Mather LifeWays staff members are currently in the process of delivering numerous presentations at the annual National Council on Aging – American Society on Aging’s annual national conference. Come and join our experts on wellness, care giving, workforce development, and community involvement as they work to promote the use of promising practices in these areas. All presentations will be held at the Hyatt Regency in Chicago.
Schedule of Presentations
Positive Psychology and Aging: Character Strengths in Older Adults
Time: Thursday 3/18 12:00 to 1:00 p.m.
Presenters: Perry Edelman, Ph.D., Reed Engel, M.A., FAWHP, Erin McCoy Loftus
In this session, we describe our focus group work with 45 older adults. We found that the most important character strengths included: authenticity, fairness, and love. Nearly 90% of our participants indicated that they were attempting to improve their love of learning, open-mindedness, and ability to love. After presenting our findings we will outline our plans for surveying older adults in our efforts to create programs and services that are grounded in Positive Psychology principles and allow us to evaluate their impact on older adults’ abilities to develop desirable character strengths.
The Cafe Plus Concept: An Ageless Approach
Time: Thursday 3/18 1:30 – 2:30 p.m.
Presenter: Elizabeth Sassen
This session will describe how the Cafe Plus Concept (winner of the 2009 NCOA’s Jack Ossofsky Award) approaches the older adult from the perspective of people first, older adults second. Opportunities at the cafe revolve around encouraging customers to revisit shelved priorities or interests, experiment with new things, and meet new people. Interest in replicating the concept has been intense nationally and internationally.
CEU Credits: 1
Creating Extraordinary Programming
Time: Thursday 3/18 3:00 to 4:oo p.m.
Presenters: Chuck Freilich and Elizabeth Sassen
You can learn how to create programs that will inspire and generate transformational experiences. Happiness and wellness are connected to learning and growing, but how do you get people engaged in the learning process and keep them moving along the right path? This session will lay the foundation for a lifelong learning program based on creating extraordinary experiences.
CEU Credits: 1
The Impact of Caregiving on Work: 360-Degree Aging in the Workplace Study
Time: Friday 3/19 8:00 to 9:30 a.m.
Presenters: Scott King, M.A., Dawn Lehman, Ph.D., Richard Shank, M.A.
This session will highlight the importance of family caregiving among employed adults and how employers can best respond to minimize its impact on their work. We will outline the prevalence, similarities and differences between types of family caregiving and discuss their influence on job-related stress, caregiver burden, and workplace disruptions. Additionally, we will discuss promising practices from a handful of companies and consider thier practical hurdles for implementation.
CEU Credits: 1.5
2010 What’s Next Boomer Business Summit Panel
Time: Friday 3/19 7:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Come join Mather LifeWays Institute on Aging’s Vice President, Linda Hollinger-Smith, Ph.D., as she participates in a panel discussion entitled “Financing Your Life”. This business summit focuses on the needs of Baby Boomers as consumers and discusses strategies for marketing to them.
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