Evan Rotunno

Director of Sales and Marketing
The Hill at Whitemarsh
Lafayette Hill, PA
  • 65-E. Early Advantage Programs: Put Your Wait List to Work

    • Monday, October 26, 2026

    3:00 – 4:00 p.m.

    65-E. Early Advantage Programs: Put Your Wait List to Work

    Innovative service models are gaining traction as life plan communities navigate shifting consumer expectations and competitive pressures. This session will examine one such model: Early Advantage programs that allow waitlisted individuals to become “residents” before moving in. Two providers, an actuary, and a strategic consultant will describe these programs, which often charge consumers a fee in exchange for priority waitlist placement or early access to healthcare services. Presenters will explore how these programs benefit providers and the challenges related to pricing, operations, and policy-setting. You’ll learn what motivates prospective residents to join these programs, lessons learned by providers, and risk factors for boards to consider.

Uwe Rudnick

Regional Dining Director
Greystone
Irving, TX
  • 80-E. Optimizing Dining Operations Amid Workforce Challenges

    • Monday, October 26, 2026

    3:00 – 4:00 p.m.

    80-E. Optimizing Dining Operations Amid Workforce Challenges

    A senior living community’s dining program shapes residents’ daily experience and signals organizational stability and operational efficiency. Unfortunately, high staff turnover, driven by low compensation, often leads to inconsistent service quality and undermines resident satisfaction. This session will provide practical tools to maintain your dining program’s quality, consistency, and service standards. Presenters will share management practices including coaching frontline supervisors and standardizing expectations that build resilience in dining departments. You’ll also learn to improve the dining experience through menu innovations, structured leadership training, outcome measurement, and operational systems that sustain quality. Make your dining experience a reliable, mission-critical touchpoint despite ongoing workforce challenges.

Aline Russotto

Executive Director
Orchard Cove
Canton, MA
  • 25-B. A Dose of Inspiration: Servant Leaders Tell Their Stories

    • Sunday, October 25, 2026

    2:45 – 3:45 p.m.

    25-B. A Dose of Inspiration: Servant Leaders Tell Their Stories

    Strong leaders persuade, anticipate the future, and guide their organizations toward results. Strong “servant leaders” also build and nurture trust, deepen relationships, and develop team members so they can make a lasting impact. This session will feature servant leaders working to improve the field of aging services and the lives of older adults. Panelists will describe their involvement in a variety of movements, including dementia inclusion, LGBTQ+ affordable housing, and age-friendly cities. They’ll share how they apply their talents and wisdom to promote equity, access, and inclusion within and beyond their organizations. Join this session for a dose of inspiration and leave feeling motivated to consider your own mission and legacy.

Colleen Ryan Mallon

Vice President of Marketing and Advancement
Frasier
Boulder, CO
  • 47-G. Fostering a Culture of Philanthropy in Life Plan Communities

    • Tuesday, October 27, 2026

    8:30 – 9:30 a.m.

    47-G. Fostering a Culture of Philanthropy in Life Plan Communities

    Faith-based senior living organizations can no longer rely solely on congregational support for financial sustainability. Instead, they must build internal fundraising capacity by fostering a culture of philanthropy among residents, many of whom don’t realize their monthly fees don’t cover all expenses. During this session, a life plan community’s chief growth officer will share how their organization and its foundation built relationships with key stakeholders and improved donor engagement. Presenters will explain why their fundraising efforts succeeded and how they plan to enhance them. You’ll discover how resident engagement, a strong gift structure, and AI-powered technology boosted their fundraising and could do the same for your organization.

Philippe Saad

Principal
DiMella Shaffer
Boston, MA
  • 25-B. A Dose of Inspiration: Servant Leaders Tell Their Stories

    • Sunday, October 25, 2026

    2:45 – 3:45 p.m.

    25-B. A Dose of Inspiration: Servant Leaders Tell Their Stories

    Strong leaders persuade, anticipate the future, and guide their organizations toward results. Strong “servant leaders” also build and nurture trust, deepen relationships, and develop team members so they can make a lasting impact. This session will feature servant leaders working to improve the field of aging services and the lives of older adults. Panelists will describe their involvement in a variety of movements, including dementia inclusion, LGBTQ+ affordable housing, and age-friendly cities. They’ll share how they apply their talents and wisdom to promote equity, access, and inclusion within and beyond their organizations. Join this session for a dose of inspiration and leave feeling motivated to consider your own mission and legacy.

  • 150-P. GAN Summit: Age Readiness: A Global Imperative

    • Saturday, October 24, 2026

    9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.

    150-P. GAN Summit: 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.

Tatiana Sadak

Deputy Dean
Yale School of Nursing
Orange, CT
  • 117-I. From Fear to Action: Addressing the Root Causes of Dementia through Cognitive Wellness

    • Tuesday, October 27, 2026

    4:30 – 5:30 p.m.

    117-I. From Fear to Action: Addressing the Root Causes of Dementia through Cognitive Wellness

    Dementia ranks among the most feared chronic conditions of later life. Yet emerging evidence suggests that up to 45% of dementia cases worldwide could be delayed or prevented by addressing its root causes. This session will focus on a Cognitive Wellness Clinic embedded in a senior living community specializing in dementia care. Presenters will describe how the clinic conducts early cognitive wellness assessments and provides clients with personalized recommendations to modify dementia-related risk factors and adopt lifestyle strategies that build confidence, engagement, and well-being. You’ll gain practical strategies for adapting this model within your organization and positioning aging services providers at the forefront of brain health innovation.

Frances Salinas

President & CEO
Wesley Willows
Rockford, IL
  • 124-D. Designing for Cognitive Health with Agentic AI

    • Monday, October 26, 2026

    8:30 – 9:30 a.m.

    124-D. Designing for Cognitive Health with Agentic AI

    More than 7.2 million older Americans live with Alzheimer’s disease, and 42% of those over 55 are likely to develop dementia. Fortunately, environmental design can support these individuals by promoting brain health, enhancing cognition, reducing care costs, and increasing resident satisfaction. This session will introduce “Senior Brain,” an artificial intelligence-powered system that evaluates community spaces to identify cognitive “hot spots” and recommend design improvements. Presenters will explore how the system leverages neuroplasticity the brain’s ability to change through learning and experience to create environments that protect brain health. You’ll learn how a life plan community used the Senior Brain system during a recent renovation.

Catherine Samatas

Director of Engagement and Innovative Programming
CJE SeniorLife
Chicago, IL
  • 15-C. Preserving Human Connections in Tech-Rich Care Settings

    • Sunday, October 25, 2026

    4:30 – 5:30 p.m.

    15-C. Preserving Human Connections in Tech-Rich Care Settings

    Smart technology systems can improve your organization’s efficiency and outcomes, but they can’t replace human interaction or the need for empathy in care settings. That’s why senior living and healthcare leaders must work relentlessly to preserve meaningful human connections, even as they expand their use of artificial intelligence, automation, and digital systems. This session will use storytelling, case studies, and audience exercises to show how empathy strengthens communication, restores residents’ dignity, improves perceptions of care, and reduces readmissions. You’ll take home strategies for integrating empathy into workflows, onboarding, leadership practices, and technology-driven environments. Don’t miss this opportunity to help your organization preserve the human experience even as it pursues innovation.

DeeAndra Sandgren

Chief Nursing Officer
The Evangelical Lutheran Good Samaritan Society
Sioux Falls, SD
  • 82-F. Early Warning: Using Proactive Risk Awareness to Delay Decline

    • Monday, October 26, 2026

    4:30 – 5:30 p.m.

    82-F. Early Warning: Using Proactive Risk Awareness to Delay Decline

    Providers of aging services face increasing pressure to help residents and clients maintain their highest level of wellness in the most appropriate, lowest-cost setting. Unfortunately, subtle health and functional changes often go unnoticed until decline triggers care transitions. This session will show you how to delay residents’ decline by shifting from reactive care management to proactive risk awareness. Presenters will explain how everyday observations, care documentation, and caregiver insights can help care teams identify emerging health issues and intervene earlier to prevent unnecessary transitions. They’ll also offer strategies for managing unavoidable care transitions more effectively. You’ll understand why earlier risk awareness is becoming a foundational capability for sustainable, person-centered care.

Anne Marie Santoro

Vice President Training, Outreach & Materials
3G Mentoring
The Bronx, NY
  • 137-D. Intergenerational Housing Could Strengthen Your Workforce

    • Monday, October 26, 2026

    8:30 – 9:30 a.m.

    137-D. Intergenerational Housing Could Strengthen Your Workforce

    Looking for a housing option that meets older adults’ needs while attracting young workers to help them live independently? This session will introduce an intergenerational housing model that addresses the aging services workforce crisis, the affordable housing shortage, and the loneliness epidemic affecting young and old alike. Presenters will describe a unique intergenerational community model that provides affordable housing to older adults and hires young people who have “aged out” of the foster care system to work in the community. They’ll review market trends driving the growth of intergenerational living, its potential to strengthen your workforce, and architectural guidelines to help you bring this housing option to your campus.

Anne Marie Santoro

Vice President
3G Mentoring
The Bronx, NY
  • 137-D. Intergenerational Housing Could Strengthen Your Workforce

    • Monday, October 26, 2026

    8:30 – 9:30 a.m.

    137-D. Intergenerational Housing Could Strengthen Your Workforce

    Looking for a housing option that meets older adults’ needs while attracting young workers to help them live independently? This session will introduce an intergenerational housing model that addresses the aging services workforce crisis, the affordable housing shortage, and the loneliness epidemic affecting young and old alike. Presenters will describe a unique intergenerational community model that provides affordable housing to older adults and hires young people who have “aged out” of the foster care system to work in the community. They’ll review market trends driving the growth of intergenerational living, its potential to strengthen your workforce, and architectural guidelines to help you bring this housing option to your campus.

Karah Santos, RN

Assistant Director of Nursing
Jewish Home at Rockleigh
Rockleigh, NJ
  • 113-E. Improving Dementia Care with AI-Powered Pain Assessment

    • Monday, October 26, 2026

    3:00 – 4:00 p.m.

    113-E. Improving Dementia Care with AI-Powered Pain Assessment

    Pain is often underrecognized and undertreated in older adults with dementia, many of whom cannot reliably self-report their discomfort. This communication barrier leads caregivers to rely on subjective observations, resulting in inconsistent assessments and missed opportunities for intervention. This session will explore how AI-powered pain assessment tools combine automated facial recognition with structured digital checklists to accurately and consistently identify pain-related behaviors in nonverbal individuals. Presenters will demonstrate how to use these tools to improve clinical decision-making and reduce falls, frailty, and inappropriate drug use. Join this session to discover how technology and human care can work together to ensure a pain-free future for older adults.