Janet Stringfellow

President & CEO
Volunteers of America Florida
St. Petersburg, FL, US
  • 14-B. Serving Aging Veterans: Let’s Close the Information Gap

    • Sunday, October 25, 2026

    2:45 – 3:45 p.m.

    14-B. Serving Aging Veterans: Let’s Close the Information Gap

    Nearly half of U.S. veterans are 65 or older. Yet most aging services professionals lack training to address this population’s unique needs, and aging-focused resources rarely address them. This session aims to fill those gaps. Presenters will explain how military culture, trauma, service-related injuries, and the complexity of benefit eligibility shape veterans’ needs as they age. They will also discuss cultural and trauma-informed approaches to supporting veterans across housing, health, and social-service settings, including a pilot program that helps high-acuity veterans with low incomes age in place. You’ll gain insights into the program’s implementation and early outcomes and take home lessons you can adapt to your care and service settings.

Mark Sunderman

Director of Rehabilitation
Eastmont Towers Community
Lincoln, NE, US
  • 126-B. Innovative Designs for Active Adult and Independent Living Communities

    • Sunday, November 02, 2025

    2:45 – 3:45 p.m.

    126-B. Innovative Designs for Active Adult and Independent Living Communities

    The next generation of senior living residents will seek aesthetically pleasing homes and apartments that support their independence, adapt to their evolving needs, and preserve their dignity. This session will explore innovative designs for active-adult and independent living that will help you meet the preferences of current and future consumers. Presenters will draw on insights from design, marketing, sales, and therapy experts to help you envision life plan community homes and apartments that quickly adapt to residents’ needs, balance safety and autonomy, and maintain a non-institutional feel. They’ll also examine the latest in-home technology, including voice-activated controls, automated lighting, and fall detection sensors. Discover how to design your community’s dwellings to support aging and choice while discreetly addressing residents’ changing needs.

David Swartley

President & CEO
Unitas Communities
Lititz, PA, US
  • 31-H. Affiliation Strategies that Balance Autonomy with Collaboration

    • Tuesday, October 27, 2026

    3:00 – 4:00 p.m.

    31-H. Affiliation Strategies that Balance Autonomy with Collaboration

    Affiliation can help nonprofit senior living organizations achieve long-term sustainability, foster innovation, and remain true to their core mission and values amid today’s operational challenges. This session will explore the affiliation process that united two life plan communities under a shared governance structure while preserving their individual identities. Presenters will outline steps for building a successful affiliation, including establishing a robust legal and governance framework, drafting bylaws that reflect shared values and priorities, and addressing board composition and responsibilities. Whether you’re considering affiliation, engaged in partnership talks, or refining an existing relationship, you’ll learn how to build an affiliation that promotes stability, improves services, and ensures long-term success.

Jacob Swint

Vice President of Strategic Growth and Operations Support
National Church Residences
Columbus, OH, US
  • 85-H. Primary Care Partnerships: How They Work, Why They Matter

    • Tuesday, October 27, 2026

    3:00 – 4:00 p.m.

    85-H. Primary Care Partnerships: How They Work, Why They Matter

    Is your senior living organization aiming to improve residents’ health outcomes but unsure how to proceed? This session will offer a practical solution: establish a partnership with an Accountable Care Organization (ACO) and a primary care medical group to deliver enhanced clinical services to residents. Presenters will describe how their multisite organization’s primary care team partnered with an ACO to establish a Medicare Shared Savings Program. You’ll learn about the partnership’s operational and financial benefits, including better care, fewer avoidable hospitalizations, longer resident stays, and lower turnover. Discover how these partnerships work, why they matter, and the steps providers can take to implement them effectively.

Tom Symondson

Chief Executive Officer
Ageing Australia
East Melbourne, VIC, Australia

Lee Syria

President and CEO
EveryAge
Newton, NC, USA
  • 39-K. Navigating Transition: The Providence Place Acquisition Story

    • Wednesday, November 05, 2025

    10:00 – 11:00 a.m.

    39-K. Navigating Transition: The Providence Place Acquisition Story

    Providence Place, a retirement community in High Point, NC, faced a pivotal moment in January 2024 as it navigated the retirements of its chief executive officer and chief operating officer while grappling with financial challenges and initiating an acquisition process. This session will detail the 10-month journey leading to the community’s acquisition by EveryAge, a multi-site provider based in Newton, NC. Presenters will highlight the strategies, challenges, and lessons learned during the acquisition process and explore how collaboration, mission-driven leadership, and stakeholder commitment ensured a smooth transition for both organizations. They will offer advice on maintaining organizational stability during leadership transitions and financial challenges, fostering teamwork during an acquisition, and successfully linking two middle market organizations with complementary visions.

Aisling Taft

Social Worker
Vermont Veterans’ Home
Bennington, VT, US
  • 109-A. Supporting Human Connection through Intimacy Policies

    • Sunday, October 25, 2026

    1:00 – 2:00 p.m.

    109-A. Supporting Human Connection through Intimacy Policies

    Many organizations recognize the importance of honoring residents’ rights, yet few have clear guidelines for supporting intimate expression, especially when decision-making capacity is impaired. This session will introduce you to a collaborative, multidisciplinary approach to developing an intimacy and sexuality policy. Presenters will highlight how one nursing home worked with a medical ethicist, staff, residents, and families to develop a framework that safeguards vulnerable adults while affirming their fundamental human need for connection, companionship, and intimate expression. You’ll take away information to help you support residents’ intimacy responsibly and compassionately, honor individual rights, and enhance overall quality of life, all while complying with regulations.

Junying Tang

President
Guangzhou BestHealth Co., Ltd.
Guangzhou, China
  • 75-D. International Perspectives: Field-Driven Standards Lead to Person-Centered Innovation

    • Monday, November 03, 2025

    8:30 – 9:30 a.m.

    75-D. International Perspectives: Field-Driven Standards Lead to Person-Centered Innovation

    Providers of aging services in China have used CARF International’s field-driven, person-centered accreditation standards to improve the care experience of their residents and the business outcomes of their organizations. This session will showcase China’s innovative business and care delivery in independent living, assisted living, rehabilitation programs, and other care models unique to China. Presenters will introduce you to China’s aging services system, explain how it compares to aging services worldwide, and suggest ways it could be replicated in other countries. Panelists will also share how Chinese providers are expanding person-centered practices across entire systems of care.

Mary Tangeman

Chief Operating Officer
Marketing Essentials, LLC
New Bremen, OH, USA
  • 58-B. Communicating Through Change: Marketing Your Acquisition

    • Sunday, November 02, 2025

    2:45 – 3:45 p.m.

    58-B. Communicating Through Change: Marketing Your Acquisition

    Marketing and communication can’t pause when your organization begins preparing for an acquisition. Quite the opposite! This session will demonstrate how your organization’s marketing team can effectively navigate a change in ownership by ensuring that communication and marketing messages remain ongoing, clear, carefully worded, and reassuring to all stakeholders. Presenters will teach you how to maintain customer trust, brand strength, and market momentum by positioning your organization’s acquisition as a strategic growth opportunity. You’ll learn essential lessons to help you develop a strategic marketing plan that effectively engages stakeholders as you promote your company’s acquisition.

Tom Taylor

Chair of the Website Committee
Kendal at Oberlin
Oberlin, OH, US
  • 14-K. What’s Best for All? Making Inclusive Technology Decisions

    • Wednesday, November 05, 2025

    10:00 – 11:00 a.m.

    14-K. What’s Best for All? Making Inclusive Technology Decisions

    Technology adoption can be more challenging when senior living residents and staff feel disconnected from the process of selecting and implementing suitable high-tech platforms. Kendal at Oberlin tackled this challenge by incorporating resident input into every stage of its technology selection and implementation process. This session will provide an overview of how the organization’s collaborative model empowered residents while ensuring the chosen platform met their unique needs. You’ll gain tools to ensure that your new technology enhances your community’s quality of life, improves resident engagement and satisfaction, streamlines operations, and sets the stage for future technology upgrades. Discover practical strategies for promoting inclusive decision-making and leveraging resident feedback while implementing technology.

Jennifer Terray

Director of Nursing
LiveWell
Plantsville, CT, US
  • 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.

Lea Tessitore

Director, Strategy and Partnerships
TFA Analytics
Vancouver, WA, USA
  • 122-K. Paying for Palliative Care: Hopeful News from the States

    • Wednesday, November 05, 2025

    10:00 – 11:00 a.m.

    122-K. Paying for Palliative Care: Hopeful News from the States

    An older adult with serious illnesses can benefit greatly from palliative care. Unfortunately, inadequate or nonexistent Medicaid payments restrict beneficiaries’ access to these services and prevent providers from delivering the support older adults need. This session will provide some hope for patients and providers. Presenters will explain how Medicaid agencies across the country are working to create and implement statewide benefits for palliative care by employing value-based payment and bundled payment models to increase reimbursement rates. You’ll discover how paying for palliative care can lead to better and more equitable care, improved quality of life, and better outcomes for Medicaid recipients and their families.