Sue is a trusted policy strategist, educator and advocate, within the field of healthy aging and caregiving. Sue's extensive healthcare, housing, and community care background includes policy planning and innovative change implementation.
Dr. Patricia Spindel has worked with youth and engaged in systemic advocacy for people with developmental disabilities and their families and older adults for over forty years. She taught at both the University of Guelph-Humber and the Humber College Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning, where she also coordinated the Social Services Worker Program and was an Associate Dean of Health Sciences. She is a former President of Concerned Friends of Ontario Citizens in Care Facilities, co-founder of the Advocacy Centre for the Elderly, organizer of the Ontario Coalition for Nursing Home Reform, and co-founder of Seniors For Social Action Ontario.
This week on the podcast, CEO Christina Bisanz speaks to Dr. Raza Mirza, Florene Shruber, Alexis Hart, and Jessica Hsieh, who are all key contributors to University of Toronto’s Aging and Health Course’s intergenerational classroom in partnership with Christie Gardens Retirement Residence. This innovative and experiential learning experience brings two generations together to study aging from different perspectives, bringing learning to a new level and redefining what makes a “classroom”. Described as a wonderful, energetic, and mind-blowing experience, this unique course is one of the few dedicated to aging at the University, offering growth opportunities for all ages. Dr. Mirza is the Director of National Partnerships at HelpAge Canada and an Assistant Professor at the University of Toronto. Florene Shruber is an advocate and educator, formerly the principal of Montessori Teachers' College & Montessori Dementia Program. Alexis Hart holds an Honors BSc in Human Biology and Psychology and was part of the program’s first undergraduate cohort. Jessica Hsieh, a PhD candidate at the Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work, specializes in gerontology, focusing her research on elder abuse in dementia caregiving.
