Suspicion

In 2014 Barbados introduced a vaccine to prevent certain strains of the human papillomavirus (HPV) and reduce the risk of cervical cancer in young women. Despite the disproportionate burden of cervical cancer in the Caribbean, many Afro-Barbadians chose not to immunize their daughters. In Suspicion, Nicole Charles reframes Afro-Barbadian vaccine refusal from a question of hesitancy to one of suspicion. Drawing on ethnographic fieldwork, black feminist theory, transnational feminist studies and science and technology studies, Charles foregrounds Afro-Barbadians' gut feelings and emotions and the lingering trauma of colonial and biopolitical violence. She shows that suspicion, far from being irrational, is a fraught and generative affective orientation grounded in concrete histories of mistrust of government and coercive medical practices foisted on colonized peoples. By contextualizing suspicion within these longer cultural and political histories, Charles troubles traditional narratives of vaccine hesitancy while offering new entry points into discussions on racialized biopolitics, neocolonialism, care, affect, and biomedicine across the Black diaspora. Duke University Press Scholars of Color First Book Award recipient

Maxwell A. Pollack Award Lecture

The lecture will feature an address by the 2020 Pollack Award recipient, Karl Pillmer, PhD, FGSA of Cornell University. The 2021 Pollack Award recipient is Namkee G. Choi, PhD, FGSA, of the University of Texas at Austin. The Maxwell A. Pollack Award for Contributions to Healthy Aging Award recognizes instances of practice informed by research and analysis, research that has directly improved policy or practice, and distinction in bridging the worlds of research and practice.

Terrie Fox Wetle Award (2020): The Role of Home-Delivered Meals Programs in Improving Health and Promoting Community Independence for Older Adults

Dr. Terrie “Fox” Wetle is internationally recognized as a leader who conducts and advocates for multi-disciplinary and multi-method investigations centered on aging, public health and health care with direct implications for shaping policy and practice. This award lecture, given in Dr. Wetle’s name, will be presented by the 2020 award recipient, Kali Thomas, PhD. Dr. Thomas will present a line of multi-disciplinary and multi-method research focused on the impact of home-delivered meals as it relates to the health outcomes of homebound, food insecure older adults. Findings will include results from observational and intervention studies conducted at both the local and national levels. Examples of how this evidence has influenced policy and practice, including greater integration with healthcare, will be provided. The lecture will conclude with discussion about future opportunities for collaboration with community partners to measure and understand the impact of these vital social services on the lives of older adults.

Margret M. and Paul B. Baltes Award Lecture: Optimism and Health: Resource or Delusion?

The lecture will be given by the 2020 Baltes Award recipient, William Chopik, PhD, of Michigan State University. The recipient of the 2021 Baltes Award is Laura B. Zahodne, PhD, of the University of Michigan. The Margret M. and Paul B. Baltes Foundation Award in Behavioral and Social Gerontology recognizes outstanding early-career contributions in behavioral and social gerontology. The award is generously funded by the Margret M. and Paul B. Baltes Foundation.

Maxwell A. Pollack Award Lecture

The lecture will feature an address by the 2020 Pollack Award recipient, Karl Pillmer, PhD, FGSA of Cornell University. The 2021 Pollack Award recipient is Namkee G. Choi, PhD, FGSA, of the University of Texas at Austin. The Maxwell A. Pollack Award for Contributions to Healthy Aging Award recognizes instances of practice informed by research and analysis, research that has directly improved policy or practice, and distinction in bridging the worlds of research and practice.

Clark Tibbitts Award and Hiram J. Friedsam Mentorship Award Lectures

The Clark Tibbitts Award lecture will feature an address by Debra Dobbs, PhD, FGSA in memory of the 2021 award recipient, Kathryn Hyer, PhD, FGSA. AGHE's Clark Tibbitts Award was established in 1980 and named for an architect of the field of gerontological education. The award is given each year to an individual or organization that has made an outstanding contribution to the advancement of gerontology and geriatrics education. The Hiram J. Friedsam Award lecture will feature an address by the 2021 award recipient, Pamela Elfenbein, MSW, PhD, FAGHE, HS-BCP. Hiram J. Friedsam was the professor, co-founder, and director of the Center for Studies in Aging and dean of the School of Community Service at the University of Northern Texas. Dr. Friedsam was an outstanding teacher, researcher, colleague, and mentor to students, faculty, and administrators, as well as a past president of AGHE. The purpose of this award is to recognize those who emulate Dr. Friedsam's excellence in mentorship.

The M. Powell Lawton Award Lecture: The Person-Environment Fit Framework, Older Adults, and Technology Interactions

The lecture will be given by the 2020 recipient, Sara Czaja, PhD, FGSA of Weill Cornell Medicine. The 2020 M. Powell Lawton Award recipient is David Roth, Phd, FGSA, of Johns Hopkins University. The M. Powell Lawton Award is presented annually to an individual who has made outstanding contributions from applied research that has benefited older people and their care. The Lawton Award is generously funded by the Polisher Research Institute of the Madlyn and Leonard Abramson Center for Jewish Life.

Terrie Fox Wetle Award (2021): Advancing multidisciplinary health services science: Developments in a Dementia-Focused Program of Research

The Terrie Fox Wetle Rising Star Award in health Services and Aging Research is an award named in honor of Fox Wetle, PhD, who is internationally recognized for her contributions to aging, public health, and health care research. The award recognizes health services researchers in early or middle-career phases who have made significant contributions that embody the value of multidisciplinary health services science and are likely to have a sustained, high impact on practice and research. This aware lecture will be presented by the 2021 Award Recipient, Andrea Gilmore-Bykovskyi, PhD, RN, and will highlight emergent findings and foci in her dementia-focused health services research program. In particular, the award lecture will discuss progress in investigating social and behavioral communication patterns among individuals with moderate to advanced dementia; and the role of temporally situated observational measures and inclusion of persons with dementia and their caregivers in this line of research. The lecture will conclude with a discussion of next steps for this area of investigation surrounding assessment of episodes of lucidity in advanced dementia; and considerations for strengthening progress in outcome evaluation among persons living with dementia through multidisciplinary and community-informed health services research.

Kent and Kleemeier Award Lecture and Presentations

The Robert W. Kleemeier Award lecture will feature an address by the 2020 Kleemeier Award recipient, Matt Kaeberlein, PhD, FGSA, of the University of Washington. The Kleemeier Award is given annually to a member of The Gerontological Society of America in recognition for outstanding research in the field of gerontology. The Donald P. Kent Award lecture will feature an address by the 2020 Kent Award recipient, David Ekerdt, Phd, FGSA, of the University of Kansas. The Kent Award is given annually to a member of The Gerontological Society of America who best exemplifies the highest standards of professional leadership in gerontology through teaching, service, and interpretation of gerontology to the larger society.

Joseph T. Freeman and Excellence in Rehabilitation Award Lecture

The Joseph T. Freeman Award lecture will feature an address by the 2021 Freeman Award recipient Pamela Cacchione, PhD, CRNP, BC, FGSA, FAAN, of the University of Pennsylvania. The Joseph T. Freeman Award is a lectureship in geriatrics awarded to a prominent physician in the field of aging, both in research and practice. The award was established in 1977 through a bequest from a patient's estate as a tribute to Dr. Joseph T. Freeman. The Excellence in Rehabilitation of Aging Persons Award lecture will feature an address by the 2021 Excellence in Rehabilitation Award recipient Gregory Hicks, MPT, PhD of the University of Delaware. The Excellence in Rehabilitation of Aging Persons Award is designed to acknowledge outstanding contributions in the field of the rehabilitation of aging individuals.