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Arizona Senior Housing Institute (The Institute) is a nonprofit organization developed to educate, provide research and work on disaster preparedness for both consumers and housing providers for senior housing in Arizona.
Arizona has a robust aging population along with 180+ nursing homes, 1700+ assisted living facilities and over 500 independent living communities including Del Webb and Robson communities. With a wide range of products and services available to seniors and their families, there is much confusion in the marketplace and consumers have no one place on the internet or in print to assist them in increasing their knowledge base. Arizona Senior Housing Institute will work to provide seniors, and providers of senior living services, with this tool.
With a generous start up grant in 2007 Arizona Senior Housing Institute was established to provide training to people interested in developing careers in senior housing. The Institute also provides assistance to consumers looking at the various options in senior housing. The goal of the Institute is to provide a forum to educate and work with both the people working with senior housing along with consumers and their families. Ms Barno was also a founder and current President/CEO of Arizona Assisted Living Federation of America which is the state's largest assisted living trade association.
Kristina Bram is the most recent addition to the Arizona Senior Housing Institute team, joining in February, 2008. Kristina brings six years of organizational and operational experience through her work in various non-profit organizations on the west side of Phoenix. As the Director of the Institute, Ms. Bram works as a liaison for Consumers providing them with information on senior housing. She is also in charge of the day-to-day operation of the Institute including class registrations and information.
Wanda Tutelo is a Licenses Practical Nurse with extensive experience in geriatrics. She became interested in the assisted living field while assisting family place her grandfather when he became ill. Wanda discovered Assisted Living to be a wonderful alternative to managed care.
After relocating to Arizona, Wanda began working in assisted living. She has spent the past four years as a provider, two years as resident services nurse and two years as the executive director of a memory care community. Working with those afflicted with Alzheimer's disease and related dementia is Wanda's passion. She has become an advocate and guardian for the residents she serves. Wanda realizes that outstanding care begins with the training of the team assisting our residents in the activities of daily living. She has been training caregivers in supervisory, personal and directed care services for the past three years. She has also trained caregivers in medication management, The Mather's Person Center Care Program, and is a certified trainer of The Palliative Care Program.
Wanda is currently enrolled in classes to obtain her RN degree at Rio Salado College in Tempe. She is also the chairperson of AZ ALFA Memory Care Committee.
Mr. Johnston brought 20 years of senior healthcare/retirement industry experience to RCS when co-founding the company and assuming the position of President/CEO in 1990. Business accomplishments include President of Retirement Living Affiliates (RLA) from 1986 to 1990, President and co-founder of The Regent Healthcare Corporation from 1984 to 1986, and President and majority stockholder of a privately held retirement living and long-term care operation from 1981 to 1984. He is a licensed nursing home administrator and former President of the Arizona Assisted Living Federation of America. In addition, Mr. Johnston has served on the boards of numerous trade and industry groups and spearheaded the introduction of hospitality, customer relations, strategic planning, and more recently Total Quality Management (TQM) into the healthcare and retirement industry throughout the Southwest.
Craig Cheney is the founding vice-chairman of The Institute. Craig has been active in the development and operation of skilled nursing facilities, assisted living centers and retirement communities in Texas and Arizona for over thirty years. He is licensed as a nursing home administrator, assisted living manager, and real estate broker and is a HUD management agent.
Craig is currently the Executive Director of Centennial Village Corporation, a non-profit provider of housing to limited income seniors, and is the designated broker for Sierra Pointe Management, LLC in Scottsdale.
Craig is a founding member, past chair, and member of the executive committee of AzALFA in addition to his responsibilities with The Institute.
Lee H. Olitzky is the CEO and President of Handmaker Management Enterprises, Inc (HME) and Handmaker Jewish Services for the Aging. In addition, he oversees the operations of other senior living properties. This includes the Archie Hendricks Sr., Skilled Care Facility which is operated by the Tohono O’odham Nursing Care Authority. Mr. Olitzky received his MA Degree in Gerontology from the University of South Florida, Tampa, FL. He is the prior Director of the New England Gerontology Center, University of New Hampshire and former Associate Executive Director of the Miami Jewish Home and Hospital for the Aging.
Susan is the Executive Director of Adult Care Services, an organization she founded in 1982. She oversees The Margaret T. Morris Center, an assisted living residential center for people with Alzheimer’s disease, and the Centers for Adult Day Services. Susan has a Master’s Degree in Social Work and 30 years experience in long-term care. She has served under a political appointment to the Advisory Board to the National Institute of Aging, was elected to the National Adult Day Care Services Organization, and served on the Arizona Assisted Living Federation of America Board of Directors for 10 years. Susan is a consummate advocate for older adults facing physical and mental challenges.
Rose L. Pfefferbaum, Ph.D., M.P.H., is Professor of Economics at Phoenix College, the oldest of 10 colleges in the Maricopa County Community College District. The former Director of Gerontology at Phoenix College, Rose has been with the Maricopa District for over 30 years, serving in a variety of positions and teaching in several disciplines. During that time, she has developed multiple occupational certificates, an associate in applied science degree, and more than 30 courses, and she has helped build numerous partnerships involving service providers, business and industry, and public organizations. Rose is a project director with the Terrorism and Disaster Center (TDC) of the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center where she leads the community resilience team and is the lead author of the TDC Community Assessment of Resilience Tool (CART)© survey instrument to assess community resilience to disasters. Rose is responsible for TDC's work with volunteers and is currently adapting Psychological First Aid (PFA) for organized volunteer responders.
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