Office of Community Partnerships

Cultural, Disabilities, Early Education, and Elderly Programs

Cultural Arts/Humanities

Program Summary Teaching/ Learning Research Service Contacts Dept. Affiliation
Massachusetts Memories Road Show The Massachusetts Memories Road Show is an event-based public history project that digitizes family photos and stories shared by the people of Massachusetts. We work with local communities to organize free public events where residents are invited to bring family photos to be scanned and included in the archives at UMass Boston.     X Joanne Riley Joseph P. Healey Library
A Partnership with the Boston Public Library for Access to Rare Books This project created a new collaborative partnership between the University of Massachusetts Boston and the Boston Public Library, focused on expanding public access to rare books. The partnership involves bringing the raw materials of humanities research-rare, historical, and unique books-to the public via UMass Boson courses at the BPL, a series of free, guided, open-to-all "rare books" exhibitions, and a new community outreach program in the BPL's 27 branch libraries. X   X Cheryl Nixon College of Liberal Arts
Center for Portuguese Language–Instituto Camões The Center for Portuguese Language-Instituto Camões receives and houses cultural and pedagogical materials and sponsors events and exhibitions that represent the richness and diversity of the cultures of the Portuguese-speaking world. The center works in partnership with the Latin American and Iberian Studies Department, the home of UMass Boston’s Portuguese Language Program and of curriculum devoted to exploring the histories and cultures of Portugal and Brazil. X   X Ann Blum College of Liberal Arts
Community University Project for Literacy (CUPL) The Community-University Project for Literacy (CUPL) provides an academic structure for undergraduates to work as tutors in community-based learning centers.  Students who enroll in CUPL commit to tutoring four hours each week at a community program while attending a weekly credit-bearing academic seminar at UMass Boston offered each semester: Language, Literacy and Community (fall) and ESL Tutor Training Seminar (spring). The weekly seminars provide the theoretical and practical foundations of tutoring and a forum for students to share their tutoring experiences. Students are encouraged to reflect on their own educational experiences and to apply this reflection to their practice. X   X Carol Chandler-Rourke College of Liberal Arts
Eastern Pequot Archaeological Field School This project assists with locating historical cultural sites on Eastern Pequot reservation established in A.D 1683, and providing historical preservation and archaeological services at low to no cost to this Native American community. This project also trains undergraduate and graduate students from UMass Boston and other institutions and tribal community interns in archaeological techniques, heritage preservation, Native American history, colonial studies and collaborative research methods. It aims to improve archaeological fieldwork and interpretations as part of a deeply collaborative relationship, and also study Eastern Pequot house sites, using artifacts, animal bones, plant remains, architecture, landscape historical documents and oral history to understand the persistence of this Native American community in the colonial world of Southern New England. X X X Stephen Silliman College of Liberal Arts
Fiske Center for Archaeological Research - African Meeting House The African Meeting House project is a collaborative undertaking with the Museum of African American History (MAAH). The Meeting House was constructed in 1806 and served as the center for Boston’s free African American community for most of the 19th century. As part of the preparation for the bicentennial celebration in 2006, the MAAH is initiating an important building restoration and improvement project. UMass Boston’s 2005 archaeological excavations around the Meeting House documented the archaeological deposits and recovered artifacts in areas slated for disturbance by the restoration work. Undergraduate and graduate students from UMass Boston carried out most of the fieldwork, assisted by undergraduate participants in the Center’s NSF-supported Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) program. X X X Christa Beranek College of Liberal Arts
Fiske Center for Archaeological Research - Gore Place, Waltham, MA The Gore Place Society has been conducting architectural and archival research, and these data will combine with the archaeological results as the society attempts to restore the grounds to their Gore-period appearance. Research at Gore Place will also contribute to the understanding of early 19th-century domestic and agricultural labor. Excavations have already been carried out at the home of Gore's estate gardener Robert Murray, a house he shared with agricultural laborers. Excavations of the carriage house area in the fall of 2008 investigated the layout of this service space and the possibility that the carriage house served as residential space for estate servants. X X X David Landon College of Liberal Arts
Fiske Center for Archaeological Research - Hancock-Clarke House in Lexington, MA The Hancock-Clarke House in Lexington, Massachusetts, was home to the town’s 18th-century ministers. The Lexington Historical Society has preserved the house both for its architectural importance and because John Hancock and John Adams were staying there on the evening of April 18th-19th, 1775, when Paul Revere stopped at the house during his famous ride to warn them of the approaching British troops. In order to preserve the house, the Lexington Historical Society purchased it and discovered four previously unknown cellar holes. The collections from all of these cellars are being inventoried and undergoing preliminary analyses by the Fiske Center. X X X Christa Beranek College of Liberal Arts
Fiske Center for Archaeological Research - Hassanamesit Woods, Grafton, MA The archaeological investigation of Hassanamesit Woods in Grafton, Massachusetts is a collaborative project involving in the Town of Grafton, The Fiske Center and the Nipmuc Nation. The focus of the project is a 200 acre parcel purchased by the Town of Grafton that includes land that was once part of the seventeenth century Native community of Hassanamesit. X X X Christopher Fung College of Liberal Arts
Fiske Center for Archaeological Research - Higginbotham House, Nantucket, MA The Fiske Center is working in collaboration with the Museum of African American History to study the Seneca Boston-Florence Higginbotham House on Nantucket. This house was originally built just prior to the American Revolution by Seneca Boston, a former slave.  Archaeological excavation at the site in the summer will help to discover more about the history of the land and the families who lived there, and provide guidance for the Museum’s planned restoration and interpretation of the property. This excavation was run with a strong public archaeology component, including a public kick-off lecture, public site tours, and school visits to the site. X X X Christa Beranek College of Liberal Arts
Fiske Center for Archaeological Research - Historic Newton (archaeology at Durant Kenrick Homestead) With the help of the Fiske Center and the students’ findings, nonprofit organization Historic Newton plans to turn the preserved property into an education center for the town, said Fiske Associate Director David Landon. The house will be restored and the outbuilding’s foundation will be moved and rebuilt, while a new addition to the house will serve as a curation facility. X X X John Steinberg College of Liberal Arts
Fiske Center for Archaeological Research - Magunkaquog, Ashland, MA Magunkaquog, "a place of great trees" was the last of the original seven "Christian Indian" communities" established during the seventeenth century by the English missionary John Eliot. The Fiske Center has been involved in research surrounding the community at Magunkaquog since 1996 when excavations at the Magunkaquog Hill Site in Ashland, Massachusetts began. Subsequent excavations, analysis and documentary research has evolved into a larger collaboration with the Nipmuc Tribal Nation that focuses on the archaeological and documentary investigation of Nipmuc History that also involves Fiske Center excavations at Hassanamesit Woods. The overall goal of this collaboration is to use archaeology as one means for examining recent and deeper Nipmuc history. An equally important goal is to add archaeological evidence to the corpus of information the Nipmuc Tribal Nation has compiled in seeking federal recognition. X X X Christa Beranek College of Liberal Arts
Fiske Center for Archaeological Research - National Park Service Collaboration A five-year Cooperative Agreement with the National Park Service, North Atlantic Regional Office intended to serves as an umbrella for a series of smaller collaborative projects, the first of which is an archaeological overview and assessment of the Weir Farm National Historic site in Wilton, Connecticut. This is a complex, year long project that will compile and review all of the known information about archaeological sites in the park, creating a management plan for future archaeology and a GIS database of historical and archaeological information. X X X David Landon College of Liberal Arts
Fiske Center for Archaeological Research - Newport, RI The Fiske Center has been working collaboratively with Salve Regina University on archaeological investigation in Newport, Rhode Island. The research theme of the project is “Interpreting the Lives of Merchants in Eighteenth-Century Newport,” with a focus on the role of mercantile capital in shaping the urban landscape and the city’s social structures of race, class, and gender during the colonial period. X X X David Landon College of Liberal Arts
Fiske Center for Archaeological Research - Vanderpoel House, Kinderhook, NY The James Vanderpoel House in Kinderhook, New York, was constructed around 1820 for Vanderpoel, a lawyer, and his family. The Columbia County Historical Society owns the property and is restoring the house and developing a new interpretive plan. The Fiske Center conducted remote sensing and excavation around the house prior to necessary construction work. X X X Christa Beranek College of Liberal Arts
Philosophy at the Walter Denney Youth Center The UMass Boston undergraduate philosophy student group runs a weekly philosophy discussion group with middle and high school students who live on Harbor Point, at (and in partnership with) the Walter Denney Youth Center.      X Lawrence Blum College of Liberal Arts
Research Center for Urban Cultural History (RCUCH) The Research Center for Urban Cultural History premises its work on the multi-disciplinary study of cities as dynamic sites where cultures are generated, renegotiated and transmitted.    X   Elizabeth Fay College of Liberal Arts
Spanish Resource Center at the University of Massachusetts Boston The Spanish Resource Center at the University of Massachusetts Boston has been created to enhance the teaching and study of the Spanish language and cultures throughout the Commonwealth. The center provides support for teachers, professionals, university students and all those interested in the knowledge and promotion of the Spanish language and cultures.   X   X Ann Blum College of Liberal Arts
Amistad Project  In partnership with Amistad America this project is designed to promote national and international communication and understanding.  This is done by using the concept of Journeying with the Amistad, with educational programs on-campus and study abroad opportunities (on & off the ship).   X   X Carroy "Cuf" Ferguson College of Public and Community Service
WUMB - Big Read project With support from the NEA, for three years WUMB Radio has managed a one-community-read program in the greater Boston area in partnership with dozens of schools, libraries and community groups in order to promote reading literature. Thousands of local school children and residents have participated in related activities and events. These projects have helped to address the issues discovered in a 2004 NEA report that book reading has reached an all time low among Americans of every age.     X Patty Domeniconi Enrollment Management
WUMB - Engaging WUMB's Community Beyond Broadcast WUMB-FM, UMass Boston's National Public Radio affiliate, has a listenership of more than 100,000 people weekly. Through its sister stations, WUMB has a reach that extends through the greater Boston area and beyond into 4 neighboring New England States. Via the Internet, WUMB reaches listeners in all 50 states and 113 countries. As a media outlet for the university, WUMB engages in a variety of community service activities throughout the Greater Boston Area and beyond, acting as an independent nonprofit media organization focused on serving the the needs of the university's local, regional, and virtual constituents. WUMB draws upon these world-wide resources to engage in a variety of local community service activities beyond the daily operation of the core station.     X Patty Domeniconi Enrollment Management

Developmental Disabilities

Program Summary Teaching/ Learning Research Service Contacts Dept. Affiliation
Institute for Community Inclusion - APPLE project evaluation The APPLE project was a five year project to investigate the outcomes of a parent training and leadership intervention designed by the Federation and evaluated by the ICI.      X   Susan Foley Institute for Community Inclusion
Institute for Community Inclusion - Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental Disabilities (LEND Program) This Interdisciplinary Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental and Related Disabilities (LEND) and Maternal and Child Health Bureau (MCHB) funded-program aims at providing long-term, graduate level interdisciplinary training to health professionals and family members. The purpose of this project is to develop leadership potential to improve the health status of infants, children, and adolescents with or at risk for neurodevelopmental and related disabilities and to enhance the systems of care for these children and their families. X   X David Helm Institute for Community Inclusion
Institute for Community Inclusion - Massachusetts FOCUS Academy Evaluation The Massachusetts FOCUS Academy is a five-year project for the Massachusetts State Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, which is funded by the U.S. Department of Education. It began in 2007 and will run through 2012. The overarching goal of the project is to positively impact post-high school outcomes for students with disabilities in Massachusetts by: 1) Improving the competencies of individual educators; 2) Increasing school districts’ capacity to retain educators; and 3) Developing a statewide framework for professional development. X X X Elizabeth Porter Institute for Community Inclusion
Institute for Community Inclusion - Massachusetts Partnership for Youth in Employment Youth with disabilities face challenges as they prepare to leave high school and find jobs. The situation is magnified by often confusing public service systems. Many agencies serve youth with and without disabilities, education, departments of mental health and retardation, public health, youth services, workforce development, the employer community, recreation, just to name a few. The Mass. Partnership for Youth in Employment (MPYE) is helping agencies work together to help youth with disabilities reach their full potential.     X Debra Hart Institute for Community Inclusion
Institute for Community Inclusion - MassWorks MassWorks brings information to workforce and disability professionals who want to improve the employment outcomes of people with disabilities. The site includes a calendar of local training events and is ICI's initiative for disability, workforce development, and employment professionals in Massachusetts. X   X Cindy Thomas Institute for Community Inclusion
Institute for Community Inclusion - Medicaid Infrastructure and Comprehensive Employment Opportunities This grant identifies, develops, and supports state services to improve employment opportunities and outcomes for Massachusetts citizens with disabilities, with a focus on consumers making their own choices. The project is run by UMass Medical School Center for Health Policy and Research and ICI in collaboration with the Office of Medicaid and the Executive Office of Health and Human Services.   X X Cindy Thomas Institute for Community Inclusion
Institute for Community Inclusion - National Center on Workforce and Disability/Adult The National Center on Workforce and Disability/Adult (NCWD/A) provides training, technical assistance, policy analysis, and information to improve access for all in the workforce development system. Areas of expertise include designing access for all, accommodations & assistive technology, helping customers find jobs, legal requirements & guidelines, building partnerships with agencies and employers, and outreach. NCWD/A is a national training provider for the One-Stop system through the Office of Disability Employment Policy at the U.S. Department of Labor. X X X Alberto Migliore; Sheila Fesko Institute for Community Inclusion
Institute for Community Inclusion - National Service to Employment Project (NextSTEP) NextSTEP's focus is on promoting the inclusion of people with disabilities in service and understanding how participation in service leads to meaningful employment and post-secondary options through identifying promising practices in service that lead to employment and post-secondary activities. NextSTEP is also working with state intellectual/developmental disability agencies and vocational rehabilitation agencies to support participation in service as part of vocational development for their customers. This includes identifying any policies or practice barriers that might exist, and disseminating state models of effective practice for replication.  The program is defining key elements that contribute to service experiences that improve employment outcomes for youth with disabilities transitioning from high school.  Finally the program is informing employers about the value that the service experience can bring to their companies and the contribution of candidates who have service experience. Employers will also provide information on how potential employees can capitalize on their service experience during the hiring process. X X X Allison Hall Institute for Community Inclusion
Institute for Community Inclusion - OPT 4College: An online Educational transition curriculum for youth with disabilities and special health care needs. Through this project, we have identified the following: 1) Students with disabilities and/ or special health care needs are disproportionally under-represented secondary institutions. 2) Making the transition from secondary to post secondary institutions requires self determination and advocacy. 3) Although there are other programs with this transition, few focus on both educational and medical transitions for students with disabilities and ore special health care needs.   X   Miriam Heyman Institute for Community Inclusion
Institute for Community Inclusion - StateData.info (National Data Collection on Day and Employment Services for Individuals with Developmental Disabilities) Since the mid-1980s, the Institute for Community Inclusion has collected data from state MR/DD agencies, the vocational rehabilitation system, and community organizations in order to describe trends in day and employment services for individuals with developmental disabilities. The goal of this project is to continue and extend research that provides a clear account of current day and employment services for individuals with developmental disabilities, and to identify individual, program, and policy factors that influence individual outcomes on a state and national level.   X   Alberto Migliore Institute for Community Inclusion
Institute for Community Inclusion - The Substantial Gainful Activity (SGA) Project The Substantial Gainful Activity (SGA) Project is a national center that builds the capacity of the public Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) program to improve employment outcomes for individuals with disabilities receiving SSDI benefits. This is achieved through providing state VR agencies and others working in this area with: 1) a rigorously examined service-delivery model; 2) training and manuals for implementation strategies; and 3) on-demand technical assistance. X   X Holly Jacobs Institute for Community Inclusion
Institute for Community Inclusion - Think, Hear, See, Believe College: Using Participatory Action Research to Document the College Experience The Consortium for Postsecondary Education for Individuals with Developmental Disabilities is committed to engaging students with IDD in all inclusive research, training and technical assistance, and dissemination activities. Fulfilling this commitment has meant exploring accessible formats and appropriate content with and for students with IDD so they can actively participate in Think College research, website development, writing, discussions and advocacy. X X X Maria Paiewonsky Institute for Community Inclusion
Massachusetts Sibling Support Network This is a state chapter of the Sibling Leadership Network and is dedicated to the support of siblings of people with disabilities in Massachusetts.     X John Kramer  
Northeast Regional Center for Vision Education The Northeast Regional Center for Vision Education is committed to improving education for people with visual disabilities. We offer in-person and online training in three main areas: teacher of students with visual impairments orientation and mobility and vision rehabilitation therapy. Graduates of our programs are trained to help people with visual disabilities provide access to high quality education, seek employment and travel independently. X   X Alexandra (Sandy) Smith College of Education and Human Development
Northeast Regional Center for Vision Education - Braille Codes Northeast Regional Center for Vision Education (NERCVE) is New England's only academic center for preparing Teachers of Students with Visual Impairments and Orientation and Mobility Specialists, two key specialties that help people with visual impairments achieve their goals of high quality education, employment, and independent travel. NERCVE is an ICI project housed within the UMass Boston Graduate College of Education.  NERCVE serves on two international committees for braille textbooks and code publications.     X Alexandra (Sandy) Smith College of Education and Human Development
Northeast Regional Center for Vision Education - Online Brailler This is offered nationally online by UMass and there is a Mandarin version that is run in Taiwan. The online brailler is also shared with other universities training vision professionals. Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education Summer Content Institute.     X Alexandra (Sandy) Smith College of Education and Human Development
Camp Shriver – A Free Inclusive Summer Sports Camp for Children with and without Disabilities For the past seven years, Camp Shriver at the University of Massachusetts Boston has welcomed more than 700 children, half with and half without intellectual and developmental disabilities, ages 8-12, from low income families in the Boston area to a free inclusive summer sports camp. Our campers are boys and girls ages 8-12 who attend school in Boston, Brockton, and Quincy, MA. Our campers with disabilities are currently receiving special education services in public schools and have mild intellectual and/or developmental disabilities.  Our campers without disabilities are not receiving special education services in school. They are the same ages as our campers with disabilities and come from the same school systems. Camp Shriver treats all of our campers as equal-status campers. Campers with and without disabilities are grouped together in teams (i.e., a team of 10 will include 5 campers with a disability and 5 campers without a disability) and participate in all activities together.     X Gary N. Siperstein Center for Social Development and Education
UMass Boston Rehabilitation Counseling Rehabilitation Counseling program graduate student practicum and internships serving transition-age youth and adults with diverse disabilities. Placement and supervision Rehabilitation Counseling program graduate student practicum and internships serving individuals with legal blindness Rehabilitation Counseling program graduate student practicum and internships serving veterans with disabilities. X     Molly Tschopp College of Education and Human Development
National Institute of Mental Health's Studies To Advance Autism Research (STAART) in collaboration with Boston University Professor Alice Carter researches the identification of infants and toddlers at risk for problems in social, behavioral, and emotional functioning and understanding the role of family functioning in the developmental course of children at genetic risk for or exhibiting clinical disorders such as autism, Tourette's Disorder, and Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. She is also studying young children with autism spectrum disorders and their families as part of the Boston University Studies To Advance Autism Research (STAART).   X   Alice S. Carter College of Liberal Arts
City of Boston Mayor Thomas M. Menino's Commission for Persons with Disabilities Suzanne Leveille is employing her expertise in the Epidemiology of Aging and Disability, Gerontological Nursing, Research Methods, and Chronic Pain as a member of the advisory board of the Commission for Persons with Disability.     X Suzanne Leveille College of Nursing and Health Sciences

Early Education

Program Summary Teaching/ Learning Research Service Contacts Dept. Affiliation
Institute for Community Inclusion - Boston Ready The Boston Ready research project helps Boston four-year-olds learn by supporting high-quality teaching. This three-year, $3.5 million grant is testing the effectiveness of professional development supports and three curricula on child outcomes: 1) Literacy—OWL; 2) Mathematical concepts--Building Blocks; and 3) Social/emotional skills--Second Steps. The project will also help teachers adapt these curricula for a range of learners using Universal Design. X X   Mary Lu Love Institute for Community Inclusion
Institute for Community Inclusion - Early Literacy Matters Early Literacy Matters (ELM) is a partnership between the University of Massachusetts Boston, Lynn Public Schools, and the Gregg Neighborhood House. Our goal is to create eight preschool centers of excellence impacting 300 children per year identified as “at risk for academic failure.” ELM has transformed 17 classrooms that serve children speaking over 41 languages. Seventy-five percent of ELM children speak a first language other than English or have limited English proficiency, and sixteen percent receive special education services. ELM offers research-based curricula, professional development, and community/family involvement with intentional instruction proven to enrich children’s learning experiences. We offer professional development combined with an early literacy coaching program, on-site consultation with nationally recognized faculty, coursework for college credit, and in-class support to ensure high-quality classroom practice. X X X Mary Lu Love Institute for Community Inclusion
Building Together: Implementing a New Statewide Professional Development System for Early Education and Care This program involves building effective professional development systems are critical for improving the quality of early education and care. Funded by the Massachusetts Department of Early Education and Care (EEC), In 2010, the EEC created a new statewide integrated professional development system for the early education and care workforce. The EEC also examined the implementation of this new system. X X   Anne Douglass College of Education and Human Development
The Development and Use of Online Modules for Professional Development in Early Childhood Education The goals of this program are to examine the role of online training modules in professional development for early childhood educators, to understand the technological capacity of the early childhood workforce for using online professional development, and to examine the challenges/barriers to the field in using online professional development and technology-mediated learning. X     Angi Stone-McDonald College of Education and Human Development
Office of Student Leadership and Community Engagement - Jumpstart Jumpstart brings college students and community volunteers together with preschool children for year-long, individualized tutoring, and mentoring. X   X Meredith Gamble; Jheanell.West; Sherrod Williams; Rebecca Saunders Student Affairs

Elderly/Senior Citizens

Program Summary Teaching/ Learning Research Service Contacts Dept. Affiliation
Institute for New England Native American Studies (INENAS) - Strengthening Families-Grandparents Raising Grandchildren The elder years are often thought of as a time of rest and relaxation, the reality for many American Indian elders is that they have taken on the responsibility of raising the next generation of their family. The rate of grandparents raising families is significantly higher in the American Indian community. As a result of residing in the greater Boston area, many of these families are far removed from access to tribal resources that may assist them with this challenge.  As such, they look to urban Indian organizations like NAICOB to provide assistance and support. Through this project, NAICOB and UMass Boston will assess and identify their greatest challenges and areas of need, followed by the development of workshops, focus groups, and a resource manual that connects them with the appropriate provider or program. X X X James Cedric Woods Institute for New England Native American Studies
MOBILIZE Boston Study Suzanne Leveille is pursuing a number of research questions relevant to chronic pain as a cause of falls and disability in this population-based cohort study of older adults.   X   Suzanne Leveille College of Nursing and Health Sciences
Gerontology Institute -  Elder Economic Security Standard: Measuring Elders Costs of Living The Elder Economic Security Standard Index measures the income that Massachusetts’ seniors need to maintain independence and meet basic living expenses. The sizable gap between Social Security benefits and living expenses occurs throughout Massachusetts, but is more substantial for singles than for couples. Those who are older, single, female or a member of a racial or ethnic minority group are exposed to especially high risk of falling short of Index values. The Elder Index estimates the living costs for seniors in every locality in the country and serves as a valuable tool for community members, policy makers, and those working on behalf of elders.   X   Ellen Bruce McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies
Gerontology Institute - Demography of Aging in Massachusetts Jan Mutchler prepares demographic materials relating to the aging population of Massachusetts, which are released on the Gerontology Institute web page (see side bar at left). She will respond to inquiries about the demographic composition of the older population from news organizations, legislative staff, and others.   X   Jan Mutchler McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies
Gerontology Institute - Increasing Consumer Involvement in Medicaid Nursing Home Reimbursement This project aims to encourage state policymakers to seek informed consumer input when developing and modifying nursing home reimbursement methods and to give consumer representatives necessary information in order that they may make a meaningfully contribution. First, the team will study New York and Minnesota, describing in two case studies the positive impact knowledgeable consumer involvement has had in the development and modification of those state’s nursing home reimbursement systems. Second, based on the numerous questions they have received from consumer representatives for information on nursing home payment policy, a literature review, and insights gained from the case studies, they will develop and present a half-day seminar and a series of web-modules to educate consumer representatives on the principles of nursing home reimbursement and its relationship to quality, access, costs, and other outcomes.   X   Edward A. Miller McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies
Gerontology Institute - Intergenerational Support Structures and Pathways The project is designed to assess changes in family care systems over time, to examine the predictors of such changes both at the level of the caregiver and of the care system as a whole, and to investigate the impact of such changes on selected outcomes, including well-being of the caregivers and care recipients, the extent of unmet care needs, the use of formal services, and nursing home placement. Using data from the Health and Retirement and Assets and Health Dynamics of the Oldest Old surveys, our results can inform policies and programs designed to enhance the care systems of frail and cognitively impaired elders as well as policies and programs targeting the well-being of families and caregivers. Our analysis will also speak to the future availability of family caregivers in response to changing family structures and caregiving requirements.   X   Maximiliane E. Szinovacz McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies
Gerontology Institute - Lift Up your Voice! evalution Community Catalyst  MA, OH, PA (pilot states)  Community Catalyst (as part of the Better Health Better Care initiative) is piloting a project to train elders with multiple chronic illnesses and their care givers as advocates for state policies that would improve affordable coordinated health care. The GI is conducting a comprehensive evaluation of the project.   X   Alison Gottlieb; Nina Silverstein McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies
Gerontology Institute - MA Senior Legal Assistance Project (MSLAP) Elder Legal Needs Assessment The Gerontology Institute is conducting a needs assessment for the MSLAP to quantify current elder legal services across the state (who is served for what legal issues) for the purpose of informing planning and targeting future services as part of a federally funded Elder Legal Services Coordination grant and is being done in partnership with the Legal Advocacy Resource Center, Inc (LARC) of  Massachusetts.   X   Alison Gottlieb McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies
Gerontology Institute - Massachusetts’ Home Care Programs and Reasons for Discharge into Nursing Homes Faculty in the Undergraduate Gerontology Program and College for Public and Community Service examined reasons for discharge from Home and Community Based Care (HCBS) to Nursing Homes in partnership with Mass Home Care.  The study provided a snapshot of clients currently served by the three home care programs and insights from care managers as to reasons for discharge for HCBS to nursing home settings. It concluded by highlighting some of the findings and offering some recommendations to enhance the delivery of HCBS in Massachusetts.   X   Nina Silverstein McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies
Gerontology Institute - Supplemental Transportation Program for Seniors This collection of more than sixty abstracts represents the issues for understanding and appreciating the needs, challenges, solutions, and/or every day issues associated with senior transportation options. The publication focuses on the singular issue of senior transportation that can contribute not only to sustaining, but also to maintaining and enriching, the lives of older adults.   X   Nina Silverstein McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies
Older Driver Safety Coalition This is a broad coalition organized around older driver safety issues and best practices in older driver safety regulations.     X Elizabeth Dugan McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies