Presenter Biographies
Emily Largent, JD, PhD, RN, is the Emanuel and Robert Hart Assistant Professor of Medical Ethics and Health Policy. She holds a secondary appointment at Penn Law, is a Senior Fellow at the Leonard Davis Institute of Health Economics and is affiliated with the Center for Health Incentives and Behavioral Economics.
Dr. Largent’s work explores ethical and regulatory aspects of human subject research and the translation of research findings into care with a particular focus on Alzheimer’s disease. Her work is supported by a K01 career development award from the National Institute on Aging. In 2020, Dr. Largent was named a Greenwall Faculty Scholar; her faculty scholar project, “Autonomy on the Precipice of Cognitive Decline,” seeks to understand how our evolving understanding of Alzheimer’s disease affects patients and their families. Dr. Largent’s work has been published in leading bioethics and medical journals, including The Hastings Center Report, American Journal of Bioethics, New England Journal of Medicine, and JAMA. She co-authored Clinical Research Ethics Consultation: A Casebook (Oxford University Press).
Dr. Largent studied Science, Technology, and International Affairs as an undergraduate at Georgetown University and earned a second degree in nursing from Penn Nursing. She received her PhD in Health Policy, with a concentration in ethics, from Harvard University and her JD from Harvard Law School. Dr. Largent was previously a fellow in the Department of Bioethics at the National Institutes of Health (2008-2010) and clerked for Chief Judge Jeffrey Howard of the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit (2016-2017).
Felicia Greenfield is a licensed clinical social worker and the executive director of the Penn Memory Center with nearly two decades’ experience in caring for older adults living with dementia and their family support systems. In her leadership role at the Penn Memory Center, Greenfield oversees clinical and research operations and caregiver support programs and services and is a member of the multidisciplinary care team. Greenfield is on faculty in the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Social Policy and Practice (SP2), maintains a small private practice, and is an advisory board member and contributor on the podcast, Bob’s Last Marathon. She is considered an expert in dementia caregiving, aging and loss. Felicia received her Master of Social Work degree from SP2.
Lauren Massimo is a graduate of the PhD program at the University of Pennsylvania. She is an Assistant Professor in the School of Nursing at the University of Pennsylvania. Dr. Massimo holds a bachelor’s degree in Nursing from The Pennsylvania State University and master’s degree as an Adult and Gerontology Nurse Practitioner from the University of Pennsylvania.
Dr. Massimo’s research focuses on identifying the cognitive and neural basis for symptoms of neurodegenerative disease. Over her decade-long career as a nurse practitioner in cognitive neurology, she has enjoyed the opportunity to work with and support many patients with neurodegenerative disease and their families. She has received numerous grants and awards including the John A. Hartford Foundation Building Academic Geriatric Nursing Capacity pre-doctoral fellowship and two National Research Service Awards
Kate Pesci is currently a second-year student in Temple University's Master of Occupational Therapy program. She is the community service chairperson for our Student Occupational Therapy Association and has had the wonderful opportunity of volunteering with the Time Together Program these past few months.
Wesley E. Perkins has been providing services and supports to people for the past 40 years. He has worked in a variety of contexts, including residential treatment environments for people with cognitive, intellectual, and developmental disabilities in several states along the eastern seaboard, Temple University, and the Third Circuit Court for the Eastern District of Pa.
As a management consultant, coach, trainer, and a former CEO in two large health care facilities in the state of Delaware, he has also consulted with many community organizations across the United States. Wes is a Certified Mastermind Executive Coach and holds a master’s degree in Adult Education and Organizational Development from Temple University.
Mary M. Perkins is experienced in training, conference presentation, organizational development, and meeting facilitation. Ms. Perkins is skilled at working with groups and facilitating change in workplace environments. She has worked within large corporations, small non-profit organizations, universities, hospitals, and government agencies.
She has experience designing, developing, and implementing programs for a wide variety of workplace environments. As a masters' level trained educator, she brings a strong background in adult development and adult education theory.
She has a B.A. in Education from University of St. Joseph in Connecticut and a M.Ed. from Temple University.
Amy Kowinski is an enthusiastic advocate for improving quality of care and quality of life for our seniors, Amy has a diverse background and skill set, including gerontology, dementia care, healthcare quality improvement, leadership, and nutrition. She spent much of her career working for a large healthcare system leading departments, hospitals, post-acute entities, and interdisciplinary groups to redesign work processes to improve healthcare quality, safety, satisfaction, and efficiency. During this time, she also became a caregiver for her grandmother living with dementia. Through watching her grandmother struggle with the disease, watching her mother struggle as a caregiver, and gaining an acute understanding that our healthcare system was not designed to support people living with dementia, she embarked on a career change to use her skills and experiences to improve quality of care and quality of life for people living with dementia and their caregivers. She now serves as the Executive Director of Dementia360, a program designed to support and educate family caregivers of people living with dementia at home.
Diane Cowman, MHA, CDP, CAEd, has worked in the field of dementia for over 30 years in various settings including, nursing homes, personal care facilities, medical offices, and private homes. She earned her Bachelor of Science in Psychology, her Master’s in Health Administration with a specialization in Gerontology and is a Certified Dementia Practitioner and Certified Alzheimer’s Educator. Diane volunteers for the Alzheimer’s Association as a support group facilitator and community educator. She is also a Dementia Friends Champion which affords her another opportunity to educate the community about Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementias (ADRD). In the fall of 2020, Diane realized her dream by opening Second Family Memory Care Center, an adult daycare exclusively serving individuals with Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementias (ADRD). She is currently working on expanding Second Family Memory Care by opening a unique personal care home for folks with dementia.
Anneliese Perry, MS, NHA, CECM, (MS, Carlow University, Professional Leadership; BA, Westminster College, Psychology) is a Senior Quality Improvement Specialist at the Jewish Healthcare Foundation (JHF) and Pittsburgh Regional Health Initiative (PRHI) whose primary focus is working on initiatives related to the aging population. Ms. Perry has a passion for working with those affected by dementia, after having personal experiences with several of her own family members. She is one of the state-wide coordinators for Dementia Friends Pennsylvania, a movement to change the way people think, act, and talk about dementia. Additionally, she is an active member of the Dementia-Friendly Greater Pittsburgh work group. In the fall of 2019, Ms. Perry will be leading an intergenerational reading program that will help inspire children to love reading while learning values and forming meaningful connections with seniors. Ms. Perry applies her experience in quality improvement and coaching to the CMS RAVEN (Reduce AVoidable hospitalizations using Evidence-based interventions for Nursing facilities) initiative. In this role, she develops and implements customized curriculum aimed at assisting long-term care facilities reduce avoidable hospitalizations. As a coach, she works with healthcare organizations on quality improvement efforts and trains workers in Perfecting Patient Care℠, PRHI’s Lean Organizational Development approach. Prior to working at JHF, she worked in both home and community-based services as well as long-term care. Ms. Perry is a licensed Nursing Home Administrator and received a certification in Ethics and Compliance Management from St. Louis University.
Stacie Bonenberger, MOT, OTR/L, (MOT, Chatham University; BS, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, Psychology) is a Senior Quality Improvement Specialist at the Jewish Healthcare Foundation and Pittsburgh Regional Health Initiative whose primary focus is working on initiatives related to the aging population. As a certified Positive Approach to CareTM trainer, Ms. Bonenberger provides knowledge and awareness for families and professionals to help them better understand how it feels to be living with dementia and provides strategies to improve their relationships with individuals living with dementia. Ms. Bonenberger is a member of the Pennsylvania State Alzheimer’s State Task Force. Additionally, she is one of the state-wide coordinators for Dementia Friends Pennsylvania and an active member of the Dementia-Friendly Greater Pittsburgh work group. As part of the Aging Team at the foundation, Ms. Bonenberger has developed and implemented customized curriculum aimed at helping long-term care facilities reduce avoidable hospitalizations through the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Innovation grant, RAVEN (Reduce AVoidable hospitalizations using Evidence-based interventions for Nursing facilities). Prior to the Jewish Healthcare Foundation, she was the assistant facility director of Occupational Therapy at UPMC Passavant and has 17 years of clinical experience as an Occupational Therapist in Pennsylvania and Colorado. Ms. Bonenberger received a certification in computer programming from the University of Denver.