Gerontology Students, Faculty Attend Minnesota Gerontological Society Conference

Gerontology Students, Faculty Attend Minnesota Gerontological Society Conference

Gerontology students Amy Bechtle, Jessica Boonstra, Merianne Bott, Ana Brakel, Beau Cummings, Mayu Ishikawa, and Keren Mabisi, along with Gerontology Program Coordinator Sue Humphers-Ginther and Professors Shawn Ginther (Social Work) and Jessica Hausauer (Sociology), attended the 40th annual meeting of the Minnesota Gerontological Society in Brooklyn Center, Minn., on April 22, 2016.

This year’s conference theme was “As We Age: Trends, Triumphs, Transitions.” Keynote speaker, Andi Egbert of the MN State Demographic Center, discussed the historical context, projections, and possible impacts of our rapidly aging society on the workforce and aging services.

According to Egbert, “Minnesota’s older population will surge more the in the next twenty years than in the last fifty years combined.” Cathy Wurzer, host of MPR’s “Morning Edition”, discussed the story behind her book, “We Know How This Ends: Living While Dying”, and she also moderated a panel of physicians who spoke on quality of life and care near the end of life. Beau Cummings, a senior Gerontology major, was awarded an Elva Walker Spillane Graduate Scholarship to support his study of Elder Law at the University of North Dakota beginning this fall.