Victor Marshall To Complete Tenure As IOA Director On 6/30/09

Victor Marshall will complete his tenure as director of the UNC Institute on Aging on June 30th, 2009, with a yet-to-be-determined interim director stepping in on July 1st. Dr. Marshall has served as IOA Director since 1999, presiding over a period of successful growth for the Institute and its initiatives. He will transition to being a full-time professor in the UNC Department of Sociology, and will continue as principal investigator of the IOA's Carolina Program in Health and Aging Research grant, and co-principal investigator or co-investigator on other IOA research projects. Read the full news release.

UNC Institute on Aging Announces Winners of the Bringing Basic Scientists to Aging Grants Program

Awards in the form of pilot grants for interdisciplinary team building and research grant development in aging have been given to two researchers at the UNC Institute on Aging, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Funding for this grant program was provided, in large part, by The UNC-CH Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research and Economic Development. The two funded projects and teams are:

• Testing the Effectiveness of Using the Nintendo Wii for Balance Interventions in Older Adults. Principal Investigator is Tiffany Shubert, PhD, MPT, Research Scientist, UNC Institute on Aging, and Co-Investigators are Gary Bishop, PhD, Professor, UNC Department of Computer Science, Leslie Vaughn, PhD, OTR/L, Assistant Professor of Occupational Therapy, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Joanne Marshall, PhD, Alumni Distinguished Professor, UNC School of Information and Library Science, UNC Institute on Aging.


• Reducing Health Disparities in Alzheimer's Disease through Access to Participation in Research. Principal Investigator is Peggye Dilworth-Anderson, PhD, Associate Director, Aging & Diversity, UNC Institute on Aging and Professor, UNC Health Policy & Management, and Co-Investigator is Goldie Byrd, PhD, Chair & Professor, Department of Biology, North Carolina A & T University.

Shubert To Conduct Balance Research With Undergraduate Assistance

IOA Research Scientist Dr. Tiffany Shubert's research with the Nintendo Wii for balance interventions in older adults will be assisted by Beth Sams, rising 3rd year undergraduate student in the Computer Science Department. Ms. Sams was awarded the prestigious Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship – Community Based Research Award. A key component of her fellowship will be developing software specifically for older adults to use the Wii to improve balance and leg strength. Dr. Gary Bishop, Co-Investigator on Dr. Shubert's grant, is also mentoring Ms. Sams.

IOA Announces Winners Of The 2009 DeFriese Awards

The UNC Institute on Aging is pleased to announce the 2009 winners of the Gordon H. DeFriese Career Development in Aging Research Awards, given to a junior faculty/staff member and a doctoral student from UNC Chapel Hill who demonstrate commitment to and outstanding promise in aging research. The winner of this year's Junior Faculty/Staff award is Jennifer Craft Morgan, PhD, IOA Associate Director for Research. The winner of the Doctoral Student award is Susan Fletcher, MSW, ABD. Read the news release.

Introducing The 2010 Class of Senior Leaders

The Institute on Aging is pleased to announce the candidate selections for the Class of 2010 in its Senior Leadership Initiative program. The class entering this 9th year of the program includes Ellen Atkins (Greensboro), Harriet Bartnick (Cary), Horace Johnson (Apex), Emily Paynter (Durham), and Carol Shaw (Raleigh). Each Senior Leader participates in a fifteen-month program to develop his or her potential to emerge as as statewide leader on aging issues, and completes a personal leadership project. Visit the Senior Leadership Initiative web pages for more details and a look at the accomplishments of previous Senior Leaders. The Class of 2009 recently graduated in a commencement ceremony and reception on May 20th at Carol Woods Retirement Community, where the Reverend Robert Seymour gave the commencement address.

A Note From IOA Director Victor Marshall

As our lead news item says, I will be stepping down from the position of Director of the Institute on Aging at the end of June. This will complete two five year terms. I will remain affiliated with the IOA, where I am Principal Investigator and Director for our training program, CPHAR (The Carolina Program for Health and Aging Research), and where I will continue to be involved in other research projects and the Aging Workforce Initiative. However, I will now move to a full-time appointment and a full course load in the Sociology Department. Read the entire column...

IOA Appoints Four Research Scientists

The UNC Institute on Aging is pleased to announce the appointment of four research scientists, effective June 1, 2009. They are Senior Research Scientists Victor W. Marshall and James Mitchell, and Research Scientists Susan Rathbun-Grubb and Cherie Rosemond. Details are available in the news release.

NC Well-Represented On Southern Gerontological Society Board

Effective July 1, the following North Carolina colleagues join the Board of the Southern Gerontological Society: President Elect- Jan Wassel, UNC Greensboro; Board of Directors Member at Large (2 year term)- Luci Bearon, North Carolina State University and Malcolm Cutchin, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. With Jan Wassel's election, North Carolina has provided three successive SGS presidents: Ed Rosenberg (Appalachian State) ends his term on July 1, to be succeeded by Jim Mitchell (East Carolina University), who will then be succeeded by Jan Wassel.

Workshop Opportunity For Caregivers

The Area Planning and Services Committee for Aging with Lifelong Disabilities (APSC), a multi-member coalition in metropolitan Richmond, Virginia, will host Community Supports: Caregivers and Consumers: For Persons Growing Older with Lifelong Disabilities, on June 8, 2009 in Richmond, VA. It carries six hours of training content and is priced at $35 total for registration, materials, and food.

June Aging Observances

Falls prevention is an international concern and effort. The United Kingdom will hold National Falls Awareness Day on June 23, 2009.

Newsletters From Nonprofits

The Spring 2009 issue of the Wake Forest University School of Law Elder Law Clinic newsletter, E-Clinic News, describes first-hand the experiences of students who assisted NC senior citizens in need of legal services.

New from NC Researchers

New from the Digital Library

Upcoming Events In NC

June 3-5 2009
Lifecourse Perspectives on Spirituality & Health in Diverse Religious Communities
Washington Duke Inn & Golf Club, Durham, North Carolina

June 3, 10, 17, 2009
"The Alzheimer's Project": Three Special Screenings
June 3- The Memory Loss Tapes; June 10- Caregivers; June 17- Grandpa, Do You Know Who I Am? (suitable for children)
Robert and Pearl Seymour Center, 2551 Homestead Road, Chapel Hill
6:00 PM light dinner, 6:30 PM screening, discussion to follow
Free- Pre-registration required: Lisa Goldstein, lisa@shalomdch.org or 919-259-5817

Save The Dates

September 15, 2009
The Aging Exchange
Note: This event is being held in conjunction with the HAN Symposium below

September 15-16, 2009
Promoting Environmental and Policy Change to Support Healthy Aging
A Research to Practice Symposium presented by the
CDC Prevention Research Centers-Healthy Aging Research Network
Friday Center, Chapel Hill, NC

View our complete events calendar at www.aging.unc.edu/events/.

Community Bulletin Board and Jobs in Aging

Publication of this newsletter is announced via email listserv. Current and past issues may be viewed at any time at http://www.aging.unc.edu/news/newsletter.html . To join one of our lists, please visit www.aging.unc.edu/news/lists.html for more information. If you have information that you would like to include in this newsletter in the future, please send it to aginginfo@unc.edu at any time.