2014_GSA_Meeting_Logo_300pFor almost 20 years, the Gerontological Society of America (GSA) has been one of the John A. Hartford Foundation’s key grantee partners.

The organization served first as the home of the Geriatric Social Work Initiative (GSWI), then as the coordinating center for the National Hartford Center of Gerontological Nursing Excellence (NHCGNE) , and most recently, as the basecamp of the Hartford Change AGEnts Initiative.

So the GSA annual meeting, being held this week in Washington, DC, is a tremendous opportunity to connect with long-standing friends and meet new ones in the field of aging, as well as to check in on long-ago grants and plan new ones.

In today’s plenary session, we had the privilege of hearing from Francis S. Collins, MD, PhD, director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). As I noted in a previous post, the Hartford Foundation played a role—albeit a small one—at the beginning of Dr. Collins’ career, and like so many others in the field, we are grateful for the trail-blazing work he has done over the years.

Another highlight of the plenary session was a wonderful tribute to our own Corinne H. Rieder, Ed.D, the Executive Director and Treasurer of the Hartford Foundation, who was recognized for her leadership in the field and numerous contributions to aging. After 16 years of leading the Hartford Foundation, Cory announced in June that she was retiring effective upon completion of a national search for her successor.

GSA Executive Director and CEO James Appleby speaks at the plenary session. GSA Executive Director and CEO James Appleby speaks at the plenary session.

GSA Executive Director and CEO James Appleby spoke of the strong partnerships between Hartford and GSA, and a video tribute featured testimonials from the National Institute on Aging’s Marie A. Bernard (more on Dr. Bernard in a minute) and Hartford grantees David Reuben, Steve Dawson, Pat Volland, and Claire Fagin. It is clear what high esteem Cory is held in by her colleagues in the aging and health field, and it made us all proud to see her dedication and commitment recognized in such a heartfelt way.

As it does every year, the GSA awards program honors outstanding leaders and focuses attention on new developments in the field of aging. We are pleased to once again see Hartford grantees among those being recognized.

In recent years, the Hartford Foundation has forged significant partnerships with federal agencies ranging from the National Institute on Aging (NIA) and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS).

Marie A. Bernard Marie A. Bernard

This year’s GSA award winners include not only the usual representation of Hartford grantees, but one who has gone on to become a valued federal government partner: Marie A. Bernard, MD, deputy director of the NIA. Dr. Bernard, a Hartford-supported ADGAP Leadership Scholar years ago at the University of Oklahoma, is receiving this year’s Donald P. Kent Award, given annually to a GSA member who best exemplifies the highest standards for professional leadership in gerontology through teaching, service, and interpretation of gerontology to the larger society.

Richard Allman Richard M. Allman

This marks the second year in a row that a longtime Hartford grantee has won the Kent Award. The 2013 recipient, Richard M. Allman, MD, Chief Consultant for Geriatrics and Extended Care Services for the Veterans Health Administration, is giving this year’s Kent Lecture on the topic “Care, Discovery, and Leadership—Connections to Practice and Policy.” Dr. Allman was co-director of the Hartford-funded Southeast Center of Excellence in Geriatric Medicine at the University of Alabama-Birmingham (SCEGM), a career development and training program for physicians at the University of Alabama Birmingham (UAB) and Emory University.

We are especially pleased that two leaders of our Hartford Change AGEnts Initiative are being recognized.

Laura N. Gitlin Laura N. Gitlin

Laura N. Gitlin, PhD, a member of the Change AGEents leadership team, is the recipient of the M. Powell Lawton Award, which recognizes a significant contribution in gerontology that has led to an innovation in gerontological treatment, practice or service, prevention, amelioration of symptoms or barriers, or a public policy change that has led to some practical application that improves the lives of older persons. Dr. Gitlin is founding director of the Center for Innovative Care in Aging at the Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing. She is also a professor in the Department of Community-Public Health with joint appointments in the Department of Psychiatry and Division of Geriatrics and Gerontology in the School of Medicine.

Nancy L. Wilson Nancy L. Wilson

And Nancy L. Wilson, MA, LMSW, who is co-chair of the Hartford Change AGEnts Dementia Caregiving Network, is delivering this year’s Maxwell A. Pollack Lecture on the topic, “Advancing Community Collaboration in Aging and Mental Health: An Odyssey of Teamwork.” Wilson, of the Baylor College of Medicine and the Houston VA Center of Excellence in Health Services Research, has longstanding ties to the Hartford Foundation, going back to when she served as a project leader in the Geriatric Interdisciplinary Team Training (GITT) initiative at Baylor in the 1990s.

Heather M. Young Heather M. Young

Heather M. Young, PhD, RN, FAAN, associate vice chancellor for nursing, founding dean of the Betty Irene Moore School of Nursing, and a professor at the University of California-Davis, is receiving the Doris Schwartz Gerontological Nursing Research Award. Presented by GSA’s Health Sciences Section, the award is given to a member of the Society in recognition of outstanding and sustained contribution to gerontological nursing research. Dr. Young, former director of the John A. Hartford Center of Gerontological Nursing Excellence at Oregon Health and Science University, will speak during the conference on “Healthy Aging, Supportive Environments.”

Terrie Fox Wetle Terrie Fox Wetle

And we would also like to offer congratulations to Terrie Fox Wetle, PhD, dean of the School of Public Health and professor of Health Services Research, Policy and Practice at Brown University, who is receiving the Irving S. Wright Award of Distinction. Dr. Wetle, former deputy director of NIA, is a longtime friend of the Hartford Foundation, and we look forward to her lecture on “Translating Research to Improve Health of Aging Populations.”

We are grateful for the passion and hard work exhibited by all of the GSA award winners to advance the field of aging and health, and hope that they serve as an inspiration for others.