Collette Adamsen, PhD is a Research Assistant Professor for the Center for Rural Health (UND) at the University of North Dakota (UND) School of Medicine & Health Sciences in Grand Forks, ND. In addition, she serves as the director of the National Resource Center on Native American Aging (NRCNAA) and is the Principal Investigator (PI) for the Native Urban Elder Needs Assessment Survey (NUENAS) project funded by American Association of Retired Persons (AARP).

As the director of the NRCNAA, Collette provides grant project direction and leadership, conducts research on health disparities among American Indian/Alaska Native/Native Hawaiian elders throughout the nation, manages data for the NRCNAA, and functions as an American Indian content specialist. Furthermore, in her role as PI for the NUENAS project, she is expanding her research efforts and serving as a resource for the Native Urban Elder population.

Collette received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics, a Master of Public Administration, with an emphasis in Health Administration, and a Doctorate in Educational Foundations and Research from UND. She is an enrolled member of the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians and is originally from Belcourt, ND.

 

Cecelia Aldridge has been with the U.S. Administration on Aging (AoA) since 2004. She began her career with AoA as a Grants Management Specialist with the Office of Grants Management managing discretionary programs. In 2008 she moved to the Office of Program Evaluation (currently Office of Program Evaluation) working with state planning and program data comparison and evaluation. In 2010 she moved into the Office of American Indian, Alaskan Native and Native Hawaiian programs where she is currently involved with the Title VI Mandatory Grant Program providing instructions for online reporting and guidance and technical assistance to grantees. She also services as the Program Officer managing several discretionary programs and project manager for one additional program - the Native American Resource Centers, the National Indigenous Elder Justice Initiative, Tribal Long Term Services and Supports Resource Center, and the National Minority Organization Program under Health Disparities. Ms. Aldridge is the lead for the Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act (MIPPA). Prior to employment at AoA, Ms. Aldridge worked for the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education Rehabilitative Services as a Management Analyst providing oversight and training on Federal travel policy/regulations and later worked as a grant specialist for Rehabilitative Services Administration, RSA managing discretionary grant programs.

 

Jasmine Aplin has been working with Title VI programs for over 3 years now. During her time with Title VI, Jasmine has had the honor of hosting numerous chats, taking trips to Indian Country and getting to know so many of you! Before joining ACL and Title VI, Jasmine worked at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) for 4.5 years.

Jasmine is originally from Tampa, Florida but moved up to Maryland to attend Law School. Jasmine has a Law Degree and a Master of Public Health. Jasmine is an avid runner and has completed 21 marathons in 21 states, but when Jasmine isn’t on the move she loves snuggling up with her daughter Eloise and 3 miniature dachshunds.

 

Laurai Atcitty (Navajo/Taos Pueblo) serves as the Director for the Inter-Tribal Council of Arizona, Inc. – Area Agency on Aging, Region 8. Prior to her employment with ITCA-AAA, she was a Supervisor with Bank One and JPMorganChase and an Underwriter for Wells Fargo Bank. As Director of a AAA, her duties include day to day oper ations, contract management, performance reporting and state/federal area planning to coordinate Title III, Title VI and Title VII services that support the 21 member Tribes in Arizona.

 

Heather Atsye – (Pueblo Laguna) is a human trafficking victim advocate and certified peer support worker at The Life Link: Sojourner’s Advocacy Café in Santa Fe, New Mexico. She has worked for nearly 10 years in diverse communities with women and families impacted by human trafficking, homelessness, substance abuse, and other traumas. As an advocate with lived experience, Ms. Atsye supports survivors of labor and sex trafficking to provide trauma-informed, wraparound case management services. She is a consultant to the Human Trafficking Capacity Building Center.

 

Alison Barkoff is currently serving as ACL’s Acting Administrator and as the Acting Assistant Secretary for Aging. A sibling of an adult brother with developmental disabilities and a civil rights attorney, Alison is a lifelong advocate for community living – both professionally and personally – and has been at the forefront of national efforts to expand the home and community-based services that make it possible. As part of countless coalitions of people with disabilities, older adults, and advocates, she has fought to uphold the rights of people with disabilities and older adults and ensure their access to health care, housing, employment, education, and all other facets of American life. She has testified before Congress and the US Commission on Civil Rights on disability rights and community living. She has served in a variety of leadership roles with disability rights organizations, including leading advocacy efforts at the Center for Public Representation and the Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law. She also is a veteran of the federal government. As Special Counsel for Olmstead Enforcement in the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice, she led efforts to enforce the rights of people with disabilities to live, work and fully participate in their communities. She also led interagency initiatives with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services on Medicaid HCBS and with the Department of Labor on direct care workforce issues She has brought that same focus on collaboration and coordination to her current role. Under her leadership, ACL is working with partners across HHS and the federal government on initiatives and interagency approaches to issues that affect people with disabilities and older adults, such as expanding access to HCBS and affordable, accessible housing; strengthening the direct care workforce; increasing competitive, integrated employment for people with disabilities; and advancing equity, to name just a few.

 

Sonya Begay is an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation (Dine’). She is Táchii’nii” Notah Dine’ (Red- Running-Into-The-Water, Tobacco People) clan and was born for the Tódích’íi’nii (Bitter Water people) clan. Ms. Begay is working as the Management and Program Analyst for the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) for the Administration for Native Americans (ANA). Sonya’s professional work focused on employment and training for Native Americans nationwide which she was one of the Federal Project Officers’ (FPO) for the Division of Native American programs under the U.S. Department of Labor. Later, Ms. Begay served as an AmeriCorps VISTA for one year within the Eastern Kentucky area where she worked on community and economic development for the Appalachian areas. Ms. Begay has been very active with the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Peoples’ (MMIP), Grandparents Raising Grandchildren (GAP) and caregivers within Indian Country. Presently, Sonya is one of the Advisory Council members for the Supporting Grandchildren Raising Grandchildren (SGRG) under the Administration for Community Living (ACL).

 

Bill Benson has worked in aging and health for 36 years. Along with IA2 Executive Director Dave Baldridge, Benson has co-authored numerous papers on long-term care issues in Indian country. As former staff director for the Senate Labor Subcommittee on Aging, Benson oversaw the successful reauthorization of the Older Americans Act (OAA) in 1992. Under his leadership, that year’s reauthorization included Title VII, Subtitle B–Native American Organization and Elder Justice Provisions — the first federal law created to address the issues of elder abuse and elder justice for Indian elders.

He established The Benson Consulting Group in 1998. In 2002 he joined with Sue Andersen to form Health Benefits ABCs (HBABCs), an independent consulting practice specializing in aging and health policy & services, program development, assessment and strategic planning, and training. Their clients include a number of national, state and private organizations, including n4a, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Consumer Reports Best Buy Drugs, the American Health Quality Foundation, National Adult Protective Services Association, American Society on Aging, the Population Association of America. American Planning Council, Institute for Health & Aging at the University of California, San Francisco, the Maryland Department of Aging, the New York State Office for the Aging, the Florida Department of Elder Affairs, WISER and others.

From 1993 to 1998 Mr. Benson was the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Aging at the Administration on Aging (AoA) at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. He was the acting Assistant Secretary for Aging in 1997. Mr. Benson spent eight years in various capacities in the U.S. Congress including staff director of the Subcommittee on Aging of the Senate Labor and Human Resources Committee, staff director of the Subcommittee on Housing and Consumer Interests of the House Select Committee on Aging, and with the Senate Special Committee on Aging. Mr. Benson played a major role in the 1987 and 1992 amendments to the Older Americans Act including the creation of Title VII, the OBRA ‘87 nursing home reform legislation, numerous Medicare and Medicaid provisions, women’s health, pension and other notable legislative initiatives.

Prior to moving to Washington, D.C., Mr. Benson was with the California Department of Aging including serving for more than five years as the State Long-Term Care Ombudsman.

 

Lacey Boven has served as an Aging Services Program Specialist for the ACL Chicago and Kansas City Regional Support Center since 2015. She is the ACL liaison to Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota and Wisconsin and the grants officer for 36 Tribal Title VI Grantees. Prior to her position with ACL, she served as the Older Americans Act/SUA Program Manager for the Kansas Department on Aging and Disability Services. In that capacity she oversaw the operations of Older Americans Act programs, the Aging and Disability Resource Centers and the Kansas Senior Care Act. She also has experience working at the local level serving in various roles at a Kansas Area Agency on Aging.

 

Kathryn Braun is Professor of Public Health and Social Work at the University of Hawai‘i. She also is the Barbara Cox Anthony Endowed Co-Chair on Aging and Co-Investigator of Hā Kūpuna National Resource Center for Native Hawaiian Elders. Dr. Braun is known for her work in community-based participatory research in cancer and gerontology, and she has published more than 250 peer-reviewed journal articles on these topics.

 

Percy Devine III serves as Regional Administrator of the Administration for Community Living in Region VIII (Denver regional office) with responsibility for representing the Assistant Secretary for Aging and advocating for seniors in the Region. Previously, Mr. Devine served as the State Unit on Aging Director for the State Utah Division of Aging and Adult Services, and many other responsible positions in the field of aging during his distinguished 30 years of service in gerontology. Mr. Devine has a Masters Degree in Social Work with a Master Certificate in Gerontology from the University of Utah and a B.S. degree in Sociology with a B.S. Certificate in Gerontology from Weber State College / University. He is also a graduate of the Federal Executive Institute (class of 2000) and the National Institute on Aging.

 

John Eagle Shield is a member of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe. He worked as the Center for Rural Health (CRH) Director for Standing Rock for 35 years and during that time served as the Great Plains CHR Association Chairman for several terms. Mr. Eagle Shield has been a long-term advocate for tribal Elders, health promotion, and tribal sovereignty. He received the prestigious Robert Wood Johnson Health Fellowship in 2003.

 

Randy Feliciano is a Senior Program Manager with the National Council on Aging (Center for Benefits Access). In this role he provides technical support and training to benefit enrollment centers throughout the U.S and spearheads a committee of national non-profit organizations and federal government agencies focused on the needs of low-income Medicare beneficiaries.

Randy’s professional background also includes: program management, client advocacy, media communications, federal grant support and Volunteer Administration. From 2010-2015 he worked for Arlington County’s Department of Human Services where he managed a legal guardianship program (serving incapacitated adults in the Arlington area), and a Personal Advocate Service where volunteers worked with area residents and human service clients to connect them to local, state and federal benefit programs and services. In 2014, he co-authored an article for the American Bar Associations BIFOCAL, entitled: The Work of a Volunteer Fiduciary, which highlights the effectiveness of volunteer and pro bono guardians of incapacitated adults. In the fall of 2019, Randy was appointed to the Working Interdisciplinary Networks of Guardianship Stakeholders (WINGS) in Virginia by the State Supreme Court.

 

Dr. Bruce Finke is a family physician and geriatrician with the IHS since 1991. From 1998 until this year Dr. Finke served as the IHS lead in Elder Care, providing support to tribal, IHS, and urban programs in the development of improved clinical and preventive care for the elderly and in the development of long term services and supports. From 2006-2011 he was part of the team that developed the IHS primary care transformation initiative, Improving Patient Care. Since 2011 Dr. Finke has worked on part-time detail with the Learning and Diffusion Group at the CMS Innovation Center, supporting the development of new payment and care models as large, multi-system improvement initiatives. Dr. Finke has served the Nashville Area Officer as acting Chief Medical Officer for several periods since 2003, most recently during much of the period 2015-2017 and served as Acting Area Director from January 2018 to January 2019. He is now serving as a Senior Advisor to the newly established IHS Office of Quality.

 

Leonard Geshick, Indian Elders Coordinator, Minnesota Board on Aging, serves AI/AN elders on the state’s eleven reservations, urban AI/AN communities and throughout Minnesota Indian Country. This role is unique to Minnesota. The Indian Elders Coordinator acts as an administrator, advisor, and advocate for Indian elders in Minnesota. Leonard graduated with a double bachelors in Urban Studies and American Indian Studies from the University of Minnesota Twin Cities.

 

Fay Gordon was the Project Director of the National Center on Law and Elder Rights (NCLER) prior to joining ACL. Fay worked closely with ACL to launch NCLER, and over four years, NCLER grew and became a go-to training center for over 40,000 law, aging and disability network professionals. Fay previously worked in Justice in Aging’s Washington, DC office, as an attorney on the Health Care team. In this role, Fay provided policy analysis on issues impacting individuals who are dually eligible for Medicare and Medicaid, managed care, home and community-based services and long-term services and supports. Fay received her JD from the University of Maryland School of Law, with a Health Law Concentration, and a BA from the University of California, Los Angeles.

 

Stacy Hammer is Bdewakantunwan (Spirit Lake Dwellers) Dakota and comes from Cansayapi (Where They Paint the Trees Red), otherwise known as Lower Sioux.; one of four Dakota communities in MN. Stacy is currently working as the Director of Community Health and Registered Dietitian for the Lower Sioux Indian Community (LSIC). She earned a Bachelor of Science Degree in Nutrition and Dietetics and completed her Graduate Dietetic Internship program before passing the Commission on Dietetics RD Board exam. Stacy is currently enrolled as a graduate student in the University of Minnesota’s School of Public Health, studying under the Executive Public Health Administration and Policy, Master of Public Health program. She started her career working in her Tribal Health department in 2013, as the Registered Dietitian and Diabetes Director, with Nutrition education as a primary focus. One of Stacy’s roles involves serving as the Lower Sioux Title VI Director, responsible for administering the Nutrition requirements and menu planning for the Elder Nutrition Program. Her responsibilities as the Director of Community Health for the LSIC, has been developing and implementing several new public health programs and initiatives in the prevention and maintenance of chronic health conditions. Further, Stacy leads, manages, and coordinates all functions, operations, staffing and programs for the LSIC Community Health Department. Stacy is currently serving as a member of the Board of Director’s at the Minnesota River Agency on Aging (MNRAA) and the University of Minnesota School of Public Health’s Center for Healthy Aging and Innovation (CHAI) Strategic Advisory Council.

 

Joyce Hayes is an internationally renowned Women’s Northern Traditional Style Dancer, and she is known throughout powwow country for the beautiful beaded dance outfits that she creates and wears while competing at powwows and gatherings throughout Indian Country during the powwow season. Joyce has performed throughout Europe with the First Nations Native American Dance Troupe and has performed throughout the United States with the Fort Hall Intertribal Dance Troupe. Joyce resides on the Shoshone-Bannock Indian Reservation in Fort Hall Idaho. At home Joyce is employed as the Director of the Title VI Elderly Nutrition Program for the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes. The program provides nutritious meals and activities for the Tribal seniors of the Fort Hall Indian Reservation.

 

J. Neil Henderson is Professor Emeritus of Medical Anthropology at the University of Minnesota Medical School, Duluth campus, and former Executive Director of the Memory Keepers Medical Discovery Team. He is Oklahoma Choctaw.

Dr. Henderson’s research areas focus on aging issues of American Indian people. Specifically, his work is on biological and cultural influences regarding recognition and treatment of dementia and diabetes, dementia caregiving, cultural constructions of disease, and community health interventions and education in the context of cultural diversity.

Dr. Henderson was honored by the award of the Leadership in Prevention for Native Americans by the Loma Linda University School of Public Health and the Award of Achievement by the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, College of Public Health, as well as being named a Presidential Professor by the University of Oklahoma, College of Public Health.

Dr. Henderson is the former Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Cross-Cultural Gerontology and past- President of the Association for Anthropology and Gerontology. He has authored many articles in the scientific press and is a contributor to the Alzheimer’s Association and CDC’s new Healthy Brain Initiative’s Road Map for Indian Country (2019), principal author of The Savvy Caregiver for Indian Country (2013), co-author of the text, Social and Behavioral Foundations of Public Health (2001) and is senior editor of The Culture of Long-Term Care (1995).

Dr. Henderson lives in his home state of Oklahoma with his wife, Gail.

 

Amber Hoon is the Tribal Dementia Program Director for the Great Lakes Inter-Tribal Council’s (GLITC) “Together Strong” project. Together Strong is a partnership with several Wisconsin-based Tribal Nations to create a training and awareness program on Alzheimer’s and dementia-related diseases. This program is created from the Tribal perspective, supporting the unique culture and experience of each Tribal Partner.

Amber spent 14 years nursing on the Special Care Unit at the Milwaukee Catholic Home in Wisconsin. It was an amazing journey, and she learned a lot from the people she cared for. One of the biggest lessons she feels she needs to share is that people living with Alzheimer’s or dementia are still people. They all have thoughts, strengths, feelings, ideas, needs, and wants. It became Amber’s personal mission to learn from those she cared for by:

Finding ways that worked best for them to maintain dignity and independence.

Helping them live their best lives possible.

Helping families understand the changes their loved ones are going through; and how to approach those changes according to their loved ones abilities.

Providing support throughout those changes.

Amber brings this experience and care to her work with GLITC and other tribal partners, where she helps staff, caregivers, families, and individuals living with Alzheimer’s or dementia understand and learn what to expect through the different stages. She provides emotional support, ideas, and resources to help them transition alongside their loved ones. Together we are strong!

Outside of her work with GLITC, Amber is the mother to three adult sons. She enjoys cooking and spending her free time in the woods with her two dogs and partner. She has a deep passion for learning about the plant medicines and traditional food practices, as well as hearing and learning traditional songs and stories.

 

Brenda House is the Elder Services for the Wyandotte Nation. Ms. House oversees the Title VI A (Nutrition) and C (Caregiver) programs. The Wyandotte Nation has employed her since July 1987. All 35 years have been with the Title VI Program. Brenda is the Treasurer of the Oklahoma Indian Council on Aging, Past President of the Grand Gateway AAA Advisory Council and was instrumental in forming the Northeast Oklahoma Caregiver Coalition, which received State, Regional and National recognition for their Medicare Diabetes Health Screening Initiative. She has received the USAging Title VI National Leadership Award and serves on the USAging Board of Directors. She was the 2012 Honored Person at the Wyandotte Nation Pow Wow. She received the Wyandotte Nation Outstanding Department Head of the Year Award. She is a two-time recipient of the Outstanding Title VI Director of the Year Award at the Oklahoma Minority Conference on Aging.

 

Kristen (Krissy) Hudgins, PhD, is an applied anthropologist with a background in qualitative methodology, evaluation, and direct services in the fields of health and education. She has worked with federal agencies, sovereign nations, private foundations, and community-based organizations (locally and internationally) on projects ranging from conducting research and evaluation to designing and implementing programs. Dr. Hudgins comes to ACL from Kauffman & Associates, Inc. where she served as Deputy Director for Research and Evaluation and managed projects such as identifying transportation barriers to healthcare access for American Indian/Alaskan Native Medicare beneficiaries, and conducting literature reviews and best practice research on long-term services and supports in Indian Country. Dr. Hudgins also has experience working in community-based outpatient mental health programs with the Affiliated Santé Group and others in Maryland. She earned her PhD in Cultural Anthropology and a certificate in Women’s and Gender Studies from the University of South Carolina; and her BA in Sociology and Anthropology from St. Mary’s College of Maryland with certificates in Spanish and the African Diaspora.

 

Jill Jim, PhD, MPH, MHA, Dr. Jill Jim, an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation and former member of the Biden-Harris Transition COVID-19 Advisory Board. Dr. Jim has a Ph.D in Public Health, a Master’s Degree in Health Care Administration, a second Master’s in Public Health from
the University of Utah. Her career has focused on prevention of chronic diseases and addressing healthcare and health disparities among Native Americans. She has served urban and tribal communities in non-profit, state, federal agencies and most recently tribal government as an Executive Director for the Navajo Department of Health.

 

Rita Jojola’s career began in the field of Environmental Protection, an office specifically established for the New Mexico Pueblos. Thereafter, she was the Director for the Pueblo of Tesuque Department of Education where she administered a variety of programs ranging from a Scholarship Program for Adult Learning and College, Early Head Start, Head Start, Tewa Language and an After-School Enrichment Program(s).

Rita was provided an opportunity by her tribe to work with the elders of her village in the capacity of the Elder Center Director where she is currently employed. She is dedicated to ensuring the highest quality of services and takes a serious role in advocating for all Native Elders. The Pueblo of Isleta Elder Center provides 50 employment & volunteer positions which supports elder services such as: transportation, In- Home Services, Adult Day Services, Food Nutrition Services, Activities, Recreation, Sr. Olympics, Personal Care Services, Veteran’s Support/Volunteer Program, Sr. Companionship, and Benefits Coordination.

Rita is currently the Chair for the New Mexico Council on Aging Legislative Committee and is a Co-Chair of the All Pueblo Council of Governors Elder Committee. Served on the NM State Senate Joint Memorial Caregivers Task Force, and the Administration on Community Living - TVI Evaluation Working Group.

Rita holds a dual Associates Degree in Business and General Studies from the University of New Mexico and a Bachelor’s Degree in Multicultural Communications and Management from the University of New Mexico.

 

Cynthia LaCounte is a member of the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa. She has been Director of the Office for American Indian, Alaskan Native and Native Hawaiian Programs since January, 2012. The Administration on Aging (AoA), which is an agency of the Administration for Community Living (ACL), is responsible for programs of social and supportive services for older adults. Ms. LaCounte has oversight for Older Americans Act Programs (OAA) that serve American Indians, Alaska Natives, and Native Hawaiians elders. Ms. LaCounte began her work with Tribal Elders in 1976 as Area Agency on Aging Director for Montana Tribes, which launched her career as an advocate serving Native Elders. Prior to joining AoA/ACL, Ms. LaCounte was the Project Manager for the Title VI Training and Technical Assistance Project through Kauffman and Associates, Inc. She has held the post of Chairwoman for the Trenton Indian Service Area.

 

Derek Lee serves as the regional point of contact providing guidance on developing and implementing state plans on aging; and provides training to state and tribal staff on OAA programs and policies as well as for disaster assistance. Before coming to the ACL, he was with the Alabama Department of Senior Services where he served in a variety of capacities, including the department assistant director. Prior to that, Derek worked as a social worker with the Alabama Department of Human Services, and as a habilitation treatment specialist with the Alabama Department of Mental Health supervising direct care staff in carrying out habilitation plans for adults in an intermediate care facility for individuals with intellectual disabilities (ICF-IID). Derek is a graduate of Alabama State University.

 

Dr. Jordan P. Lewis (, Aleut, from the Native Village of Naknek, is the Director of the National Resource Center for Alaska Native Elders at the University of Alaska Anchorage (UAA) College of Health and Full Professor of Social Work at the UAA School of Social Work. Jordan was previously the Associate Director of the Memory Keepers Medical Discovery Team and a Full Professor with the Department of Family Medicine and Biobehavioral Health at the University of Minnesota Medical School, Duluth campus

Over the past decade, Dr. Lewis’s research agenda has significantly contributed to the field with community-based research discussions on cultural-specific approaches in Alaska Native (AN) successful aging and Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Disorders (ADRD) among Alaska Native Elders, including the development of a model and measure of Alaska Native successful aging. His research has also developed the concept of indigenous cultural generativity and exploring its role as a critical resilience resource has important implications for the wellbeing of Alaska Native/American Indians/Indigenous peoples, including Elders, dementia caregivers, and family and community members.

 

Jean Lloyd recently retired from the Administration for Community Living/Administration on Aging (ACL/AoA) after 23 years as the national Nutritionist in Washington, DC. During her time at ACL/ AoA, she has been very proud of her involvement with the Title VI program and learned much from Title VI directors as well as Elders themselves. During her time with AoA, Ms. Lloyd was responsible and provided input for the nutrition-related functions of policy, budget, legislation, and regulation; program development and implementation; training and technical assistance; advocacy; evaluation; and research, demonstration, and training grants. She represented ACL/AoA on intra- and inter-departmental committees, synthesized science- and evidence-based research, and advocated for comprehensive and 44

coordinated community-based food and nutrition services for older adults across the continuum of care both within and outside the federal government. She is a member of the Academy for Nutrition and Dietetics, the Virginia Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (AND), Northern Virginia Dietetic Association as well as numerous dietetic practice groups, including the Health Aging Practice Group of AND, as well as, the Society of Nutrition Education and Behavior. Ms. Lloyd earned a bachelor’s degree in English education and her master’s degree in human nutrition from Ohio State University.

 

Erin Long leads the Administration on Aging’s (AoA) state, community and Tribal grant programs dedicated to supporting persons living with Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias (ADRD) and their caregivers. AoA’s ADRD programs are dedicated to building and expanding dementia-capability across the United States, through culturally competent education and training on a broad range of dementia related issues, as well as the provision of direct services through evidence-based interventions. In addition to being responsible for the planning and development of the programs, she provides programmatic guidance and oversight for all program activities, including the National Alzheimer’s and Dementia Resource Center, as well as serving as a Federal member of the Nationals Alzheimer’s Project Act Advisory Council on Alzheimer’s Research, Care and Services. She holds a Master of Social Work from Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, Virginia.

 

Sandy Markwood is the CEO of the National Association of Area Agencies on Aging (n4a), which represents the nation’s Area Agencies on Aging and serves as a voice in Washington, DC for tribal aging programs that provide critical home and community-based services throughout the United States. As the leader of n4a, she and her staff work directly with the more than 600 Area Agencies on Aging and 240 Title VI Native American aging programs to develop policy, provide technical assistance and training and forge partnerships to position the Aging Network to meet current and future challenges and opportunities.

Prior to joining n4a, Markwood worked for the National Association of Counties, National League of Cities and as Assistant to the County Executive in Albemarle County, Virginia. She received her Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees from the University of Virginia.

 

Bora Mpinja is a Fiscal Operations Specialist with nearly 10 years of grants management experience. Her previous experience includes processing new grant awards, grant post award actions and grant closeouts while working at the Department of Health and Human Services, Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) and U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA).

Bora has a Bachelor’s degree in Journalism with emphasis in Public Relations from Florida A&M University and a Master’s degree in Mass Communication and Media Studies from Howard University. She’s been with the Administration for Community Living since July 2021.

 

Heather Mulder is the Associate Director of Outreach Programs for Banner Alzheimer’s Institute. Working with older adults, and specifically, persons impacted by Alzheimer’s disease has been the common thread in Heather’s career, first in long term care, next with an Area Agency on Aging and finally as an educator for the Alzheimer’s Association- Illinois Chapter. At BAI, Heather is privileged lead the Events and Outreach Team as they create education, support and engagement programs for both persons living with dementia and their care partners. She is the co-host of Dementia Untangled: a podcast that explores dementia through conversations to guide caregivers on a supportive path. Heather co-facilitates the monthly Circle Group and led the production of the Walk With Me CD for the longstanding Native American outreach program. She oversees the creation of education which speaks 45

to caregivers and gives voice to those living with dementia in a language they understand in a medium that is comfortable.

 

Shelley Muneoka is a Kanaka Maoli woman from Heʻeia Uli on the island of Oʻahu. She is the Program Coordinator for Hā Kūpuna National Resource Center for Native Hawaiian Elders funded by the Administration for Community Living. Shelley received an MSW from the Thompson School of Social Work and Public Health at the University of Hawaii in 2009 and has a particular interest in indigenous community and intergenerational healing. Much of Shelley’s life’s work focuses on the care of elders, past, present and future, both human and more-than-human. She is involved in a number of different advocacy efforts for ancestral places and practices that make Hawaiʻi unique. Shelley has had the privilege of connecting with and caring for k ūpuna over the years and believes in the power of learning and passing on their stories.

 

Danielle Nelson serves as a Transportation Specialist in the Office of Rural and Targeted Programs at the Federal Transition Administration at the U.S. Department of Transportation (DoT). Prior to joining DoT Danielle worked at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services as an Aging Services Program Specialist at the Administration for Community Living on Older Americans Act, funded transportation programs and evidence-based disease prevention and health promotion activities. Before starting her federal career, Danielle worked in long-term care for ten years as a program coordinator. During this time, she also served as a volunteer Commissioner for the Fairfax County Commission on Aging. Danielle holds a B.S. in Human Development from Virginia Tech and a Master’s Degree in Health and Graduate Certificate in Gerontology from George Mason University.

 

Beatrice Norton has been the Program Manager for Hopi Tribe’s Office of Aging & Adult Services since May 2015. The programs she oversee are, two (2) Nutrition Centers, Family Caregiver Program, Social & Recreational Program and the Arizona Long Term Care Services (ALTCS). Being a former CHR Program Director for 20 + years, she is very familiar with the 12 Hopi villages and its people including the elders.
Beatrice is Hopi, and was born and raised in a small village of Oraiyvi (Oraibi). She is a mother of three (3) children and a grandmother of 11 great grandmother of 5. Bea credits her Hopi cultural knowledge to being raised in a traditional family and by “listening” to the elders stories, teachings, she has become a cultural teacher & presenter, unselfishly sharing her knowledge with anyone who is interested in learning & gaining a deeper understanding about the Hopi culture. Bea has accepted her calling in this life that the creator & elders implanted this knowledge within her not to only embrace this for herself but to teach and share with others.

 

Dr. Aaron Payment - A high school drop out, Chairperson Payment earned his bachelor’s in sociology. three master’s degrees in public administration, education administration and education specialist and his doctorate degree in educational leadership.

Dr Payment served two 4 year terms on Tribal Council and is in his four th 4 year term as Tribal Chair. He currently serves on the HHS Secretary Tribal Advisory Committee, the Tribal Interior Budget Council and National Advisory Council on Indian Education.

Dr Payment believes the solution to the challenges to Indian Country is to embrace our traditional and indigenous ways to heal from historical and inter-generational trauma. The Elders are the key to our past so they are held in high regard and with great respect.

 

Mitzi Pope, LCSW (Muscogee Nation) is a licensed clinical social worker and certified Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) therapist with over twelve years of experience serving Tribal communities. She currently brings her direct service experience to the Office for Victims of Crime’s Human Trafficking Capacity Building Center. Skilled in offering trauma-informed counseling to victims and survivors, she has also conducted suicide crisis intervention, led substance abuse evaluations, and facilitated substance abuse outpatient groups and a women’s trauma group. Prior to Ms. Pope’s work as a mental health professional, she worked as a sexual assault advocate and youth advocate for The Muscogee Nation providing advocacy and dating violence education.

 

Joseph Ray has worked as a disability services advocate for 35 years, as well as long time user of those services. Due to a personal involvement in these various areas of service to people with disability. Joseph is acquired the knowledge, lived experience, and hearing testimony on many levels from other American Indian people with disabilities and Alaska natives as well. Currently I am the National Congress of American Indians disability subcommittee chairperson where I am hoping to make a difference by creating the buy in from legislative decision makers that fund programs through Indian health service that directly impact people with disabilities living on reservations and other tribal communities. Joseph currently advocates on across disability platform that tries to be as inclusive as possible. The condition of tribal housing has also led to, Joseph into policy work with tribal programs, to increase awareness for the need from people in tribal communities living with disability that need accessible housing and other forms of service. Participation by people with disabilities young and old should be as inclusive in Access physically, as well as spiritually by being aware of the various disability areas. 25% of the population statistics show have some form of disability where there is physical or mental, and those the needs of those persons should be respected. The need for funding to be allocated for ltss, long-term services and support, swear Joseph’s fight lies now in the power centers of Santa Fe New Mexico, and Washington DC as well as trying to maintain a presence with national tribal leaders on the national Indian Health Board.

 

Heidi Robertson is the Title VI Nutrition Consultant and provides training and technical assistance on questions pertaining to the Older Americans Act Title TVI nutrition program. She is passionate about nutrition and healthy aging and has been enjoying learning more about the TVI programs. Prior to this role, she was the Program Officer - Health for the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians where she reviewed funding proposals related to health, environment, and community development. Ms. Robertson worked for the Inter-Tribal Council of Arizona, Inc. – Area Agency on Aging, Region 8 where she coordinated Title III/Title VI Congregate and Home Delivered Meal services, evaluated programs and provided training to senior center staff. She has also worked for the U.S. Peace Corps as a Community Health Improvement Extension Agent in rural Zambia, Africa; and has degrees in both Nutrition and Public Health.

 

Michelle Rogers has a 20-year career in public policy, serving older adults and persons with disabilities. She started working at the Colorado Medicaid Agency, Health Care Policy and Financing working with Long Term Supports and Services (LTSS) Programs, including HCBS Waivers, self-directed programs, medically fragile children, and persons with Autism. Michelle worked for the Administration for Community Living in the Denver Regional Office and served as a State and Tribal Liaison, fortunate enough to work with and visit many of the states and tribes in Region 8. She left Government work for private consulting and worked with Health Management Associates before starting her own business Rogers Ridge Consulting. As a private consultant, she worked with large health insurance plans to incorporate LTSS into their systems and direct case management. Additionally, Michelle continues to work as a subject matter expert with States, Area Agencies on Aging, ACL, and nonprofit organizations to guide policy for older adults and older American Indian populations. Michelle is a Colorado Native who graduated from the University of Colorado with a biology and physiology degree. She is married with 2 children, ages 7 and 11, and loves to be outdoors camping, diving, playing tennis, and of course, watching her kids’ sporting events!

 

Louise Ryan, MPA, provides technical assistance to states and Tribes on the operations of their Older Americans Act programs and serving as ACL’s regional representative. She previously served as the National Ombudsman Program Coordinator for ACL. Louise has spent her entire career in human services. Prior to coming to ACL Louise was the Washington State Long-Term Care Ombudsman. Louise has a Master’s in Public Administration from Seattle University. When not working she enjoys gardening, crocheting, traveling and being a grandma.

 

Rhonda Schwartz joined ACL in July 2016 as an Aging Services Program Specialist. In that capacity, she worked with federal, state, and tribal organizations, with particular attention to oversight of the Older Americans Act state and tribal grant programs. Prior to joining ACL, she spent several years managing OAA and other ACL programs at a state unit on aging. Rhonda earned a B.S. in Business Administration from Gorgetown University in 1985 and a J.D. from Columbia University in 1988. Following award of her J.D., she joined a leading commercial real estate practice in Manhattan, NY. Rhonda left her law practice in 2004 to pursue a Master of Social Work degree, which she received from Rhode Island College in 2006.

 

Elaina Seep is the founder of Aniwahya Consulting Services, a company that is focused on providing project management and business analytics to Tribal Nations, specifically related to healthcare and long-term care programs. Elaina completed her Bachelor’s degree in history and legal studies at the University of Wisconsin - Whitewater where she also received her project management certification. Elaina began what she calls her “accidental career” in insurance over 20 years ago and have worked in most areas of Medicaid, Medicare and commercial insurance programs. While Elaina has enjoyed the different projects and appreciates the opportunities, she always wanted to work with Tribal communities, in part as a way to honor her own family. Elaina worked actively with Tribal communities as a consultant of Great Lakes Inter Tribal Council and Wisconsin’s Department of Health Services on the Money Follows the Person Tribal Initiative demonstration grant for several years. In early 2017, she left to pursue her master’s degree in Indian law and has since been pursuing opportunities to serve Tribal nations directly, and through the Title VI cluster trainings. Elaina’s work is currently focused on aiding Tribes in creating Medicaid billable, self-sustaining Long-Term Service and Supports programs to serve Elders and other vulnerable members of their communities.

 

Mashell Sourjohn currently serves as AARP’s Associate State Director of Community Outreach Director of Oklahoma where her focus is enhancing the quality of life for all Oklahomans as we age in areas of Native American outreach, caregiving, hunger, livable communities, transportation, protecting social security, financial asset protection, fraud prevention, and encore entrepreneurship.

Mashell currently serves on the Pottawatomie County Community Market Food Resource Center Board, Oklahoma’s REI Women’s Business Center Advisory Board and the Oklahoma Healthy Aging Initiative of Oklahoma. She is a current member of the Native American Journalist Association, American Society on Aging, and the American Public Health Association. She has formerly served on the national American Diabetes Association’s Awakening the Spirit Native American Committee, the Oklahoma Federation of Indian Women committee, and the New Mexico Shared Strategic Plan for Prevention and Control of Chronic Disease 2012-2016.

Mashell is a proud citizen of the Muscogee Creek Nation and is of Cherokee Nation heritage. She is a graduate of the University of Oklahoma with a Bachelor of Arts in Administrative Leadership and holds a Master of Jurisprudence in Indian Law from the University of Tulsa College of Law. She is also an alumna of the Oklahoma Public Health Leadership Institute. In 2017, Mashell was awarded the national AARP Sherrie Gordon Award for Excellence in Multicultural Leadership. She a Certified Aging in Place Specialist accredited by the National Home Builders Association in the state of Oklahoma. With a matching employee giving program from AARP, Mashell proudly established the Kenneth Sourjohn, Sr. Memorial Scholarship fund via the Muscogee Creek Nation Scholarship Foundation to assist any citizen of the Muscogee Creek Nation in their own purpose driven journey and higher education attainment goals.

Prior to AARP, she was employed at the American Heart Association and American Stroke Association for eleven years in roles such as the Regional Health Equity Director for American Indian and Alaska Native Outreach, State Health Alliance Director, Affiliate Cause Consultant and Interim Vice President of State Health Alliances and Research.

 

Michael Splaine is owner and principal in Splaine Consulting, a small advocacy and government affairs consulting firm based in Washington DC. Immediately prior to starting this company, Mike was Director of State Government Affairs in the Public Policy Division of the US Alzheimer’s Association with whom he enjoyed a 23-year career.

He is the managing partner of a related company Recruitment Partners LLC focused on improving the pace, quality and diversity of recruitment into dementia clinical trials.

Mike is a consultant to the US Alzheimer’s Association/CDC Healthy Brain Initiative and recently was the lead on behalf of the Association on its Road Map for Indian Country document and now its related outreach. Mike also serves as a consultant to the Interna tional Psychogeriatric Association and the International Indigenous Aging Association (IA²)

He has been policy adviser for Alzheimer’s Disease International and teaches dementia policy classes at two US universities. Mike makes his home in Columbia, Maryland with his amazing wife Sandy.

 

Jennifer Throwe serves as the regional representative for the services, supports, and programs ACL provides and funds to carry out the mission of ACL. Prior to Federal employment Jennifer worked in State Government with responsibilities including SHIP Director, Aging & Disability Resource Center Director, and served as a Governor appointed member of the Developmental Disabilities Council. She earned a Master’s degree in Social Work from the University of Connecticut with a Certificate in Aging.

 

Edwin Walker - As the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Aging, Edwin L. Walker leads the Administration on Aging in advocating on behalf of older Americans.

In this capacity, he guides and promotes the development of home and community-based long-term care programs, policies, and services designed to afford older people and their caregivers the ability to age with dignity and independence and to have a broad array of options available for an enhanced quality of life. This includes the promotion and implementation of evidence-based prevention interventions proven effective in avoiding or delaying the onset of chronic disease and illness.

Prior to joining HHS in 1992, Mr. Walker served as the Director of the Missouri Division of Aging, responsible for administering a comprehensive set of human service programs for older persons and adults with disabilities.

He received a Juris Doctor degree in law from the University of Missouri-Columbia School of Law and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Mass Media Arts from Hampton University.

 

Iris Walking Eagle an enrolled member of the Spirit Lake Tribe located in Fort Totten, North Dakota, is the Spirit Lake Senior Services Dementia Project Coordinator since October of 2021. My background is in education, I have a Master of Science Degree in Special Education. I taught at the local middle school on the reservation for 10 years in the Gifted and Talented Program. I then worked at the local community college for a health careers grant funded by HHS for 5 years, it’s focus was intended for those individuals interested in pursuing a career or trade in the health field.

Our main goal of the Dementia Grant is to support and promote the development and implementation of dementia-capable home and community-based service system. The long-term goal is to ensure that Native American elders diagnosed with dementia or experiencing memory loss remain independent and safe in their own home. The coordination of education and training on the Spirit Lake Reservation and the counties of Ramsey and Benson has been very successful about bringing awareness to these communities. We provide training such at our Virtual Dementia Tour (VDTs) created by Second Wind Dreams, that give individuals a hands-on e xperience of what a person with dementia and/or memory loss may be experiencing, we also have a community power point we present, in which we incorporated our Medicine Wheel as it pertains our culture and traditions in life as Dakota people and goes hand-in-hand 49

with the circle of life. We have healthcare power points for healthcare workers in where they can earn CEUs, and last but not least we provide SAVVY Caregiver Training to caregivers.

 

Rhonda Weaver is the Quapaw Nation Title VI / Caregiver Director. She has been employed with the Title VI program for 27 years and has served as the Title VI Director for 22 years. Rhonda is happily married to her husband, Mark for 47 years. They have 3 grown daughters and 6 grandkids. She currently serves as an At-Large member of the Oklahoma Indian Council on Aging. She also services as an advisory council member for the Grand Gateway Area Agency on Aging. I was a member of the Oklahoma Minority Task Force on Aging. She has served as a alternate on board for US Aging, and has served as a peer consultant training other Title VI Directors for the National Title VI Training Technical Assistance. Her professional accomplishments include receiving the Oklahoma Minority Task Force on Aging; “Outstanding Nutrition Director” Award; and 2015 US Aging National Leadership Award. In addition, Rhonda serves on the planning committee for the 2012 Medicare Diabetes Health Screening Initiative that received state, regional, and national recognition. She received the AARP Indian Elder Honors Award in 2019, Certificate of Appreciation for serving on the NICOA Board 2014-2015. She received the Quapaw Nation Outstanding Department Head of the Year award. She received the Certificate of Appreciation Award from NICOA in recognition of her dedication and commitment to serving our Elders Across Indian Country.

 

Victoria Wells is a member of Makwa (Bear) Clan and reside in Manistee, Michigan. She is super passionate about food and specifically traditional foods. She is a member of the American Culinary Federation as a certified culinarian and is trying to bring traditional foods to that environment as well as to their Tribe. She graduated in May of 2020 from Great Lakes Culinary Institute where she earned her Culinary Arts Associates Degree and gained her Culinary Sales and Marketing Associates degree in December 2020. She learned how to create recipes and use that science to curate new recipes in a modern or old way to bring ingredients to front and center. She believes food is medicine! She has been creating menus for Elders that involve bringing traditional foods back into their diets. They talk about it and they feel the same as she does, that food can bring you home and help heal the traumas endured.

 

Mary Weston serves as the Elderly Services Program Coordinator for the Gila River Indian Community in Sacaton, AZ overseeing case management, family caregiver support, and homemaker services provided to over 2,000 Elders community-wide. She has been a Master Trainer for the Chronic Disease Self- Management Program, the Powerful Tools for Caregivers Program, and a certified VA REACH Coach. She also serves as a trainer/consultant for the Administration on Aging/Administration for Community Living and is a member of the Title VI Eldercare Advisory Council. Her prior experience in Arizona includes two years as the Family Caregiver Support Coordinator with the Inter-Tribal Council of Arizona, Inc., AAA-Region 8, six years as the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community Caregiver Coordinator, and two years with the Arizona Aging & Adult Services as the Foster Grandparent Program/Senior Companion Program Director.

 

Wilson Wewa is a enrolled member of the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs in Oregon. He has worked for his Title VI program since 1980. He was instrumental in getting grandparents raising grandchildren acknowledged as caregivers. He has been an advocate against elder abuse and was instrumental in having his tribe pass one of the first elder abuse codes in Indian country. He has been invited to the White House conference on Aging and spoke on behalf of all tribes. He frequently visits Washington DC to lobby for elder issues and has presented in more than a few National Indian Conference on Aging sessions. His claim to fame is that he wrote “Legends of the Northern Paiutes” so that his tribes legends would not disappear into oblivion.

 

Amy Wiatr-Rodriguez leads ACL’s team of regional administrators who represent ACL in each HHS regional office, serving as liaisons to state, tribal, and local aging and disability stakeholders as the Director for the Center for Regional Operations. She also works with and connects stakeholders to other HHS divisions and federal agencies to help advance the development of programs and activities serving older adults, people with disabilities, and family caregivers. Previously, Amy worked for AgeOptions, an area agency on aging serving the suburban Chicago area. She also has experience in nursing homes and other settings. She has a Bachelor of Arts in social work and English from Concordia University Chicago, and a Master of Social Work with a management concentration from the State University of New York at Albany.

 

Traci Wilson oversees the ACL-funded Information and Planning Grant Program, which includes the administration of the National AAA and Title VI Native American Aging Program Surveys, various topical polls, the development of resources and the dissemination of survey research findings.

Before joining USAging, Traci was a Research Scholar at the Scripps Gerontology Center at Miami University in Oxford, OH where she conducted both quantitative and qualitative research on the capacity and impact of the Aging Network.

Traci grew up in Minnesota and lives in Ohio with her husband, two daughters, and two cats. She loves to hike, canoe, and craft with her children.

 

Mary Wolf is the Program Director for Tribal Aging and Disability Services and the WI SMP Program at Great Lakes Inter-Tribal Council (GLITC), located in Lac du Flambeau, WI. Services are provided to the 11 tribes in Wisconsin. She has been working with tribes and tribal elders in various capacities for over 25 years and is a former Title III and VI Director for the Lac Courte Oreilles Band of Lake Superior Chippewa in Hayward, WI. Mary earned her degree in Human Services and is enrolled at Lac Courte Oreilles and is also White Earth Minnesota Chippewa and Ft. Peck Assiniboine from Poplar, Montana.

 

Tyesha M. Wood (Navajo Nation) has 17+ years of law enforcement experience with Tribal nations in Arizona. A majority of her police career was in criminal investigations with 15+ years as sex crimes and crimes against children detective. Skilled in working with multi-disciplinary teams in Tribal family advocacy centers, she is passionate about children’s safety. A Project Coordinator with the AMBER Alert in Indian Country initiative, Tyesha also brings her direct service experience to the Office for Victims of Crime’s Human Trafficking Capacity Building Center.

 

Fong Yee recently retired from the Administration for Community Living after 28 years of federal services. Her dedication to Native Americans programs will continue.