Illinois Department on Aging staff and University of Illinois staff pose for picture. From left to right; Alyssa Stanfield (Coordinator, CHART), Amy Lulich (Senior Policy Advisor, IDOA), Jeff Woods (Director, CHAD), Lora McCurdy (Deputy Director, IDOA), Sandra Pastore (Manager, Div. of Home & Community Services, IDOA), Amy Brown (Manager, Div. of Advocacy & Preventative Services, IDOA), Mike Berkes (Manager, Div. of Planning, Research, & Development, IDOA), Paula Basta (Director, IDOA), Wendy Rogers (Program Director, CHART), Harshal Mahajan (Assistant Director of Research, McKechnie Family LIFE Home), Laura Rice (Associate Director, CHAD)

CHART Hosts Illinois Department on Aging

Posted on by astan20@illinois.edu

On November 2nd, 2022, Collaborations in Health, Aging, Research, and Technology (CHART) hosted the Illinois Department on Aging (IDOA) at the McKechnie Family LIFE Home. The purpose of this meeting was for the IDOA to meet with staff from CHART, the Center on Health, Aging, and Disability (CHAD), and the McKechnie Family LIFE Home. The IDOA provided updates on the State Plan on Aging and the Illinois Assistive Technology Program: Reducing Social Isolation Through Technology. The McKechnie Family LIFE Home staff provided a tour of the facility, robot demonstrations, and shared information about various research projects being conducted in the facility. CHART Director, Dr. Wendy Rogers provided an overview of aging research centers, including Center for Research and Education on Aging and Technology Enhancement (CREATE), Technologies to Support Aging-in-Place for People with Long-Term Disabilities (TechSAge), and Enhancing Neurocognitive Health, Abilities, Networks, and Community Engagement (ENHANCE). This meeting generated multiple ideas for how the Illinois Department on Aging and the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign can collaborate in the future to improve aging in the state of Illinois.