Debra Rose currently serves as the Co-Director of the Center for Successful Aging at the California State University at Fullerton and an Associate Professor in the Division of Kinesiology and Health Science. A native of Australia, Debra completed her undergraduate education at the University of Melbourne before heading to the United States to complete her Masters degree in Exercise Science at the University of Oregon and her Ph.D. at Penn State University.

Prior to arriving at California State University, Fullerton, Debra was a faculty member in the Department of Exercise and Sport Science at Oregon State University from 1985 to 1997. Her area of academic expertise is motor control and learning. Her research focus is in the area of postural control and fall risk reduction in the elderly. She has received approximately $1.5 million in external funding to develop and study the efficacy of multidimensional fall risk reduction programs in community and residential care settings with the aim of identifying the key variables that predict successful intervention outcomes. She has published widely in the area of motor control/learning and balance research, in particular. She has been an invited speaker on the assessment and treatment of balance disorders among the elderly within the United States and internationally.

Tamar Z. Semerjian, Ph. D., is an Associate Professor of sport psychology in the Department of Kinesiology at San José State University. Her research focuses on marginalized populations and their sport and exercise experiences, incorporating theoretical perspectives from both social psychology of sport and cultural studies. She has published work based on her research with older adults in the Journal of Aging and Physical Activity and individuals with spinal cord injuries in Topics in Spinal Cord Injury and has presented her work at several international conferences. In addition to her research Dr. Semerjian has taught exercise classes to community dwelling older adults for 13 years. Because she is committed to accessible, quality exercise opportunities for older adults she developed a service learning program designed to train college students to create and teach appropriate, challenging exercise classes at low or no-cost in the community.

Dan McClure is recognized as an expert in successful aging and healthy behavior change. His inspirational talks have motivated thousands of individuals from the Pacific to the Atlantic.  Dan has presented at national, state and local conferences, Fortune 500 companies, public and private schools, universities, community centers, churches, hospitals, and cruise ships.

He holds a Master of Arts degree from San Jose State University with an emphasis in Kinesiology and Gerontology and is certified by the American College of Sports Medicine as a Health/Fitness Instructor.

Dan is the founder and CEO of Generations Community Wellness – an intergenerational program provider to meet the wellness needs of vulnerable populations.  This year, Generations is conducting a Successful Aging Training Institute in partnership with SJSU and Kaiser Permanente.

He also holds part-time faculty positions at San Jose State University, where he teaches courses in Fitness & Nutrition, Creating a Meaningful Life, Stress Management and Development of Human Potential.

Lori Andersen has extensive experience in the field of aging with over 25 years working in public and non-profit organizations in the areas of planning, program development and operation, grants management and fund development. For eight years she served as Director of Planning for the Council on Aging Silicon Valley responsible for assessing the needs of older adults and building community capacity to address them. In this role she also helped to expand case management programs in Santa Clara County and launched the Health Insurance Counseling & Advocacy Program (HICAP).  As Director of the Bay Area Independent Elders Program (BAIEP) Lori managed a $6 million grants program for a foundation collaborative that was designed to strengthen and expand local resources for long term care programs. Prior to joining The Health Trust, Lori administered the grants programs for the Alzheimer’s Association of Northern California and Northern Nevada. She has also provided consulting services in program and fund development to non-profits and served as an active volunteer on local boards.

Lori holds a Master’s in Public Administration from the University of Southern California and a B. A. in Government & Public Administration from American University in Washington D.C.

Kari Martell is a Certified Business Communicator (accredited by the International Association of Business Communicators--IABC) who has worked as a Marketing and Communications professional for 20 years.

Kari earned a B.S. in Advertising with a minor in Marketing from the University of Texas at Austin. She has worked in entertainment with a movie studio ad agency, in manufacturing for an office products firm, and in high tech with a semiconductor trade association. Kari has also worked in organizational development with a psychological test publisher, in non-profit with a food bank and in community services with a senior services agency. She has created newsletters, developed ad campaigns, designed tradeshow booths, conducted focus groups, overhauled websites, planned events, and handled public relations activities for non-profits and for-profits alike. She has earned national press coverage for clients including the Wall Street Journal, USA Today, the New York Times, NPR and the Oprah Winfrey Show.

Currently, Kari is the Director of Marketing and Communications for Avenidas, a non-profit in Palo Alto that has been helping seniors age well for 40 years.

Gerard Manuel is the current Recreation Manager for the City of Sunnyvale Department of Parks and Recreation. Mr. Manuel currently manages Therapeutic Recreation Programs for individuals with disabilities, the senior programs and services including the oversight of the Sunnyvale Senior Center. The Sunnyvale Senior Center offers a variety of recreation programs and opportunities that encourage and contributes to healthy aging. Along with creative recreation programs, the center offers a variety of health/fitness programs and lectures including access to an onsite fitness center. The community members are not only provided with physical activity opportunities, but experiences lifelong learning and social benefits through participation in the activities offered. The mission of the Sunnyvale Parks and Recreation is to “create community through people, parks and programs”.

Mr. Manuel has over 15 years in community recreation programming. He has worked for the Cities of San Jose, San Carlos and Sunnyvale.

Susan Fent is a licensed clinical social worker who has worked in the field of aging for over 20 years.  As the director of the new Centennial Recreation Senior Center in Morgan Hill, Susan has created a multipurpose Senior Center for adults 50+ which focuses on fitness, nutrition, social, lifelong learning, recreation and support service programs.  Morgan Hill’s Centennial Recreation Center, home to the Senior Center, has become an inspiration throughout the nation as an innovative multigenerational recreation facility.  As a component to building a thriving Senior Center, Susan has been influential throughout South Santa Clara County in her advocacy efforts for the creation of aging friendly communities.

"Dr. Karl" as his students like to call him has been involved in the health and fitness of older adults and the disabled for over 30 years.  During this time he has worked in almost every aspect of the industry from personal trainer and therapist to consultant to major Universities such as Stanford, Univ. of North Carolina, and the Univ. of California well as the State of California and numerous professional organizations.

He has authored many articles, written over 7 books on topics from Water Workouts to Fitness Therapy.  He is a frequent guest on Public Television’s “Sit and Be Fit" show as well as a regular guest on radio and is often interviewed for print media on issues pertaining to senior fitness and exercise and the disabled. In addition to Karl's teaching and advocating for older adult’s Dr. Karl has been a legal expert in cases involving injuries to the disabled and older adults who were exercising incorrectly.

Dr. Karl is former college wrestler, tri-athlete and regularly lifts weights, bikes and due to a back injury has given up running for walking.  Currently Karl is Coordinator of the Adaptive Fitness Technician Program and Life Long Learning Institute at Foothill College where he has taught Adaptive PE for almost 30 years. Karl developed an organization for trainers of older adults 15 yrs ago named Fitness Educators of Older Adults now named Keep Fit Over 50 designed for older adults themselves.

Omay Water-Schmeder has worked at Kaiser Permanent, Santa Rosa, California for the last 12 years and is currently a Senior Physical Therapist in the Rehabilitation Services Department, where she has been particularly interested in serving the needs of the older population, and in helping older adult populations who suffer from dizziness and/or vertigo. 

Accordingly, she has developed and teaches the Balance classes and the Fall Prevention classes, and is a member of the Senior Planning Task Force at her medical facility.   Since 2006, with local support from Kaiser Permanente, Community Benefits her “in-kind” services have been donated to the Senior Safety Task Force, managed by the Sonoma County Area Agency on Aging, charged with addressing fall prevention in Sonoma County, California.   As a task force member, she researched and brought forth the recommendation that the AAA become a Master Trainer Site for the evidence-based program, “A Matter of Balance/Volunteer Lay Leader Model:  Managing Concerns About Falls”.   The task force subsequently decided to implement this program.  She is a Master Trainer for the “A Matter of Balance/VLL” program, has taught the series herself, and participates in training and mentoring volunteer lay leaders, and in planning for program expansion within Sonoma County, California.   

In addition, she is a member of the steering committee for the California Evidence-Based Health Promotion Initiative State Grant (3 year grant from AoA to California Department on Aging).  She is a strong advocate of the evidence-based “A Matter of Balance/VLL” program and hopes to influence policy decisions to spread this program within her organization and in communities throughout California and the nation.

Holly Brown-Williams is Director of Policy at Health Research for Action (HRA), a center in the UC Berkeley School of Public Health that conducts and translates findings from research into policies, resources, and programs that reduce health disparities. She directs major center initiatives, formulates policy recommendations based on the center’s health research and interventions, and oversees the dissemination of center projects to policymakers. She also guides the development of healthy aging and environmental programs at HRA. In 2006, Holly directed a strategic assessment of hospital-to-home transitions for HRA, and was lead author on the report, From Hospital to Home: Improving Transitional Care for Older Adults. Until 2004, Holly was Associate Director of the California Policy Research Center (CPRC) in the University of California Office of the President. While at CPRC, Holly directed a three-year strategic planning effort to address the impending demographic, economic, and social changes triggered by California's aging population in response to Senate Bill 910 (Vasconcellos, 1999). Findings from this work were incorporated into a statewide blueprint on aging. Holly is currently a member of the Board of Trustees of Strawberry Creek Lodge, a residential facility for low-income seniors. She holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration.

Katherine M. Simpson is Director of Health Communications at Health Research for Action, a center in the UC Berkeley School of Public Health that conducts and translates findings from research into policies, resources, and programs that reduce health disparities. She has 30 years of experience developing health promotion programs and resources. Kathy specializes in developing consumer-tested materials that are designed and written to be easy to read and use. She produced Healthy Steps for Older Adults, a comprehensive physical activity and fall prevention program, and Healthy Steps in Motion, an exercise program, for the Pennsylvania Department of Aging. She has developed numerous health resources for Californians, including California’s HMO Guide and HMO Guide for Seniors, How to Use Your Health Plan, the Wellness Guide for people with disabilities, and the Parents Guide for California, which has been adapted for Arizona and Pennsylvania. These and other HRA materials have received several national awards for health promotion materials. Kathy holds an MA in Psychology from John F. Kennedy University and a BA in English from Reed College.

Susan Snyder was a Program Manager with the SE Washington Office of Aging & Long Term Care for 15 years, providing contractual and programmatic oversight to Area Agency on Aging service providers in an eight county region. She was then Director of an urban senior center in Seattle for one year.  From 1997 through 2007 she was Director of Project Enhance, a health promotion and disease management project comprised of two evidence-based programs, EnhanceFitness and EnhanceWellness. EnhanceFitness is a group physical activity program for older adults taught by certified instructors. EnhanceWellness is a participant-directed health behavior change program supported by a RN/Social Worker team. Enhance is currently in 286 sites in 26 states.

Ms. Snyder is currently Vice President, managing the Enhance, Senior Information and Assistance, and Caregiver Outreach and Support Programs.

Patricia O'Brien has been the Executive Director of Lifelong Fitness Alliance (formerly Fifty-Plus Lifelong Fitness) for three years. During that time, she is charged with developing the popular Stepping Strong Ambassador-led, Walking and Wellness program and increasing Lifelong Fitness's influence beyond the San Francisco Bay Area via an agreement with AARP to recruit Ambassadors, using AARP marketing venues, as well as supporting processes and programs that support national expansion.

Prior to Lifelong Fitness Alliance, Patricia worked as an Executive Director and in Development for several local non-profit organizations.

She has an MA from UC Berkeley in Sociology. Passionate about physical activity, she swam competitively beginning at age 5, and she enjoys hiking, skiing, running, biking and swimming and is currently training for a triathlon.

Lisa Cirill is the Acting Chief for the California Center for Physical Activity, a program within the California Department of Public Health, which creates opportunities for incidental, everyday physical activity through environmental and policy change.  Lisa oversees numerous state-wide projects to increase physical activity and promote active living for Californians of all ages and abilities.  She started at the local level working as Special Projects Coordinator for the City of Sacramento, Health and Human Services Department where she managed active aging and community walkability programs.  Lisa is frequently called upon to serve on national and state advisory boards, planning committees and grant review committees for federal agencies, associations, and philanthropic foundations as well as various programs within the California Department of Health and Human Services interested in developing strategies to increase physical activity and health among California’s diverse population.  Lisa received a Post Graduate Certificate in Gerontology and a Masters of Science in Kinesiology from California State University, Sacramento.

Kristie Patton is a Project Associate at Partners in Care Foundation's California Health Innovation Center.  She obtained her B.S. in Human Development and Family Studies from the Pennsylvania State University and her Master's in Social Work from California State University, Northridge.  Kristie is experienced in the National Council on Aging's work in evidenced-based health promotion programming for older adults.  Her expertise is in working with various sites throughout the state of California to introduce and embed evidence-based programming into community-based organizations.

Candace Mindigo is a registered nurse with extensive experience in critical care nursing, community health education and occupational health. Candace has been employed with Stanford Hospital and Clinics since 1995. She is a graduate of San Jose State University School of Nursing. Candace was also employed as a nurse at El Camino Hospital in Mountain View, CA for twenty years, and has currently been the Director for the Partners in Caring Program since 1997.

Strong for Life, an exercise program for older adults is one of her passions and Candace has been instrumental in advocating for the program in local senior centers. The program now has over 130 participants. Having recently received master training for the Chronic Disease Self Management program through Stanford University’s School of medicine, Candace will be teaching classes on self-management to other community members.