The Center on Aging

Dr. Kelly Melekis has taught courses on social work practice, research methods, and death, dying and bereavement for over 20 years. She practiced as a clinical social worker in geriatric mental health and substance use, and taught social work practice, policy and research at Boston University, University of Hawaii, and Skidmore College. A U.S. Fulbright Scholar, she recently explored cultural variations in end-of-life care at Vytautas Magnus University in Kaunas, Lithuania.

As a gerontological social worker, Dr. Melekis’s scholarship focuses on 1) the health and well-being of vulnerable and oppressed older adults, particularly in terms of homelessness, housing, and social environment, and 2) the education and training of social workers, especially in terms of interprofessional practice in health and aging. Underlying the substantive content of her research are methodological considerations rooted in social justice and a commitment to including the voices and perspectives of marginalized populations and those who serve them, thereby providing a comprehensive sense of what works, for whom, and in what ways. She conducts primarily community-based research, with an emphasis on collaborative, participatory methods and her work contributes to improved policy, program development, and effective interprofessional practice.

Christine M. Proulx, Ph.D., is a Fellow of the Gerontological Society of America (GSA). Her primary research is shaped by her belief that interpersonal relationships are the bedrock of our health and wellbeing across the life course, and she incorporates this belief in her classes on adult development and aging and family relationships.

Dr. Proulx's research focuses on adults’ social relationships, roles, and health, with a particular emphasis on marriage and caregiving in mid- and later-life. Her work examines how close relationships and social roles change over time, and how those changes are associated with increases and decreases in mental, physical, and cognitive health. She specializes in quantitative data analyses, with an emphasis in longitudinal and dyadic modeling.

Dr. Maija Reblin is an Associate Professor in the Department of Family Medicine in the Larner College of Medicine at the University of Vermont.

Trained as a social and health psychologist, her research focuses on understanding the social context of family caregivers of those with serious illness and using this knowledge to develop strengths-based interventions. Specific areas of focus include relationship quality, social support, and interpersonal communication. Dr. Reblin has over 100 peer-reviewed publications and has completed and ongoing funding as PI and co-I from the American Cancer Society, the National Cancer Institute, and the National Institute of Nursing Research.

Janelle, a Massachusetts native, earned her undergraduate degree from the University of Vermont in 2014. Upon graduating, she worked for a year in early childhood special education nursing. In 2015, she accepted a position in the general surgical unit at the University of Vermont Medical Center. With a passion for education, she later began teaching clinicals for nursing students in various clinical specialties, including cardiology, orthopedics, and general surgery, as she pursued her master’s degree in nursing education. Following her master’s graduation from Norwich University in 2020, she accepted a position at the University of Vermont. She is currently co-teaching courses in Gerontology and Introduction to Clinical Practice and continues to serve as a clinical instructor.

Prof. Shea is a sociocultural anthropologist who specializes in global health, social gerontology, and medical and psychological anthropology. She directs the Health and Society Program and heads the Global Health Concentration in Anthropology and teaches courses in medical anthropology, global health, health and society, the anthropology of aging, and research methods. Prof. Jeanne Shea's research interests revolve around health and healing, human development and aging, lifecycle and generational issues, marital and family relationships, caregiving in family and community context, and economic development and social change. In her research, she examines the influences of culture on experiences of health, illness, healing, caregiving, and health care. She is fascinated by cultural and generational differences in experiences of the lifecycle, in the different kinds of health concerns and social issues that mark lifecourse transitions, and in how people view and approach the challenges and opportunities posed by aging societies.

John Steele Taylor, MD, is a physician in the Neurology department and co-director of the Memory Program at The University of Vermont Medical Center. His clinical interests in neurodegeneration, neurocognitive disorders and Alzheimer's Disease include early and pre-clinical diagnosis of neurodegenerative disorders. Dr. Taylor frequently cares for patients with Alzheimer's, dementia with Lewy bodies, and frontotemporal lobar degeneration.  

Dr. Taylor oversees comprehensive diagnostic evaluations and subsequent longitudinal care of patients with possible degenerative neurocognitive disorders. He is excited to have entered this field during a time in which there is tremendous growth in understanding of the pathological basis for these conditions, with many promising therapies on the horizon. He considers himself fortunate to work in a clinic with excellent nurse practitioners and social workers to aid in the management of the multiple psycho-social aspects of these conditions. 

Dr. Taylor’s research interests involve healthy brain aging, neuronal network dysfunction and dementia care delivery. 

A lifespan developmental psychologist by training with a focus on adult development and aging, her scholarship and teaching focus on the intersections of individual developmental factors and socio-cultural conditions as they affect life outcomes. Current areas of interest include lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender development, relationships and communities; promoting healthy aging; evaluating social justice programs and trainings; and understanding and promoting college student development, especially critical thinking, connected knowing and community engagement through service-learning.