Dr. Bowers’ research focuses on frail, older adults and people with lifelong disabilities, in both community and residential settings. She is interested in how public policies, organizational practices and models of care delivery influence quality of care and quality of work life for caregivers. Her interest in work life quality for workers in long term care systems has led her to examine causes of staff turnover, the relationships among organizational structure, organizational culture, management practices, and care outcomes, and to explore ways to improve the effectiveness of staff development. Her work with informal caregivers at home has led to the development of tools to provide anticipatory guidance and support caregiver decision making.

Professor Bowers is the founding director of the School of Nursing’s Center for Aging Research and Education.

Professor Bowers is an expert in qualitative research methods. She serves on the editorial board of Qualitative Health Research, The Western Journal of Nursing Research and The International Journal of Older People Nursing. She is associate editor (qualitative and mixed methods research manuscripts) for The Gerontologist and oversees Qualitative and Mixed Methods Research Resources in the Institute for Clinical and Translational Research at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Patricia M. D’Antonio, BSPharm, MS, MBA, BCGP is the Vice President of Policy and Professional Affairs for The Gerontological Society of America (GSA) and a board-certified geriatric pharmacist. Trish directs GSA’s policy initiatives and is responsible for developing relationships with organizations in the aging arena. Trish represents GSA on several policy coalitions and serves as co-chair for the Adult Vaccine Access Coalition, president of the board of the Protecting Access to Pain Relief and Chair of the Friends of NIA.  Additionally, she serves as the Executive Director for the National Center to Reframe Aging, the central hub to advance the long-term social change endeavor designed to improve the public’s understanding of what aging means and the many ways that older people contribute to our society. Before joining GSA, Trish served as Executive Director for the District of Columbia Board of Pharmacy and Program Manager for the Pharmaceutical Control Division, where she was responsible for the regulatory and policy development for the practice of pharmacy and served as liaison to the FDA, DEA, and other federal, state, and city organizations that promote safe handling of medications.  She received her Bachelor of Science in Pharmacy from Duquesne University and her Master of Science in Health Finance and Master in Business Administration with a concentration in health care from Temple University. She completed a residency in administration and finance at The Philadelphia Geriatric Center.

Moira O’Neil serves as Senior Vice President of Research Interpretation at the FrameWorks Institute. In this role, she leads FrameWorks’ efforts to interpret and share communications science with the nonprofit sector so it can more effectively drive social change. Moira manages a team of communications professionals and social scientists who help fields of practice frame social issues in ways that have the proven power to deepen understanding and inspire action. She oversees the team’s efforts to synthesize framing research, teach advocates to apply it to strategic communications, and train sectors to unite around evidence-based framing recommendations. A senior researcher, Moira also directs the organization’s efforts to analyze framing patterns in the media and nonprofit sector and writes in-depth research reports on a wide range of topics, including immigration, child mental health, and housing and homelessness.

A sociologist with expertise in how frames impede or advance social movements, Moira has helped hundreds of organizations strengthen their communications capacity. She regularly delivers presentations and lectures on issue framing at nonprofit organizations, colleges, and universities around the country and abroad. And she publishes regularly in the academic press, with articles appearing in peer-reviewed journals including Child Abuse and Neglect, Generations, Qualitative Research, and the Revue Internationale d’Education de Sèvres. Her work has also appeared in USA Today, The Hechinger Report, The Boston Globe, and other publications.

Moira joined FrameWorks more than a decade ago. Since then, she has conducted framing research around dozens of social issues and has led major projects to reframe the public discourse around immigration, race, and criminal justice. She also brings deep expertise in issues related to sexual violence, equity, and equality. Prior to joining FrameWorks, Moira worked as a research associate for the Vera Institute of Justice on projects related to immigration policy and at the Institute for Scientific Analysis on issues related to substance misuse and drug policy. She holds a BA in sociology from the University of California at Santa Cruz and master’s and doctoral degrees in sociology from the University of California at Santa Barbara, where she studied the medicalization of war trauma at the turn of the 20th century in the United States.

Jasmine L. Travers is an assistant professor of nursing at NYU Rory Meyers College of Nursing. Her career is dedicated to designing and conducting research to improve health outcomes and reduce health disparities in vulnerable older adult groups using both quantitative and qualitative approaches. Her current work focuses on mitigating disparities in appropriate access and use of in-home and facility-based long-term care for older adults (i.e., home & community-based settings, nursing homes, and assisted living). Currently, Travers is the principal investigator of a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation four-year Career Development Award through the Harold Amos Medical Faculty Development Program which she is examining the association of neighborhood disadvantage with nursing home outcomes using large-scale nursing home data and a Paul B. Beeson Emerging Leader five-year K76 Award through the National Institute on Aging which in this mixed-method study she will develop a survey instrument aimed to identify unmet needs that are disproportionately driving avoidable nursing home placements. Most recently, Travers served on the National Academies of Science Engineering and Medicine Committee on the Quality of Care in Nursing Homes which on April 6, 2022, released the widely anticipated report titled, The National Imperative to Improve Nursing Home Quality.

Travers has published widely on the topics of aging, long-term care, health disparities and inequities, workforce diversity and workforce issues, vaccinations, and infections. She has presented her work at regional and national health services research, gerontological, nursing, and public health conferences.

Prior to joining the faculty at NYU, Travers completed a postdoctoral fellowship with the National Clinician Scholars Program at Yale University and a T32-funded postdoctoral fellowship at the New Courtland Center for Transitions and Health at the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing.

Travers received her Ph.D. at Columbia University School of Nursing, MHS at Yale University, MSN in Adult-Gerontological Health at Stony Brook University, and BSN at Adelphi University.

Nancy Morrow-Howell is an international leader in gerontology, known for her work on productive engagement of older adults. Her research contributes to knowledge about programs, policies and organizational arrangements that maximize the productive engagement of older adults while promoting positive outcomes for the individuals themselves. Her research documents outcomes for individual, families, and communities associated with work, volunteering, and caregiving by older adults. Her interests include the development of the Next Move initiative, now a part of WashU for Life,  where older adults are facilitated in transitions to new roles in employment, volunteering or education.

At the Brown School, Morrow-Howell teaches gerontology courses. She also teaches a freshman course on aging, aimed at increasing young people’s understanding about long life and the need for social transformation. As director of the university’s Harvey A. Friedman Center for Aging, she promotes gerontological research and education across disciplines and schools.

She has received Washington University Distinguished Faculty Award and the Brown School’s Outstanding Faculty Award. In 2008 and 2011, she was given the Outstanding Faculty Mentor Award by Washington University. She was the recipient of the 2011 Career Achievement Award from the Association for Gerontology Education in Social Work and of the 2013 Distinguished Career Achievement Award from the Society for Social Work and Research.

Joellen Leavelle joined USAging in July 2017 as Communications Director. In addition to being USAging's liaison with the media, Joellen is responsible for ensuring that all USAging publications, social media properties, websites and collateral materials reflect the organization’s mission of building the capacity of its members to assist older adults and people with disabilities so they may live with dignity and choices in their homes and communities.
 
Joellen comes to USAging from the Pension Rights Center where she was Communications and Outreach Director. While there Joellen promoted the Pension Counseling and Information Program and worked with retirees on communications strategies to help them secure their rightfully-earned pension benefits.  
 
Joellen holds a bachelor’s degree in English from James Madison University and received a Master of the Arts degree in Communications from Trinity University.

Moira O’Neil serves as Senior Vice President of Research Interpretation at the FrameWorks Institute. In this role, she leads FrameWorks’ efforts to interpret and share communications science with the nonprofit sector so it can more effectively drive social change. Moira manages a team of communications professionals and social scientists who help fields of practice frame social issues in ways that have the proven power to deepen understanding and inspire action. She oversees the team’s efforts to synthesize framing research, teach advocates to apply it to strategic communications, and train sectors to unite around evidence-based framing recommendations. A senior researcher, Moira also directs the organization’s efforts to analyze framing patterns in the media and nonprofit sector and writes in-depth research reports on a wide range of topics, including immigration, child mental health, and housing and homelessness.

A sociologist with expertise in how frames impede or advance social movements, Moira has helped hundreds of organizations strengthen their communications capacity. She regularly delivers presentations and lectures on issue framing at nonprofit organizations, colleges, and universities around the country and abroad. And she publishes regularly in the academic press, with articles appearing in peer-reviewed journals including Child Abuse and Neglect, Generations, Qualitative Research, and the Revue Internationale d’Education de Sèvres. Her work has also appeared in USA Today, The Hechinger Report, The Boston Globe, and other publications.

Moira joined FrameWorks more than a decade ago. Since then, she has conducted framing research around dozens of social issues and has led major projects to reframe the public discourse around immigration, race, and criminal justice. She also brings deep expertise in issues related to sexual violence, equity, and equality. Prior to joining FrameWorks, Moira worked as a research associate for the Vera Institute of Justice on projects related to immigration policy and at the Institute for Scientific Analysis on issues related to substance misuse and drug policy. She holds a BA in sociology from the University of California at Santa Cruz and master’s and doctoral degrees in sociology from the University of California at Santa Barbara, where she studied the medicalization of war trauma at the turn of the 20th century in the United States.

Lauren advocates for policies and programs that improve aging in our communities as racially and ethnically diverse people; American Indians and Alaska Natives; and LGBTQ+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and questioning and other self-identifying members of the community) people. The coalition is comprised of six national organizations: National Asian Pacific Center on Aging (NAPCA), National Caucus and Center on Black Aging (NCBA), National Hispanic Council on Aging (NHCOA), National Indian Council on Aging (NICOA), SAGE (advocacy and services for LGBT elders), and Southeast Asia Resource Action Center (SEARAC).

Lauren identifies as a mixed race second-generation Filipina American. She holds a Master of Arts in Southeast Asian Studies from the University of Washington, and a Bachelor of Arts in English from Colby College.

As the Chief Experience Officer (CXO) for SAGE, Christina DaCosta’s mission is to bring the voices of LGBTQ+ elders from the margin to the mainstream and center their experiences in engaging with SAGE’s national initiatives and programs. In her role as CXO, DaCosta leads strategies that grow SAGE’s marketing and communications efforts that promote positive images of LGBTQ+ life in later years. DaCosta will also create and scale national consumer initiatives that enhance the lives of LGBTQ+ older people and their experience within the larger community. A SAGE staffer since 2008, Christina’s longevity puts her in a unique position of retaining a rich institutional memory. Her media savvy allows her to work towards SAGE’s vision for the future of LGBTQ+ people in exciting and innovative ways.

DaCosta earned her Bachelor’s of Arts from New York University, graduating summa cum laude with a major in Political Science and a minor in Philosophy.

Eunice (You-knees) is Co-CEO of CoGenerate. She has spent more than two decades bringing older and younger generations together to bridge divides and solve problems, including leading CoGenerate’s innovation portfolio, serving as national campaign director for the Generation to Generation initiative, running >span class="TextRun SCXP104739943 BCX0" xml:lang="EN-US" lang="EN-US"> (now a program of AARP), and scaling Experience Corps from one neighborhood school in San Francisco into a thriving Bay Area program helping thousands of kids read by third grade. Eunice has been recognized as a Next Avenue Influencer in Aging and is a graduate of the Billions Institute Fellowship for Large-Scale Change. She is also a recipient of the James Irvine Foundation Leadership Award for advancing innovative and effective solutions to California’s most significant issues.

Audrey is the Early Childhood Field Specialist for South Dakota State University Extension. Audrey supports and works with childcare programs and providers to increase school readiness and enhance social, emotional growth and development among South Dakota’s youngest citizens. Audrey interacts closely with parents, teachers, early childhood professionals, caregivers, agencies and stakeholders to coordinate resources and advance initiatives for young children in South Dakota. In addition to outreach, Audrey collaborates with other land grant universities’ extension and early childhood development programming throughout the nation to enhance programming and resources available to South Dakotans.

Darcy is the CEO of The Village Chicago. Darcy brings a wealth of experience to the Village, including leadership roles at public and private universities, libraries, medical, technology, non-profit organizations and media companies. She is active in Chicago’s corporate and civic communities and serves on the boards of Ingenuity Inc., The Guild of the Chicago History Museum, The Kalo Foundation, and the Chicago Innovation Advisory Board. Darcy is a member of the Economic Club, Executives Club, and a variety of cultural and business organizations. She is an avid history buff and author who published Hand Wrought, an illustrated history of jewelry and metalwork from the Chicago Arts and Crafts Movement.

Leacey E. Brown serves South Dakota as a SDSU Extension Gerontology Field Specialist. What that means is that Leacey is an expert on aging. Aging is a process of gaining momentum, where we gain knowledge, skills and experience. To take advantage of those resources, we need modern solutions to the challenges of aging. Leacey works with individuals, families and communities to improve aging for all of us who call South Dakota home. She is based in Rapid City, South Dakota, but serves the whole state of South Dakota. Please feel free to reach out to her with any questions.