1999 AADA NATIONAL CONFERENCE TO BE HELD IN FAYETTEVILLE

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. - The first annual Association for Adult Development & Aging National Conference will be held at the Hilton July 30-31 in Fayetteville, Ark., according to Dr. Catherine Roland, University of Arkansas associate professor and President of the AADA. The conference, titled "Transitions 1999: AADA Moving into the New Millennium," will examine issues facing midlife to older adults, their families and caregivers.

"We are extremely proud to be hosting this gathering," said Dr. Roland. "This conference provides a wonderful opportunity to see and hear from professionals from many parts of the country who specialize in the perspective of aging, midlife development and personal growth as positive and natural. Mental health professionals of all disciplines will benefit greatly from the conference."

With issues facing older Americans constantly in the news, the conference will serve a number of important groups in the Northwest Arkansas community, throughout Arkansas and across the country. National and local statistics indicate that issues facing older Americans will only grow. By the year 2020, an estimated 1 in 5 people will be over the age of 60. Last year, Arkansas had the fourth highest percentage of elderly people in the US and today, tens of thousands of retirees call Northwest Arkansas their home.

Presenters from across the United States will gather at the Hilton to discuss with attending social workers, professional counselors and career caregivers some of the new and innovative ideas in an effort to better the lives of adults across the lifespan. The AADA, one of 17 divisions of the 55,000-member American Counseling Association, plans to include workshops that focus on subjects ranging from alcohol and substance abuse in older adults to grand parenting issues and career reflections for older African-American men. Other sessions will provide information on medical ethics and surviving family grief and loss.

Roland, who has been an associate professor of counselor education at UA’s College of Education & Health Professions since 1993, assumed the presidency of AADA this July. Please contact Dr. Roland with questions about the conference or for a workshop schedule: (479) 575-3511 or croland@comp.uark.edu. On-site registration will also be available from 8 A.M. to - Noon July 30 at the Hilton Hotel, East Avenue, in downtown Fayetteville.

# # # #