Grant Awards

$60,000-$85,000. 2001-present (annual award). Project Administrator, The Michigan Department of Community Health, The Alzheimer's Education and Research Grant.

$40,000. July, 2004-June, 2005. Project Co-Director, sponsored by United Methodist Retirement Communities, The Boulevard Temple-Eastern Michigan University Interdisciplinary Community-Based project.

$30,000. July, 2003-June, 2004. Project Co-Director, sponsored by United Methodist Retirement Communities, The Boulevard Temple-Eastern Michigan University Interdisciplinary Community-Based project.

Selected Professional Publications

Schuster, E. (Unpublished). Exploring the lives and times of African-American elders living in an urban long term care facility. 

Schuster, E.; Francis-Connolly, E.; Alford-Trewn, P; & Brooks, J. (2003). The conceptualization and development of the course aging to infancy: A life course retrospective.Educational Gerontology, 29, 235-249.

Schuster, Elizabeth Oates (2001).  Compelled to honor privacy: Reflections from researching in a nursing home. In A. L. Cole and J. G. Knowles (Eds.), Lives in Context.  Walnut Creek, CA: AltaMira Press.

Schuster, Elizabeth Oates (2001). The contemplative context of time.  In S. McFadden and R. Atchley (Eds.), Aging and the Meaning of Time. New York: Springer Publishing Company.

Schuster, Elizabeth Oates (1999).Applying critical literacy theory to the experience of a nursing home writing group.  In A. Horning and R. Sudol (Eds.), The Literacy Connection. Cresskill, NJ:  Hampton Press.

Schuster, Elizabeth Oates (1998). A Community bound by words:  Reflections on a nursing home writing group.  In a special invited section titled, Critical Perspectives on the Life Story, Ruth Ray (Ed.).  Journal of Aging Studies, 12, 34-45.

Schuster, Elizabeth Oates (1997).  Sensitization to the issues of aging (Chapter 2).  In the module Establishing a Frame of Reference for Home Health Care Practice.  In Preparing for Competency in Home Health Care Practice: A Self-Paced Study for Home Health Care Practitioners.  Bethesda, MD: The American Occupational Therapy Association, Inc.

Schuster, Elizabeth Oates (Summer, 1997).  Putting the focus on being rather than doing.  In The View From Academe, Aging in Michigan. Lansing, MI:  The Michigan Office of Services to the Aging.

Schuster, Elizabeth Oates (1996).  Ethical considerations when conducting ethnographic research in a nursing home setting.  Journal of Aging Studies, 10, 140-153.

Schuster, Elizabeth Oates & Grabinski, C. Joanne (1995).  Critical methodology:  Re-thinking the "how" of gerontology education.  Exchange: The Association for Gerontology in Higher Education Newsletter, 19, (2).

Practice Experience

During her career, Dr. Schuster has been involved in the following practice experiences: senior center program development; facilitation of educational community based workshops on various topics such as health, aging and memory; development of an adult day care center; conducting needs assessment survey research; coordination of social service programs for elders and their families; and developing and implementing two award winning intergenerational and community-based programs: The Traveling Young at Art Program and ElderQuest. Specific practice experiences include:

• Coordinator, Older Adult Programs for Washtenaw County, The Salvation Army, Ann Arbor, Michigan.
• Program Developer, Senior Services Office, City of Wayne, Department of Parks and Recreation, Wayne, Michigan.
• Designer and Manager, The Washtenaw County Elderly Needs Assessment Survey, The LeVine Institute on Aging, The Jewish Home for the Aged, Detroit, Michigan.
• Designer and Facilitator of Educational Gerontology Workshops on Facts and Fiction About Memory, As Parents Grow Older, New Beginnings (a bereavement support group), Health and Aging, for the UAW-Ford, Area Agencies on Aging, and other organizations.
• Research Assistant, Needs of the Elderly Study, School of Public Health, The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan.

Honors, Recognition, Special Awards

2009    Eastern Michigan University College of Health and Human Services Everett L. Marshall Fellow Award for Excellence in Teaching

2007    Eastern Michigan UniversityCollege of Health and Human Services sponsored

            Scholarly Activity Award

2007    Eastern Michigan University Writing Across the Curriculum Fellow

2004    Eastern Michigan University Faculty Research Fellowship Award

2001    Eastern Michigan University Office of Academic Service Learning Fellow

1997    Eastern Michigan University Sabbatical Leave Award

1997    Older Learner Award for Credit/Non-Credit Programs, The Michigan Office of Services to the Aging and The Michigan Association of Senior Centers, on behalf of Elderwise, an Institute for Learning in Retirement

1993    The Eastern Michigan University Faculty Research Fellowship Award

1993    The Geri Award, Presented by the Senior Coordinating Aging Networks in Macomb and Oakland Counties, Michigan.

Academic Appointments

2009 to present, Gerontology Program, Director

2008 to present, School of Social Work Honors Advisor

2005 - 2008 Co-Founder and Director, ElderQuest Program

1991-2006 Founder and Faculty Liaison, Elderwise, an Institute for Lifelong Learning

1991-2001 Founder, Traveling Young at Art Program, an intergenerational art program in Ypsilanti and Willow Run Schools

1987-1990 Co-Project Manager, Geriatric Education Center of Michigan (GECM), Eastern Michigan University and Michigan State University

1986-2005 Director, Gerontology Program, School of Social Work