Michigan Center for Urban African American Aging Research
Leadership
Robert J. Taylor
PI & Co-Director
Faculty Associate, Research Center for Group Dynamics, University of Michigan
Harold R Johnson and Sheila Feld Collegiate Professor of Social Work, School of Social Work, University of Michigan
B.A., Sociology, 1974, Northwestern University
M.S.W., 1976, University of Michigan
Ph.D., Social Work and Sociology, 1983, University of Michigan
More about Robert J. Taylor
Peter A. Lichtenberg
Co-Director
Director, Institute of Gerontology and Merrill Palmer Skillman Institute, Wayne State University
Distinguished Service Professor, Wayne State University
Professor of Psychology, Wayne State University
B.A., Washington University in St. Louis,
M.S. in Clinical Psychology, Purdue University
PhD in Clinical Psychology, Purdue University
More about Peter A. Lichtenberg
the Merrill Palmer Skillman Institute. He is also a Professor of Psychology at Wayne
State University. He received his bachelor’s degree from Washington University in St.
Louis, and his Master’s and doctorate in Clinical Psychology from Purdue University.
After his internship he completed a post doctoral fellowship in geriatric neuropsychology at the University of Virginia Medical School where he also became a faculty member. A clinician and researcher throughout his career Dr. Lichtenberg, one of the first board certified Clinical Geropsychologists in the nation, has made contributions to the practice of psychology across a variety of areas including in Alzheimer’s disease, medical rehabilitation and with those suffering from late life depression. He is particularly interested in the area of intersection between financial capacity and financial exploitation; finding ways to balance autonomy and protection for older adults. His work in this area led him to be a contributor to the 2008 Assessment of Diminished Capacity of Older Adults: A Handbook for Psychologists published jointly by the American Bar and American Psychological Associations. In 2013 he published the first nationally representative study on predictors of older adult scam victims. In 2015 he published the Lichtenberg Financial Decision Making Rating Scale, and the Lichtenberg Financial Decision Screening Scale, and has contributed several empirical studies on the scales since then. These tools can be used to assess major financial decisions and/or transactions of older adults. He has authored 7 books and over 180 scientific articles in
Geropsychology including being the senior editor for the American Psychological
Association’s Handbook of Clinical Geropsychology.
Joan Ilardo
Co-Director
Director of Research Initiatives, Michigan State University College of Human Medicine
B.A., Finance, 1978, University of Illinois
M.S.W., 1993, Michigan State University
Ph.D., Social Work, 2009, Michigan State University
More about Joan Ilardo
Dr. Ilardo is the Director of Research Initiatives for the Michigan State University (MSU) College of Human Medicine where she facilitates faculty collaborations in health services research. Her research includes systems of care, especially the intersection of healthcare systems and community-based resources; aging network services; patient-provider partnerships in chronic disease management; and caregiver services and supports. She is active with several statewide and local coalitions that address health disparities and access to services, patient self-management of chronic conditions, and service coordination.
Dr. Ilardo earned a Bachelor’s in Finance from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, a Master’s of Social Work and PhD in Social Work from Michigan State University.
Former Leadership
James S. Jackson (1944 – 2020)
PI & Co-Director
Research Professor, Research Center for Group Dynamics, University of Michigan
Daniel Katz Distinguished University Professor of Psychology, University of Michigan
M.A., Psychology, 1970, University of Toledo
Ph.D., Social Psychology, 1972, Wayne State University
More about James Jackson
Research efforts include conducting national and international surveys of black populations focusing on racial and ethnic influences on life course development, attitude change, reciprocity, social support, physical and mental health and coping. Jackson is currently principal investigator of one of the most extensive social, political, economic, and mental and physical health studies of the African American and Caribbean populations ever conducted, “The National Survey of American Life” and the “The Family Survey across Generations and Nations,” and the “National Study of Ethnic Pluralism and Politics.” Teaching centers on social factors in health, race and racism, and social exchange and social influences.