Jennifer (Jenny) Sasser, PhD  is an educational gerontologist, transdisciplinary scholar, and social activist. Jenny has been working in the field of aging for more than half her life, beginning as a nursing assistant and advocate before specializing in educational gerontology, and adult development and learning. She has centered her multifaceted practice in the areas of creativity in later life; aging and embodiment; transdisciplinary curriculum design; critical gerontological theory; transformational and radical pedagogy; intersectional and anti-ageist approaches to equity, inclusion, and justice; and cross-generational collaborative inquiry. From 1999 to 2015, Jenny served as Chair of the Department of Human Sciences and Founding Director of Gerontology at Marylhurst University.  She has been an adjunct faculty member of the Pacifica Graduate Institute Depth Psychology program since 2007,  and from 2018 to 2020 designed and taught an adult-learner focused,  hybrid Human Development and Family Sciences program in downtown Portland for Oregon State University. Jenny joined the Portland Community College Gerontology Program in 2016 and currently serves as full-time faculty and department chairperson. Jenny co-authors, with Janet Lee, Blood Stories: Menarche and the Politics of the Female Body in Contemporary US Society;  Aging: Concepts and Controversies with Harry R. Moody (now in its 10th edition); and is first author (also with Moody) of Gerontology: The basics, recently published in Chinese and Spanish.  She co-authors several book chapters and is an essayist. Her ongoing commitments include convening the Gero-Punk Project (www.geropunkproject.org); serving as a community conversation facilitator; and offering consulting, workshops and presentations throughout North America.  An award-winning educator, Jenny’s citations include the 2012 Association for Gerontology in Higher Education Distinguished Teacher award, and a Willamette University Distinguished Alumni award in 2014. In 2022, Jenny was inducted into the Academy for Gerontology in Higher Education as a Fellow.

Experienced research analyst skilled in Microsoft Excel, data analysis and reporting, and federal and internal survey development and distribution. Hayley has years of experience in Leadership and Teamwork, Managing Data and People, Project Management, Time Management and Problem Solving. She is a business professional with a Masters of Science in Applied Psychology and concentrations in Industrial and Organizational Psychology and Evaluation Research from University of Wisconsin-Stout.

Jennifer Ellis-Gajda, PhD, HS-BCP, CPG, is the program director and instructor of the Gerontology – Aging Services Professional Program at Northwood Technical College in northwestern Wisconsin. Jenn brings extensive experience as a human services and gerontology educator and practitioner.  She spent 20 years working in the long-term care industry, most recently with Acts Retirement-Life Communities, Inc., a not-for-profit owner/operator of continuing care retirement communities (CCRC) on the East Coast. Jenn worked in recreation and social services. In 2007, she was a part of a small start-up team that created the internal hospice program at Acts. Jenn supervised more than 40 hospice volunteers and provided administrative support to program leadership. The unique volunteer program brought Jenn to work with well-elders who served in this Medicare-certified hospice. Along with her work with older adults, Jenn served as an adjunct Human Services faculty member at Montgomery County Community College (MCCC), Chestnut Hill College, and Wilmington University. She spent 13 years as a self-study reader for the Council for Standards in Human Services Education (CSHSE). She assisted the Human Services program at MCCC to obtain CSHSE's initial accreditation in 2012.  In 2015, Jenn was hired to lead the Gerontology – Aging Services Professional Program start-up. The program specializes in developing career pathways and actively works to bridge the academic and career preparedness for workers in human services, business and industry, and government sectors. The program’s unique delivery and flipped classroom model empower students to be agents of change in communities nationwide. In 2023, AGEC accredited the program. Jenn has a Ph.D. in Leadership and Gerontology from Concordia University Chicago. Her dissertation research focused on developing a gerontology career pathway in Wisconsin. She has a Master of Science in the Administration of Human Services with a concentration in adult and aging services from Chestnut Hill College in Philadelphia. Her master’s thesis was on culture change in long-term care communities, focusing on moving from institution to home. She holds a certificate in Gerontology from Montgomery County Community College (Blue Bell, PA), a Bachelor of Arts degree in Biology with a minor in Psychology from the College of St. Scholastica (Duluth, MN), and an Associate of Arts degree in Pre-Physical Therapy from Waldorf University (formerly Waldorf College) in Forest City, IA. Jenn is a Gerontological Society of America (GSA) member and co-convenor of the Community College Interest Group. She is also a member of the National Organization for Human Services (NOHS). She is dually credentialed in human services and gerontology. Her research interests include assessing gerontology credentials and serving as a conduit between academic and career planning frameworks and careers in aging services. Jenn is originally from the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and resides in Superior, Wisconsin, with her fiancé and cats.

Kimberly McDonald came to Northwood Tech with a master’s degree in social work and over 19 years of experience working in the field of human services. Throughout this experience, she performed multiple job responsibilities focused on the complex needs of providing geriatric resources and mental health services. In a complex field such as gerontology, she believes that Northwood Tech’s gerontology program will prepare you to gain increased understanding, knowledge and hands-on skills to work in a rapidly growing field. Her goal is to collaborate with you in your academic journey and assist in facilitating a learning environment that empowers the students. In her spare time, she enjoys spending time with my family in the outdoors, whether it be biking, horseback riding, fishing, gardening, paddle boarding, hiking or hockey. In 2023, Kimberly became a Credentialed Professional Gerontologist (CPG) from the National Association for Professional Gerontologists.