Dee Pekruhn

Senior Director, Life Plan Communities and CCaH
LeadingAge
Washington, DC
  • 102-G. CCRC Statutes for Growth-Minded Multi-State Providers

    • Tuesday, October 27, 2026

    8:30 – 9:30 a.m.

    102-G. CCRC Statutes for Growth-Minded Multi-State Providers

    Looking to expand your organizational footprint by establishing life plan communities in multiple states? Your success will depend on how well you understand each new state’s life plan community statutes. This session will outline the benefits and risks of expanding across state lines to establish life plan communities. An expert panel of multi-state executives, financial experts, and LeadingAge state partners will discuss the strategic, practical, and legal requirements of multi-state expansion and guide you in assessing each new state’s receptivity to life plan communities. A review of existing state laws and legislative trends will round out the session. You’ll gain access to LeadingAge tools and resources to inform your decision-making.

Simone Pena

Vice President of Operations
Brickford Senior Living
Tinley Park, IL
  • 52-I. Jump-Start Holistic Wellness with Part B Medicare

    • Tuesday, October 27, 2026

    4:30 – 5:30 p.m.

    52-I. Jump-Start Holistic Wellness with Part B Medicare

    In 2024, Medicare added new fee-for-service codes to address health-related social needs and to cover services that help beneficiaries navigate the healthcare system. The new Part B codes may create payment opportunities for services you already offer at no charge. This session will outline the components and benefits of holistic wellness programs and explain how they improve health outcomes for residents and clients. Presenters will describe Part B programs that cover holistic wellness services and identify innovative technologies and practices that support service delivery. You’ll take home summaries of all relevant Part B programs, a pro forma revenue calculator for Part B income, and samples of assessments and care plans.

Salvatore Petronella

Policy & Public Affairs Lead
Labor Mobility Partnerships (LaMP)
Stockholm
  • 150-P. Age Readiness: A Global Imperative

    • Saturday, October 24, 2026

    9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.

    150-P. Age Readiness: A Global Imperative

    Join innovators, policymakers, researchers, and service providers for this full-day summit exploring how to build societies ready for longevity. The program will feature global perspectives and cross-disciplinary dialogue to help participants challenge traditional assumptions about ageing, explore emerging innovations and best practices, and identify opportunities to prepare organizations, communities, and societies for the realities and possibilities of demographic change. Don’t miss this opportunity to join colleagues from around the world as they explore innovative approaches to supporting lifelong wellness, creating age-ready environments, harnessing technology to transform the aging experience, sustaining high-quality care through workforce development, and advancing the policy changes needed to shape aging-friendly communities.

Stacey Phelps

Regional Operations Manager
Arlington Estates Co-op
Warren, MI
  • 53-J. The Social Benefits of Embracing the Cooperative Housing Model

    • Wednesday, October 28, 2026

    8:30 – 9:30 a.m.

    53-J. The Social Benefits of Embracing the Cooperative Housing Model

    Most of us are familiar with “co-ops,” multi-unit residential buildings collectively owned and democratically managed by their occupants. This session will examine how a nonprofit senior living organization adopted this commercial real estate model to empower “resident members” of its housing communities to govern themselves. Leaders of the organization will explain how residents participate in decision-making through councils and committees and volunteer to assist with or lead day-to-day operations in collaboration with the property manager. You’ll take home a structured outline of the cooperative housing management model and a new understanding of how this level of active participation helps resident members take pride in their housing and lead healthier, more enriched lives.

Marissa Marsico Picchini

President & CEO
Luthercare
Lititz, PA
  • 11-K. Let’s Stop Talking about AI and Start Using It

    • Wednesday, October 28, 2026

    10:00 – 11:00 a.m.

    11-K. Let’s Stop Talking about AI and Start Using It

    Tired of talking about Artificial Intelligence (AI)? Ready to start using AI to improve care, empower staff, and drive better outcomes? This session is for you. Two senior living executives will outline how AI is already helping their organizations streamline operations, make smarter decisions, and enhance the resident experience. They’ll also discuss how AI is likely to shape senior living over the next five years. Discover how providers can use AI for automated clinical documentation, medication and fall-risk detection, workforce scheduling, and more. You’ll learn how to prepare your data environments for AI, scale AI adoption, and ensure your technology investments align with organizational goals.

Emily Pierson-Brown

Practice Area Leader – Senior Living
Perkins Eastman
Austin, TX
  • 125-E. Co-Locating Affordable and Middle-Income Housing

    • Monday, October 26, 2026

    3:00 – 4:00 p.m.

    125-E. Co-Locating Affordable and Middle-Income Housing

    Providers of affordable senior housing have long aimed to serve both low- and middle-income older adults. This session will showcase a housing project that achieved both goals by co-locating a new middle-income life plan community with an existing affordable housing community and linking the buildings through a shared amenity space. Presenters will explain how the shared campus fosters a more equitable community and offers services and staff that go beyond what either community could provide independently. You’ll discover the architectural and spatial implications of building an income-inclusive community and learn why the local market was receptive to this new concept.

Laura Powell

Director of Life Enrichment & Volunteer Services
Bridgewater Retirement Community
Bridgewater, VA
  • 19-G. A Resident-Led Model for Purpose and Partnership

    • Tuesday, October 27, 2026

    8:30 – 9:30 a.m.

    19-G. A Resident-Led Model for Purpose and Partnership

    By empowering residents to serve others, life plan communities can strengthen their organizational culture, enhance engagement, and support leadership development. That’s the lesson one community learned when it established a resident-directed Community Connections Team to plan, promote, and evaluate outreach initiatives. This session will explore the community’s service model, which inspires residents and team members to contribute more than 1,000 hours of service each year to hunger initiatives, intergenerational reading partnerships, and other outreach efforts. Presenters will share practical strategies for generating outreach ideas, evaluating service projects, collaborating across campus, and involving the Foundation as a vital partner in funding initiatives and growing a culture of community partnership. Learn how to deepen resident engagement within your community and across your region.

Melissa Preston

Associate Executive Director
Rogue Valley Manor
Medford, OR
  • 144-J. Rural Life Plan Communities Can Address Provider Shortages

    • Wednesday, October 28, 2026

    8:30 – 9:30 a.m.

    144-J. Rural Life Plan Communities Can Address Provider Shortages

    Accessing quality and consistent primary care is increasingly difficult for older adults in rural areas, largely due to challenges associated with contracting, credentialing, workforce shortages, and sustaining geriatric-focused primary care. This session will explore how a life plan community addressed these challenges by establishing an on-site primary care clinic that integrates care across all its service levels. Presenters will outline the clinic’s development and explain how it addresses provider shortages and payer complexities, and enhances resident wellness. You’ll take away practical strategies for designing sustainable, resident-centered healthcare models that strengthen and improve access, continuity, and satisfaction. You’ll also appreciate the critical role partnerships play in supporting sustainable, resident-centered healthcare.

Nicole Pretre

President & Chief Executive Officer
Cedar Community
West Bend, WI
  • 26-C. Leveraging Your Leadership Team to Move the Needle on Benevolence

    • Sunday, October 25, 2026

    4:30 – 5:30 p.m.

    26-C. Leveraging Your Leadership Team to Move the Needle on Benevolence

    Everyone is a fundraiser. That’s the message of this session, which will help you support key strategic priorities in your senior living community by connecting donors, both emotionally and programmatically, to specific activities or divisions on your campus. Presenters will show you how to leverage the strategic vision of your board, executive team, divisional leaders, and key frontline staff to move the needle on benevolence. You’ll learn to build relationships with diverse team leaders across all care levels and lifestyle divisions, then work together to prioritize fundraising opportunities that align with donor interests and your strategic plan.

Louis Prues, MBA, DMin, PhD

Immediate Past Board Chair
Presbyterian Villages of Michigan
St. Clair Shores, MI
  • 29-F. Strengthen Your Board Through Planned Enrichment

    • Monday, October 26, 2026

    4:30 – 5:30 p.m.

    29-F. Strengthen Your Board Through Planned Enrichment

    Knowledgeable, experienced, and engaged board members are essential to the success of senior living organizations. Yet few board members arrive at their first board meeting with all the knowledge needed to fulfill their roles. This session will explore how one organization expanded board members’ capacity by dedicating the first 60-90 minutes of its bimonthly board meetings to a wide range of enrichment activities. Presenters will outline how they implemented the revised board agenda and how it improved the board’s effectiveness. You’ll learn strategies for assessing board members’ current knowledge and addressing gaps. Discover how enrichment sessions can strengthen your board and help its members become confident change agents and change makers.

Chris Pugliese

Head of Interoperability
MatrixCare
Morrisville, NC
  • 3-C. Unlocking the Power of Interoperability

    • Sunday, October 25, 2026

    4:30 – 5:30 p.m.

    3-C. Unlocking the Power of Interoperability

    As the country’s healthcare system becomes more interconnected, the need for interoperable data exchange across care settings has never been more critical. Yet interoperability is often hindered because its meaning and benefits are unclear to the providers who could gain the most from it. This session will clear up the confusion. Presenters will demonstrate the practical advantages of interoperability and help you assess your organization’s readiness to implement it. They’ll also offer practical strategies for connecting data systems, enabling seamless data exchange with other care settings, and supporting integrated workflows. You’ll learn how one organization used interoperability to transform its operations, boost staff morale, and strengthen referral networks.

Sean Purser

Chief Quality Officer
Atria Senior Living
Louisville, KY
  • 79-D. Future-Proof Your Organization with a Quality Framework

    • Monday, October 26, 2026

    8:30 – 9:30 a.m.

    79-D. Future-Proof Your Organization with a Quality Framework

    Investing in quality can future-proof your aging services organization against regulatory, reimbursement, and demographic changes. The reason is simple: Discerning consumers assess providers based on whether their quality is trustworthy and measurable. This session will highlight the quality metrics that matter most to consumers and families when selecting aging services providers. You’ll learn how to use a standardized quality framework to strengthen workforce culture, improve recruitment, and reduce turnover. You’ll also discover how your organization’s quality performance can set it apart in the marketplace, build robust referral pipelines, and expand partnerships. This is your chance to transform quality from a compliance requirement into a growth strategy.