non-profit leader and successful relationship builder in the health and human services industry.  Community advocate among individuals, donors, funders, government, staff, volunteers, corporate leaders, boards, and provider networks for individuals living with disabilities and behavioral health challenges. Recognized as turnaround leader with an ability to reorganize financially challenged organizations and reposition them for sustained, healthy growth.

Ms. Welch is currently the president and chief executive officer at Easterseals UCP NC & VA. She has led a massive turnaround of operations to be fiscally sound through rebalancing the portfolio of services and ongoing portfolio management.  Ms. Welch has expanded the scope of services, geographic reach and agency budget from $75 million in 2015 to $94 million in 2022.  She has orchestrated dramatic culture change for accountability and aligning on purpose and beliefs, recognizing the importance of the frontline, discovering and thoughtfully articulating their just cause.  She has attracted and engaged a strong, diverse board of directors. Ms. Welch is a prime mover in embracing and honoring a culture of diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Prior to Easterseals UCP NC & VA, Ms. Welch was president and chief executive officer for Easterseals South Florida.  Here she facilitated the organization’s turnaround by divesting programs that were no longer affordable and/or mission consistent. She developed the strategic direction that focused on the organization’s strengths in autism and Alzheimer’s; built a strong management team; worked with key board prospects to transform the board; opened Autism School, a third Alzheimer’s adult day center; and six Head Start/Early Head Start Centers.  She led the organizations budget growth from $7 million in FY2012 to $11 million in FY2013.  Ms. Welch also recruited and developed a motivated and highly engaged board that grew contributed income from $300K to $1.2 million.

Before Easterseals South Florida, Ms. Welch was the chief operating officer for Easterseals UCP.  Here she facilitated program team reorganization post-merger to stabilize operations and position for future growth. Ms. Welch developed and implemented “Balanced Portfolio” methodology to objectively assess performance across programs using criteria-based mission and finance grid analysis. Her primary area of responsibility: $50 million of organization’s statewide program operations; financial and clinical oversight of 130 business units in four service lines (children’s services, individual and community supports, child placement, and supported employment) and supervised seven direct reports including four vice presidents.

Ms. Welch has a Bachelor of Science in Recreation Resource Administration from North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC.