Webinars

This session discusses how providing educational opportunities and building rapport in monitoring can increase positive outcomes in guardianships.  Providing the guardians with the knowledge, tools, and resources to be effective guardians from the outset creates a framework where guardians know that they have support on behalf of the courts to work towards the best interests of the people they serve. This practice also builds awareness of the ongoing monitoring practices by the court, leading to a greater propensity for guardians to seek help before crises arise.

• Participants will learn to build rapport with guardians and people under guardianship by identifying shared goals
• Participants will learn how different educational requirements and opportunities lead to better guardianship practices
• Participants will learn different methods of incorporating education and other strategies into their monitoring practices

Intended Audience: All NGA members may benefit from this webinar

This session will last for 60 minutes and is eligible for one hour of continuing education credit from the Center for Guardianship Certification.

About the Presenters: Christen Findley and Rose Nichols

Christen Findley has over 15 years of experience in compliance monitoring and quality assurance in public programs.  Christen believes that positive relationships, and providing people with knowledge, tools, and resources allows individuals in a caregiving role to provide the best possible care for the people they serve and empowers people with disabilities to live their lives to the fullest extent possible.

Rose Nichols was hired as the first Guardianship Monitoring Program Manager in North Dakota in 2016. She manages the guardianship case review referrals from the court, and the social workers on subcontract to the program. Rose holds a CPA license and is a certified guardian.

Click below to register for the webinar.

This webinar explores the causes, symptoms, and impacts of burnout among professionals in the guardianship and helping fields. Through case examples, evidence-informed strategies, and practical tools, participants will learn how to recognize early signs of burnout in themselves and others, understand the emotional toll of high-stakes decision-making, and build habits that promote long-term well-being. Interactive moments throughout the session will introduce simple, in-the-moment practices—such as mindfulness, grounding techniques, and light physical resets—that can help prevent and reduce burnout.

• How to define and recognize signs and stages of burnout
• Common causes of burnout in guardianship and related helping roles
• The impact of burnout on decision-making, client outcomes, and ethical practice
• Evidence-informed strategies for preventing and addressing burnout
• Simple tools and self-care techniques that can be used in real time to reduce stress and regulate the nervous system

Intended Audience: Those in helping professions who serve vulnerable adults and manage complex care decisions.

This session will last for 60 minutes and is eligible for one hour of continuing education credit from the Center for Guardianship Certification.

About the Presenter: Annamae T. Giles, MSW

Annamae T. Giles, MSW, is the Program Coordinator for the Cares program at the UNC-Chapel Hill School of Social Work. She brings over 25 years of experience in social work, with expertise in healthcare, end-of-life care, substance use prevention, and aging. Annamae has taught courses at UNC on adult development and policy and has long explored the topics of caregiver stress and burnout in helping professions with students, supervisors, and practicum interns. Her work emphasizes ethical, person-centered practice and sustainable support for those in caregiving roles.

Click below to register for the webinar.

This session will examine guardianships that originate from healthcare settings. Panelists will highlight findings and lessons learned from a study of the “healthcare-to-guardianship pipeline” in Maryland and outline approaches for diverting people away from guardianship to less restrictive options. This session will also provide an overview of the Expedited Limited Healthcare Fiduciary option utilized in Tennessee.

Participants will:

• learn how hospitals and other healthcare facilities use guardianship to address the needs of patients experiencing diminished capacity.
• gain an understanding of diverse approaches to meeting the needs of these patients, including interventions for less restrictive alternatives to guardianship.
• identify ways to incorporate person-centered approaches into their practices.

Intended Audience: All members may benefit from this webinar

Handouts: A resource guide on guardianship and its alternatives and relevant articles.

The webinar is eligible for one hour of continuing education credit from the Center for Guardianship Certification.

About the Presenters: Nisa C. Subasinghe and Amy Willougby Bryant

Nisa C. Subasinghe, Esq., (she/her) is the Domestic & Guardianship Program Manager with Juvenile and Family Services at the Maryland Judiciary’s Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC).  Her work at AOC focuses on issues affecting children and families who come through the court system, and she has lead staff responsibility for the Maryland Judiciary’s guardianship reform efforts.  She served as Project Director for Maryland’s Elder Justice Innovation Grant from the Administration for Community Living, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, which focused on the “healthcare-to-guardianship pipeline.”  She is a graduate of The Catholic University of America Columbus School of Law and the University of Maryland at College Park.

Amy Willoughby Bryant serves as the Davidson County Office of Conservatorship Management Director. Amy demonstrates her passion for her community through service as a leader, instructor and volunteer in numerous organizations. She is President of the National Guardianship Association. Amy serves as an adjunct professor at Belmont University College of Law in Elder Law. This Memphis native is a Tennessee State University alum and obtained her Juris Doctorate from Saint Louis University School of Law.

This is the original recorded Fundamentals of Guardianship series, comprised of four one-hour modules. If you are looking for the new interactive Fundamentals of Guardianship Today series, click here.

The course is presented in a webinar format offering the opportunity to learn the basics of good guardianship, based on NGA’s Standards of Practice and Ethical Principles.

Continuing Education Credits:
Each individual module will last for 60 minutes, and is eligible for one pre-certification hour of continuing education credit from the Center for Guardianship Certification. This course cannot be used for recertification education.

Certificates will be available within 3-5 business days after the full series is completed and verification is made. 

Fundamentals Module 1: The Basics
The Basics module focuses on preliminary guardianship information, decisional capacity, incapacity, types of guardianships, and guardianship process.

Fundamentals Module 2: Guardian of the Person
This module identifies the phases of guardianship, lists the initial duties of the guardian, describes the ongoing duties of the guardian, explains the importance of confidentiality and discusses guardianship transition.

The course is presented in a webinar format offering the opportunity to participate in a study program for the national certification exam right at your own location. Each of the four hour-long modules is focused on a defined topic so participants can register for all four sessions or only those where brush-up training is desired. The overall course is an in-depth review of the NGA National Study Guide and is taught by educators from NGA. The course is not intended to cover state-specific examinations in California, Florida or Texas. Continuing Education Credits: Each individual module will last for 60 minutes, and is eligible for one pre-certification hour of continuing education credit from the Center for Guardianship Certification. This course cannot be used for recertification education.

Certificates will be available within 3-5 business days after the full series is completed and verification is made. 

Review Course Module 1: Universal Roles
Summarizing the guardianship process, explaining the main roles of a guardian, outlining the model code of ethics for guardians, etc.

Review Course Module 2: Guardian of the Person
Covering the initial duties of guardian of the person, discussing confidentiality issues, addressing rights of the person, etc.

Review Course Module 3: Guardian of the Estate
Defining the prudent investor rule, identifying situations that pose a conflict of interest, discussing the process of developing a financial plan and budget, etc. 

Review Course Module 4: Decision Making
Explaining the informed consent principle, evaluating withholding or withdrawal of medical care in end-of-life situations, etc.

(This session available to NGA members only)

Intergenerational diversity encompasses the rich tapestry of perspectives, values, and communication styles that arise from the presence of multiple generations in the workplace. Delving into its significance, this webinar illuminates how this diversity can foster innovation, enhance problem-solving, and cultivate a vibrant organizational culture. It also candidly addresses the challenges, such as miscommunication, conflicting work preferences, and generational stereotypes, which can hinder collaboration and productivity if they aren’t addressed. Furthermore, the speaker provides actionable insights on how to harness the strengths of intergenerational diversity effectively. Strategies include fostering open dialogue, understanding the communication styles and preferences of individuals, and appreciating the strengths of each generation’s style. By embracing inclusivity and recognizing the unique contributions of each generation, organizations can unlock the full potential of their workforce and thrive in an increasingly diverse global landscape.

Whether it’s your child, your boss or your direct reports, there are always people that you find it easier to communicate with than others. This course will help you understand why and give you easy tools to improve your relationships through communication. You will explore your preferred communication style, learn how to quickly determine someone else’s style, and learn strategies for better communication with others based on their style.  You will walk away able to improve challenging work relationships and further develop healthy ones through the art of effective communication.

Intended Audience: Members of The National Guardianship Association – This webinar is not available to non-members.

The webinar is eligible for one hour of continuing education credit from the Center for Guardianship Certification.

About the Presenter: Christy Pruitt-Haynes

“I think of Christy as an on-call expert problem untangler”

“Once again Christy sparked excitement and action in our organization – an hour-long keynote equaled months of our typical training”. 

Those are just a few of many thoughts recent audiences shared after hearing Speaker, Author, and C-Suite Collaborator, Christy Pruitt-Haynes. Christy regularly combines her 25 years of executive level Human Resources, DEI, and Talent Development expertise with a healthy dose of insightful strategy and results focused resourcefulness to create innovative organizations and highly effective leaders.

Whether on a stage giving a TEDx talk or keynote to 1,000+ member audiences or sitting one on one with a CEO, Christy is able to add a fresh perspective to age old issues that lead to actionable “aha moments”.  As a regular contributor to Business Insider, The Harvard Business Review, and Fast Company, Christy balances her love of solving problems with the remarkable ability to convey complex ideas in a relatable way that leads to phenomenal results!

This presentation will cover the process of when an individual is being involuntarily committed at a state mental facility. It will breakdown probable cause, judicial commitments, and limited medical conservatorship hearings. The presentation will also focus on the civil side of commitments and not the criminal side of commitments.

Participants will learn.

• the 4 criteria needed for commitment in the State of TN.
• the statutes used for commitments; and,
• how a person can be committed to and discharged from a state facility.

Intended Audience: Anyone interested in mental health.

The webinar is eligible for one hour of continuing education credit from the Center for Guardianship Certification.

About the Presenter: Kezia Mills

Attorney Mills was a Lead Litigation Attorney for the Division of TennCare from 2014-2018, working in the Appeals Operation Group. Attorney Mills has been working in the mental health sector for over 5 years, where she has conducted hundreds of involuntary commitments, judicial commitments, and limited medical conservatorships. Attorney Mills is a native Memphian (#GTG!) and mother of 2, with a Bachelor of Business Administration in Accounting from the University of Memphis, a Master of Business Administration from Webster University, and Juris Doctorate from the University of Memphis Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law.

This webinar will provide an introduction to terms and definitions within the transgender and gender diverse (TGD) communities. From that foundation, we will build an understanding of the unique needs of TGD people in relation to guardianship, including name and gender marker changes on legal documentation, nondiscrimination rights, and the disparities and stigma faced by the community. 

Participants:

• Will be able to better understand and define terms utilized in TGD communities.
• Will be better prepared to meet the needs of TGD people in their work.
• Will gain an understanding of the disparities and stigma faced by TGD communities.

Intended Audience: Those working with TGD communities in any legal, health, or direct service professions.

The webinar is eligible for one hour of continuing education credit from the Center for Guardianship Certification.

About the Presenter: Mason J. Dunn, JD

Mason J. Dunn, JD, is a lawyer and advocate, who has worked in the LGBTQ+ equality movement for over 15 years across the country. Prior to joining Fenway, Mason was Executive Director of the Massachusetts Transgender Political Coalition where they successfully advocated for the advancement of nonbinary gender markers on Massachusetts state ID’s, participated in coalition to address restrictions in healthcare and gender marker changes on Massachusetts birth certificates, and worked to build the coalition which passed state-wide nondiscrimination protections in public accommodations for transgender and nonbinary people. In 2018, Mason co-chaired the historic ‘Yes on 3’ campaign, which successfully defended the Massachusetts’ trans-inclusive public accommodation nondiscrimination law, in the nation’s first ever state-wide vote on transgender rights.

Many people confuse normal aging memory issues as early warning signs of Alzheimer’s and dementia. Understanding the differences can prevent a great deal of stress as well as provide a roadmap for action should one be uncertain as to what is happening to them or what they see in others. This webinar will help identify the differences in Normal Aging and Alzheimer’s disease and provide you with the tools necessary to take appropriate action where necessary.

Participants will gain an understanding of the differences between normal aging and dementia.

Intended Audience: Anyone dealing with seniors. 

The webinar is eligible for one hour of continuing education credit from the Center for Guardianship Certification.

About the Presenter: Scott Greenberg, CAEd

Scott Greenberg is the CEO of ComForcare Senior Services and author of the award-winning book “Oh My God, I’m Getting Older and So is My Mom”. He is a Nationally Certified Alzheimer’s Educator by NCBAC and has been conducting workshops and support groups for more than 10 years. He has spoken at the largest educational conference on Alzheimer’s disease held in Florida for 10 of the last 12 years including one year as the keynote speaker. An accomplished speaker on the subject, Scott has presented to thousands of family caregivers and professionals on caring for people living with Alzheimer’s disease.

The webinar is for people who are caring for someone living with Alzheimer’s disease or dementia. It will create an understanding of how using the person’s social history and life story can help create a rich and rewarding quality of life that focuses on what is still preserved and what can be maintained despite the diagnosis.

Participants will learn the questions to ask when diving into someone’s life story. Those questions go far beyond what he or she did for a living and where they used to live. These questions are then coupled with details about their daily routine. Scott will then discuss how to take all of the information and create meaningful activities to improve the quality of life for the person living with Alzheimer’s or dementia.

About The Presenter – Scott Greenberg

Scott Greenberg is currently CEO of ComForcare Senior Services, a private-duty, non-medical home healthcare agency serving Palm Beach, Martin, St. Lucie and Indian River counties. Scott serves as Treasurer of the National Guardianship Association and is Past President and a current board member of the Florida State Guardianship Association. He is also on the Advisory Council for the Area Agency on Aging. He has served on Alzheimer’s Community Care’s special goodwill task force, and is a former AmeriCorp volunteer. Scott is a highly sought after speaker on senior issues important to boomers and their parents, is the author of an award-winning book entitled “Oh My God, I’m Getting Older and So is My Mom” and the host of a weekly radio show on 95.9FM True Oldies with the same title. Scott received his National Certified Alzheimer’s Educator designation from the National Certification Board for Alzheimer Care in July 2014.

Continuing Education Credit

The webinar will last for 60 minutes, and is eligible for one hour of continuing education credit from the Center for Guardianship Certification. The webinar is an encore presentation of a session presented at the 2017 National Conference on Guardianship. If you attended that session and received credit for it, credit will not be awarded for this webinar.

This webinar offers real-world practical tips on how to care for someone with Alzheimer’s and dementia. It includes: understanding the skills required to respond to certain behaviors, role-playing of specific behavior scenarios, understanding triggers, and learning strategies for success. It also teaches redirecting tools when dealing with communication, wandering, rummaging, hiding things, aggressive behavior, bathing, and more.

Original Presentation Date – Tuesday, November 15, 2016

About The Presenter – Scott Greenberg

Scott Greenberg is currently president and CEO of ComForcare Senior Services, a private duty home health care agency in Palm Beach, Florida. Scott just completed his term as president of the Florida State Guardianship Association and now retains his position on the executive board as immediate past president. In addition, he serves as a board member of the National Guardianship Association. He is the treasurer for the Partnership For Aging and is on the advisory council for the Area Agency on Aging. He has served on Alzheimer’s Community Care’s special goodwill task force, and is a former AmeriCorp volunteer. He also developed and is part of the Lifespan Education and Resource Network speaker series and developed a second speaker series dedicated to family caregivers. Scott has written an award-winning book entitled, Oh My God, I’m Getting Older and So is My Mom, and hosts a weekly radio show on 900AM The Talk with the same title. Scott received his National Certified Alzheimer’s Educator designation from NCBAC in July 2014.

He is a frequent speaker on topics relevant to the senior community and has most recently spoken at FAU Lifelong Learning Society, Florida State Guardianship Association annual statewide conference, BMO Private Bank and Ruth Rales Jewish Family Services. Scott is proud of his collaboration with Alpert Jewish Family & Children’s Services in building a cultural competency in Holocaust caregiving. Scott has also recently been a guest on numerous radio shows around the country including KFWB Los Angeles California, KKNW Seattle Washington, KXYL Brownwood Texas, AM 600 WMT Cedar Rapids Iowa, among others discussing senior issues important to boomers and their parents.

Continuing Education Credit

This webinar has been approved by the Center for Guardianship Certification for 1.0 credit. This session was originally presented at the 2015 National Conference on Guardianship. Anyone who earned credit from attending that session will be unable to earn credit by attending this webinar.

What would make guardianship/conservatorship reporting work better for you and for your clients/loved ones? Join this session to participate in an interactive discussion about guardianship/conservatorship reporting and what can be done with technology to improve both the reporting process and the efficacy of guardianship monitoring. We’ll share results from our recent survey and also hear from you.

Participants will learn to describe potential improvements to guardianship reporting and to provide their expertise and input about improvements in guardianship reporting.

Intended Audience: Guardians

The webinar is eligible for one hour of continuing education credit from the Center for Guardianship Certification.

About the Presenter: Diane Robinson

Diane Robinson, Ph.D, is a Principal Court Research Associate with the National Center for State Courts. Since joining the NCSC in 2019, her project work has focused on guardianships and conservatorships, with projects including the Conservatorship Accountability Project, the Guardianship Judicial Response Protocol, Rapid Response Financial Monitoring, and Elder Justice Innovation Grants. She also works in data governance, including data collection, data quality, use of data, and data sharing.

The court’s duty to protect the well-being of an individual does not end when it appoints a guardian (or conservator). After appointment, the court has an ongoing duty to monitor the guardianship or conservatorship. With a monitoring protocol, the court can identify guardians who are struggling, guide a guardian who needs assistance in fulfilling their duties, and the court can stop a guardian from using their court appointed authority to abuse, neglect, or exploit an individual. 

Participants will learn to describe an effective monitoring process, describe how to use the new monitoring protocols for the well-being reports and accountings, and name “red flags” for possible problems in a guardianship.

Intended Audience: Individuals who have responsibility for monitoring guardianships and conservatorships.

The webinar is eligible for one hour of continuing education credit from the Center for Guardianship Certification.

About the Presenter: Diane Robinson

Diane Robinson, Ph.D, is a Principal Court Research Associate with the National Center for State Courts. Since joining the NCSC in 2019, her project work has focused on guardianships and conservatorships, with projects including the Conservatorship Accountability Project, the Guardianship Judicial Response Protocol, Rapid Response Financial Monitoring, and Elder Justice Innovation Grants. She also works in data governance, including data collection, data quality, use of data, and data sharing.

This webinar will review what changes have recently been made in the Medicare program and what changes are currently scheduled in the future that will potentially impact NGA clients. Helpful resources will be reviewed and made available to the participants.

Intended Audience: NGA members who want to remain updated on current and upcoming Medicare related topics.

Handouts: Links to online resources

The webinar is eligible for one hour of continuing education credit from the Center for Guardianship Certification.

About the Presenter: Dan Mangus

Dan started his first insurance agency at 18 and has been passionate about educating others about their insurance choices ever since. Dan served as the President of his local Association of Life Underwriters by age 21 and went on to serve as the Chairman for the Life Underwriter Training Council and has been teaching Medicare courses at universities and keynoting national insurance conferences throughout his career.  In addition to regularly publishing articles in several industry magazines he is a published author of a series of books entitled TalkingMEDICARE.

What’s new in the Standards of Practice? What rights do my clients have that I need to be respecting? Hurme, who had a leadership role in revising both the Standards and the Bill of Rights, will explain why the changes were made, what is new, and how guardians can incorporate them while making decisions.

In 2022 the NGA membership adopted updated Standards of Practice and the NGA board revised its 2000 Statement of Rights to incorporate the language of the model Bill of Rights for Adults with a Guardian. All guardians should stay abreast of the current standards so they can continue to provide excellence in guardianship practices. An important component of excellence is understanding and protecting the rights of the persons they serve.

In this session, individuals will learn the changes that have been made to the Standards of Practice and the importance of advocating for the rights of adults with a guardian.

Intended Audience: All guardians, family, public, and private. Any professional interested in learning about guardianship excellence.

The Standards of Practice and the NGA Bill of Rights may be downloaded from www.guardianship.org.

The webinar is eligible for one hour of continuing education credit from the Center for Guardianship Certification.

About the Presenter: Sally Hurme

Elder law attorney Sally Hurme has spent decades advocating for enhanced guardianship practices. Most recently she was the co-lead of the national task force that developed a model bill of rights for adults with a guardian and the chair of the NGA team that updated the NGA Standards of Practice.

This presentation will describe the legislative journey taken by a state governmental body to develop, pursue and implement a supported decision-making statute in Illinois.  The presentation will examine the legislative background, the steps taken, and resources used to develop a legislative proposal, the components of the legislative proposal, the stakeholders engaged throughout the legislative process, the obstacles encountered along the way and implementation efforts taken to date.

Participants will learn about:

1. The legislation’s background that prompted the supported decision-making proposal, the resources used to develop the proposal and the key components of the final legislative proposal.
2. The engagement and mobilization of stakeholders to facilitate the proposal’s movement through the legislative process, including barriers encountered and how those barriers were addressed.
3. The implementation steps taken to date, including resource development and a public education campaign.

Intended Audience: Any professional interested in learning about supported decision-making.

The webinar is eligible for one hour of continuing education credit from the Center for Guardianship Certification.

About the Presenter: Teresa Parks

Teresa Parks is Deputy Director and Human Rights Authority Director for the Illinois Guardianship and Advocacy Commission.  The Commission supports programs for persons with disabilities including a state guardianship program, a disability rights investigative program, a legal advocacy service and a special education advocacy division.  The Commission also pursues public policy reform often arising from encountered gaps through its programmatic work.  Parks enlisted the help of several stakeholders to develop and pursue a Supported Decision-Making legislative proposal for Illinois Citizens with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities.  Illinois’ Supported Decision-Making Act was passed in 2021 with an effective date of February 2022.  Parks also serves on the Illinois Guardianship Association, the Center for Guardianship Certification and the Illinois Council on Developmental Disabilities. 

Numerous federal policy developments are presently underway which are directly relevant to guardians, protected persons, and the programs and services available to them. Earlier this year, the first-ever federal funding dedicated to Adult Protective Services (APS) was made available under the Elder Justice Act (EJA) to states. Legislation was just introduced in the House and Senate to reauthorize the EJA including significant APS provisions, along with other proposals related to court reform concerning guardianships, establishing medical-legal partnerships, and other purposes. The Biden Administration and congressional Democrats are preparing an extraordinary $3.4 trillion “human infrastructure” package that if enacted is expected to contain dramatic improvements in and expansions of services for older adults, people with disabilities, and their families, addressing Medicare, Medicaid, long-term services and supports, caregiving, and affordable housing. This legislation is expected to be introduced as early as September. The webinar will give participants an up-to-date overview of these new developments.

Participants will be informed about various aspects of the recently amended Older Americans Act, funding for state and local APS under the Elder Justice Act (EJA), and the pending EJA reauthorization, which includes provisions related to APS, the LTC Ombudsman Program, nursing homes, and innovative amendments addressing the Medical-Legal Partnership model and guardianship reform. Participants will also learn the most current information about the pending $3.4 trillion “human infrastructure” legislation and its prospects for enactment during this Congress. CAVEAT:  Many aspects of Congressional action and the resulting legislation are unpredictable. This presentation will be a report on the current state of affairs, not a guarantee of desired outcomes.

Intended Audience: Professional guardians, their advisors, and other people involved with aging and disability services.

The webinar is eligible for one hour of continuing education credit from the Center for Guardianship Certification.

About the Presenter: Bill Benson

Bill Benson has been actively involved in state and federal policies, programs, and legislation affecting the aging population for more than four decades.  He is National Policy Advisor to the National Adult Protective Services Association. He is co-founder and president of the International Association for Indigenous Aging and past board president of the National Citizens Coalition for Nursing Home Reform (now Consumer Voice). From 1993 to 1997, Mr. Benson was Deputy Assistant Secretary for Aging at the Administration on Aging (AoA) at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and was the Acting Assistant Secretary for Aging in 1997. Benson previously spent eight years working for several Congressional Committees on federal legislation affecting the aging population. Since 2000 he been host of First Person, a weekly series of interviews with Holocaust survivors for the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C.

The Uniform Guardianship, Conservatorship, and Other Protective Arrangements Act is a comprehensive new law governing all aspects of guardianship. It includes many innovations designed to maximize the independence and self-determination of persons who might be subject to guardianship, and to promote less-restrictive alternatives to guardianship. The act provides guidance to both courts and guardians to help ensure the best possible outcome for the individuals in their care. See how reforming guardianship law can improve outcomes for guardians and the individuals in their care.

Participants will learn the major features of the new uniform act, including:

• Less-restrictive alternatives to guardianship
• Right to social interaction
• Clear standards for decision-making
• Expanded procedural rights
• Individualized guardianship plans
• Advanced monitoring procedures
• Informal review of grievances

About the Presenters: Diana Noel and Benjamin Orzeske

Diana Noel is a Senior Legislative Representative with AARP’s Department of Government Affairs. Since joining AARP in 2011, Diana has served as an issue expert primarily in the areas of elder abuse, financial exploitation, adult guardianship, powers of attorney, and other probate related issues. She provides strategic advocacy advice, presentations, volunteer training, and technical assistance to AARP’s 53 state offices to further their engagements in state level legislative, judicial and regulatory efforts.

Ben Orzeske is Chief Counsel at the Uniform Law Commission (ULC), a non-profit law reform organization founded in 1892 to draft model legislation for consideration by state legislatures.  The ULC collaborated with over 20 organizations representing advocates for seniors and the developmentally disabled, judges, public and private guardians, and others to draft a new uniform law on guardianship. The final act was approved in summer 2017.

Ben is responsible for promoting enactment of all uniform laws involving probate, trusts, and estates, including the Uniform Guardianship, Conservatorship, and Other Protective Arrangements Act.

Continuing Education Credit

The webinar is eligible for one hour of continuing education credit from the Center for Guardianship Certification.

The webinar will explore how we can apply the person centered and person driven decision-making model of Supported Decision Making to improve the quality of decisions and quality of life of protected persons, while providing reasonable protections. The session will start by exploring the decision-making model that is at the core of SDM, and how it can be applied with many persons who are subject to guardianship to give the person a voice in decisions that are made. We will then explore balancing autonomy in decision making against a guardian’s obligation to protect the person from harm, looking at the intricacies of who are we protecting from what risk.

Participants will be provided with a decision-making model to engage persons under guardianship in choices, and a model for examining risks and protections.
Participants will learn:

• The core decision making model of supported decision making.
• How to practice decision supports with protected persons.
• A model for examining risks and protections.

About The Presenter – David Godfrey, J.D.
David Godfrey is a senior attorney at the American Bar Association Commission on Law and Aging, his work focuses on ethics, health and financial decision-making including SDM, advance care planning, and legal issues in dementia. Prior to working at the ABA, he was responsible for age-related programming at the Access to Justice Foundation in Kentucky. David earned his B.A. with honors at Rollins College in Winter Park, Florida and his J.D. Cum Laude at the University of Louisville, in Kentucky. He serves on the board of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys.

Continuing Education Credit
The webinar is eligible for one hour of continuing education credit from the Center for Guardianship Certification.

This Ethical Principles webinar discusses six areas of ethical behavior for fiduciaries. The major principles taken from the NGA Standards of Practice are used to apply these principles to everyday decision-making for fiduciaries.

These principles include:

• Protection of civil rights
• Exhibiting the highest degree of trust and loyalty to the person under guardianship
• Placing the person in the least restrictive placement
• Consenting to care, treatment, and services
• Management of the estate
• Termination or limitation of your guardianship.

Participants will learn:

• Models of decision-making
• Ethical principles and how they apply to your everyday practice

About the Presenter: Lucille Lyon

Lucille Lyon has 40 years of experience working as a California Public Guardian. After 10 years as a case-carrying employee and later a supervisor, Ms. Lyon served as the Riverside County Chief Deputy Public Guardian directing staff to provide services to individuals placed under a mental health conservatorship and vulnerable older adults. Later, she worked for Los Angeles County Public Guardian as the Division Chief, and the Orange County Executive Director – Public Guardian. Ms. Lyon has presented trainings for the NGA and California Association of Public Administrators/Public Guardians/Public Conservators. She holds a Master’s Degree in Public Administration from California State University San Bernardino and Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science from the University of Southern California.

Continuing Education Credit

The webinar is eligible for one hour of continuing education credit from the Center for Guardianship Certification.

This two-part series is designed for newly appointed (or soon-to be appointed) family guardians, to help acquaint them with guardianship basics. Based upon NGA’s Standards of Practice, the course provides guidance to help family guardians understand their roles and responsibilities.

Continuing Education Credits:
Each individual module will last for 60 minutes, and is eligible for one pre-certification hour of continuing education credit from the Center for Guardianship Certification. This course cannot be used for recertification education.

Certificates will be available within 3-5 business days after the full series is completed and verification is made. 

Family Guardianship – Guardian of the Estate
The session includes the initial steps you’ll need to take as a fiduciary, how to manage income and property, budgeting, benefits, selling property, court reporting requirements, conflicts of interest, final arrangements, and how a guardianship terminates, all from the perspective of a family guardian.

Family Guardianship – Guardian of the Person
This session details the overall guardianship process, the rights involved in a guardianship, the various hats a guardian of the person must wear, and the initial steps for managing someone else’s care. It also discusses the initial and ongoing court responsibilities of a guardian of the person. The presenter will reveal the steps to take in decision-making for your family member, including residential decisions, what to expect when it comes to court reporting requirements, what you need to document, and how the guardianship ends.

Estate planning by parents who have children with disabilities involves many challenges, including the following:

• How do you leave funds for the benefit of the child without causing the child to lose important public benefits?
• How do you make sure that the funds are well-managed?
• How do you make sure that your other children are not over-burdened with caring for the disabled sibling, and that any burdens fall relatively evenly among the siblings?
• What is fair in terms of distributing your estate between your disabled child and your other children?
• How do you make sure there is enough money to meet your disabled child’s needs?

Often, parents of children with special needs try to resolve these issues by leaving their estates to their other children, leaving nothing to the disabled children. They have several reasons for this approach:

1) the disabled child should not receive anything because they cannot manage money and would lose their benefits,

2) they do not need any inheritance because they will be taken care of by the public benefits they receive; and

3) the other children will take care of them.

When addressing a special needs planning situation, be sure to speak with a professional who understands the nuances of the special needs planning process.

Attendees will come to understand what is involved in the planning process for a special needs family and the importance of preserving the loved one’s financial security and quality of life. The key issues of understanding the role of public benefits, making decisions about the future, Maryland ABLE, and using estate planning and trusts to protect assets will be discussed along with the types of special needs trusts and their specific purposes (along with who the decision makers and beneficiaries can be in these trusts). Also, to be touched upon will be the “planning team concept” — how your planning team (attorney, financial advisor, CPA) — can work together to help provide your family peace of mind during the special needs planning process.

Intended Audience: The target audience for this presentation is all families who need to plan their loved one with special needs. This includes young families with young children up to older parents with disabled adult children, as well as other family members including grandparents who wish to contribute to 3^rd party special needs trusts. This presentation is also important for financial decision makers who want to better understand the ins and outs of special needs planning so they can be a better resource for their clients. 

About the Presenter: Olivia R. Holcombe-Volke, Esq.

Olivia Holcombe-Volke is a Senior Principal with Elville and Associates, P.C. Her primary focus is on all aspects of estate planning, including the initial drafting of wills, trusts, advance directives, and powers of attorney, as well as the continued revision and updates of those documents as life and statutory changes occur. She also regularly works with clients who have elder law and/or special needs concerns, whether on behalf of themselves or a family member, assisting with Medicaid and Veteran’s asset protection efforts, special needs planning, and the difficult issues attendant to mental and physical incapacity.  

The webinar is eligible for one hour of continuing education credit from the Center for Guardianship Certification.

This webinar will focus on five ways to change guardianships with a professional in place, to guardianships in which family members have a significant role in the person’s day-to-day affairs.

About the Presenter: Leesa Arthur

Leesa Arthur is a Washington State Certified Professional Guardian who has been working as a professional fiduciary since 1994. In her role as a co-director of Summit Guardian Services, she focused her attention on reworking guardianships to restore family members to recognized roles.

Continuing Education Credit

The webinar is eligible for one hour of continuing education credit from the Center for Guardianship Certification.

Pooled special needs trusts (pooled trusts) are a program through which older individuals requiring long-term care may set aside assets and remain eligible for Medicaid. Disbursements from pooled trusts are used to purchase services such as medical devices, access to social activities and funeral expenses. Through these disbursements, pooled trusts enhance elderly individuals’ well-being. This webinar describes the relationship between Medicaid, pooled trusts and their role in nursing home residents’ well-being. To understand this relationship, disbursements from a pooled trust program were sorted into the five domains of well-being described by the Gallup-Healthways index. The result supports that pooled trust programs offer access to essential goods and services that support well-being.

Participants will learn:

• Basics of Medicaid
• Basics of Pooled Trusts
• Ways in which Pooled Trust support the quality of life of people in nursing homes

About the Presenters: Heather Conners, PhD and Penny Brierley-Bowers, EdD, PMP

Heather Connors has a PhD in Gerontology and over 10 years of experience working with the older adult population. She currently works for a pooled trust agency.

Dr. Brierley-Bowers is a psychologist with both clinical and policy experience.

Continuing Education Credit

The webinar is eligible for one hour of continuing education credit from the Center for Guardianship Certification.

This webinar focuses on how fiduciary banking has changed in the last few years and how some of those changes have created ethical challenges that guardians should be ready to respond to with good policy and procedure. Some topics covered include online access, non-check transactions, and walk in branch limitations. A main focus will be on the Know Your Client laws and how that change impacts the fiduciary relationship with the bank account or accounts. And, how this one change alone creates a problem with what used to be considered ethical banking practice. The final discussion covers how to craft policy and procedure that acknowledges the new rules and allows the guardian to apply them in a consistent manner.

Participants will learn what some of the new rules are in fiduciary banking and will receive some tips on how to create policies and procedures that reflect these new rules.

About the Presenters: Leesa Arthur

Leesa Arthur is a Washington State Certified Professional Guardian who has been working as a professional fiduciary since 1994. Her current focus is on managing complex guardianship matters, small trusts, and VA Fiduciary appointments.

Continuing Education Credit

The webinar is eligible for one hour of continuing education credit from the Center for Guardianship Certification.

When it comes to tangible personal property (TPP), minimal industry standards and a changing marketplace can create challenges for fiduciaries. There are numerous ways to value and manage the disposition of personal property, but few methods are reliable or regulated, leaving estates vulnerable.

In this webinar you will learn:

1. Regulated v. unregulated property liquidation services
2. Common pitfalls, frauds and scams
3. How to vet resources for “appropriate expertise”
4. Responsible options for property valuation and disposition

About The Presenter – Nan Hayes, CRTS, CSA
Nan Hayes is the Vice President of Promisor Residential, managing the disposition of residential assets for corporate trust and other fiduciaries, nationwide. She is a leading authority in Senior Relocation and Residential Services and has spent more than twenty years defining the industry’s professional standards. Nan is the founder of MoveSeniors.com, an Illinois Continuity of Care Board member, and on the area agency advisory council. She can be seen on the PBS network and Retirement Living TV.

Continuing Education Credit
The webinar is eligible for one hour of continuing education credit from the Center for Guardianship Certification.

Once a guardian of the estate (conservator) is appointed over an incapacitated adult, the guardian has a duty to bring all of the client’s assets under his/her control to protect and preserve the estate. This training will cover all aspects of bringing estate assets under the control of the guardian.

Participants will learn how to organize the case and marshal assets effectively, how to develop and document a case file, steps to identify assets and start controlling them, and how to document the assets in the case.

About The Presenter – Lucille Lyon

Lucille Lyon has 35 years of experience as a public guardian, having personally managed more than conservatorships of the person and estate for mentally ill clients and older adults. Later, as a director for three public guardian programs in California, she oversaw the training and management of staff. She is a lifetime member of the California Association of Public Administrators, Public Guardians and Public Conservators, and she presented many educational topics to public administrators and public guardians at the annual educational conference.

Continuing Education Credit

The webinar will last for 60 minutes, and is eligible for one hour of continuing education credit from the Center for Guardianship Certification. 

Attendees will acquire tools for evaluating the ethical standards of a financial advisor. They will understand the potential conflict of interest between the “suitability standard” that applies to the brokerage industry versus the much higher fiduciary standard that applies to fiduciaries and registered investment advisors. They will learn how to interview financial advisors and identify those with the knowledge and competence to manage fiduciary portfolios in compliance with the laws regulating fiduciary investing. They will understand the difference between the advisor they work with, his or her broker/dealer, and the “custodial firm” that may hold the person’s assets.

A professional fiduciary is sometimes reticent to accept clients with substantial investment portfolios, as he or she is intimidated by the prospect of fulfilling the responsibility of monitoring the investment portfolio. Perhaps even more worrisome, he or she may worry about finding a financial advisor who understands how to comply with fiduciary investment law and who he or she simply feels can be trusted. This webinar will help you overcome that challenge by teaching you how to find a knowledgeable advisor and by helping you understand how the financial industry operates.

Original Presentation Date – Wednesday, November 18, 2015

About The Presenters – Lee Anke & Ted Ong

Lee H. Anke is an SEC-registered investment advisor (RIA) and has been counseling investment clients since 1977, specializing in developing and managing Modern-Portfolio-Theory portfolios to comply with the UPIA and in servicing the needs of both public and private fiduciaries. He has managed PIN’s premier discipline, the “PIN Conservative Portfolio” since 2001. He developed and teaches Management of the Investment Portfolio, one of five classes comprising the Professional Fiduciary Management for Trustees curriculum at the California State University at Fullerton. Lee has served as an expert witness in the San Diego, Los Angeles, Riverside and El Dorado County Courts in California; also in the Las Vegas NV and Pima County AZ courts on matters including suitability of investments under state probate codes, compliance with the Uniform Prudent Investor Act (UPIA) and fiduciary abuse.

Ted H. Ong has been an investment professional since 1983. He is an SEC-registered Investment Advisor specializing in servicing the needs of both public and private fiduciaries. In order to better service clients, Ted also retains dual licensing as a Registered Representative subject to FINRA supervision. He teaches classes and round tables at annual conventions of the National Guardianship Association, the Professional Fiduciary Association of California (PFAC), the Florida State Guardianship Association, the Texas Guardianship Association, the Arizona Fiduciaries Association, the Washington Association of Public Guardians, and the California Public Administrators Public Guardians and Public Conservators Association. He also serves as a consultant to the San Diego Fiduciary Abuse Specialist Team (FAST).

Continuing Education Credit

This webinar has been approved by the Center for Guardianship Certification for 1.5 credits.

This webinar’s goal is to provide participants with the knowledge, skills, and support needed to navigate the complex landscape of grief and loss as a Guardian. My hope is to empower individuals in finding their personal path of healing, growth, and ultimately, a sense of peace in their journey through grief and loss.

Participants will:

• Gain a comprehensive understanding of grief and loss as a Guardian, including the different stages and manifestations.
• Explore individual experiences of grief and loss in, recognizing that everyone’s journey is unique.
• Identify healthy coping mechanisms and strategies for processing grief and loss.
• Empower individuals to find meaning and growth in their experiences of grief and loss.

Intended Audience: Guardians who have experienced loss. Either the loss of a client or personal losses.

Handouts: Coping with Grief Strategies and Self-Care Ideas. These handouts can serve as practical tools, prompts for reflection, and sources of information for participants as they navigate through the complexities of grief and loss.

The webinar is eligible for one hour of continuing education credit from the Center for Guardianship Certification.

 About the Presenter: Laura Klein

Laura Klein is a compassionate and dedicated Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselor with extensive experience in supporting individuals through grief and loss. With a deep understanding of the complexities of bereavement, Laura has honed her skills as a Certified Grief Therapist, providing empathetic guidance to those navigating the journey of grief. Laura’s professional journey has taken her through various settings, including hospice care, private practice, and her own personal experiences with grief and loss.

This webinar will explain what guardians need to know about funeral options so they can support any clients who need to plan their funeral. We cover suggestions on how to talk with possibly reluctant clients about their wishes or to engage family members in planning, when necessary; explore the details that need to be considered; discuss the pros and cons of pre-need contracts; and summarize options when the client is running out of resources to pay for funeral arrangements.

Participants will learn:

• How to assist clients in making preparations for their funerals
• What options need to be considered when making final arrangements
• What options there are for paying funeral expenses

Intended Audience: Guardians and any other professionals who have the responsibility to assist others in planning a funeral

The webinar is eligible for one hour of continuing education credit from the Center for Guardianship Certification.

About the Presenter: Scott Greenberg, CAEd and Sally Hurme, JD

Scott Greenberg is the CEO of ComForcare Senior Services and author of the award-winning book “Oh My God, I’m Getting Older and So is My Mom”. He is a Nationally Certified Alzheimer’s Educator by NCBAC and has been conducting workshops and support groups for more than 10 years. He has spoken at the largest educational conference on Alzheimer’s disease held in Florida for 10 of the last 12 years including one year as the keynote speaker. An accomplished speaker on the subject, Scott has presented to thousands of family caregivers and professionals on caring for people living with Alzheimer’s disease.

Sally Hurme, a former NGA board member, elder law attorney, and best-selling author, has written the ABA/AARP Checklist for Family Survivors, a lay person’s guide to the details involved when a loved one dies.

Aging Life Care Associates have been providing care for seniors, people with disabilities, and their families for more than 35 years. The array of services is matched only by the uniqueness of their clients. Aging Life Care Associates can be part of the guardianship process by providing assessments, ongoing care management, family mediation and expert witness.

Participants will gain an understanding of this unique profession and how they have helped families navigate the health care arena, advocate for those who cannot advocate for themselves, and how they can be used to help the participants of a guardianship proceeding get to a solution that improves the life of the person involved in the guardianship.

Intended Audience: Anyone who participates in the guardianship process; guardians.

About the Presenters: Anne Markowitz Recht, Nancy E. Avitabile, C. Taney Hamill

Anne Markowitz Recht, LMSW, CMC, is a Licensed Master Social Worker in New York State and a Certified Care Manager.  Anne is the Director of Care Management for Caring People, Inc. She is the founder and former CEO of AMR Care Group, a Care Management and Companion Services company which merged with Caring People, in January 2020.  Anne was the Director of Family and Children’s Association’s Guardianship program.  Anne has served as Court Evaluator, Guardian, court-appointed care manager and expert witness in hundreds of Guardianship cases.

Nancy E. Avitabile, LMSW, CMC, is the owner of Urban Eldercare, LLC and a founding partner of Home Care Match, LLC.  Nancy served on the National Board for Aging Life Care Association, including as President.  She has been featured on Thomson Reuters, “The Business Managing Old Age”, has written for the Aging Live Care Association publications, “Inside ALCA” and “The Journal of Aging Life Care” as well as other publications.  Nancy was the Co-Chair of the NY Aging Life Care Association Guardianship Program and served as Guardian.

The webinar is eligible for one hour of continuing education credit from the Center for Guardianship Certification.

Nearly two-thirds of Americans age 65 and older use the internet or email, and more than a quarter own a smart phone. Seniors are the fastest-growing population on the internet. In the near future, we will have people under our guardianship with substantial digital assets. Although a guardian should be able to step into the shoes of the person under guardianship to access all types of digital assets, the law is in its nascent state.

The session will discuss types of digital assets and how to locate them. It will also discuss the emerging law, including the Revised Uniform Fiduciary Access to Digital Assets Act, which was approved in 2015 and has already been introduced in 31 states and enacted in 19.

Original Presentation Date – Tuesday, October 18, 2016

About The Presenter – Charles Golbert

Charles P. Golbert is the Deputy Public Guardian in charge of the adult guardianship division of the Office of the Cook County Public Guardian, in Chicago. He oversees all aspects of the office’s services for the 700 adults with disabilities under its guardianship, including legal and social services and management of nearly $100 million in assets. Mr. Golbert supervises approximately 75 personnel including 20 attorneys. He has been lead counsel in numerous financial exploitation lawsuits that have recovered millions of dollars in assets stolen from persons with disabilities. He has also litigated complex cases in the areas of health care surrogate decisions, the right to community placement, and contested guardianship.

Mr. Golbert earned his juris doctor, and his bachelor of arts with honors in economics, from Northwestern University. He is an adjunct professor at the John Marshall Law School, where he teaches elder law, and frequently presents at other law schools, universities, and continuing legal education programs. Mr. Golbert has authored or coauthored 17 law journal articles and book chapters. One of the articles won a national award for writing in elder law. He has served as Articles Editor, Executive Editor, and Editor in Chief of the Journal of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys (NAELA Journal). He is the primary author of legislation, now law, to protect persons with disabilities from abuse and financial exploitation.

Continuing Education Credit

This webinar has been approved by the Center for Guardianship Certification for 1.0 credit. This session was originally presented at the 2015 National Conference on Guardianship. Anyone who earned credit from attending that session will be unable to earn credit by attending this webinar.

NGA’s newest webinar employs a case study approach to explore the implications and nuances of what claims counsel from Lloyd’s of London has identified as the top ten best practices for mitigating risk in a professional fiduciary’s practice.

Original Presentation Date – Wednesday, October 7, 2015

About The Presenters – Lawrence Hilton

Lawrence D. Hilton, founder of Dominion Insurance Services, serves professionals in a wide range of disciplines. His prior law practice focused on professional liability defense and insurance coverage. He belongs to the California and Utah Bar Associations, holds insurance licenses in all 50 states, and is a Lloyd’s of London cover holder.

Continuing Education Credit

This webinar has been approved by the Center for Guardianship Certification for 1.0 credit.

Estate planning by parents who have children with disabilities involves many challenges, including the following:

• How do you leave funds for the benefit of the child without causing the child to lose important public benefits?
• How do you make sure that the funds are well-managed?
• How do you make sure that your other children are not over-burdened with caring for the disabled sibling, and that any burdens fall relatively evenly among the siblings?
• What is fair in terms of distributing your estate between your disabled child and your other children?
• How do you make sure there is enough money to meet your disabled child’s needs?

Often, parents of children with special needs try to resolve these issues by leaving their estates to their other children, leaving nothing to the disabled children. They have several reasons for this approach:

1) the disabled child should not receive anything because they cannot manage money and would lose their benefits,

2) they do not need any inheritance because they will be taken care of by the public benefits they receive; and

3) the other children will take care of them.

When addressing a special needs planning situation, be sure to speak with a professional who understands the nuances of the special needs planning process.

Attendees will come to understand what is involved in the planning process for a special needs family and the importance of preserving the loved one’s financial security and quality of life. The key issues of understanding the role of public benefits, making decisions about the future, Maryland ABLE, and using estate planning and trusts to protect assets will be discussed along with the types of special needs trusts and their specific purposes (along with who the decision makers and beneficiaries can be in these trusts). Also, to be touched upon will be the “planning team concept” — how your planning team (attorney, financial advisor, CPA) — can work together to help provide your family peace of mind during the special needs planning process.

Intended Audience: The target audience for this presentation is all families who need to plan their loved one with special needs. This includes young families with young children up to older parents with disabled adult children, as well as other family members including grandparents who wish to contribute to 3^rd party special needs trusts. This presentation is also important for financial decision makers who want to better understand the ins and outs of special needs planning so they can be a better resource for their clients. 

About the Presenter: Olivia R. Holcombe-Volke, Esq.

Olivia Holcombe-Volke is a Senior Principal with Elville and Associates, P.C. Her primary focus is on all aspects of estate planning, including the initial drafting of wills, trusts, advance directives, and powers of attorney, as well as the continued revision and updates of those documents as life and statutory changes occur. She also regularly works with clients who have elder law and/or special needs concerns, whether on behalf of themselves or a family member, assisting with Medicaid and Veteran’s asset protection efforts, special needs planning, and the difficult issues attendant to mental and physical incapacity.  

The webinar is eligible for one hour of continuing education credit from the Center for Guardianship Certification.

No matter how you structure your guardianship practice, you should be applying NGA’s Standards for Agencies and Programs. These Standards set out best practices for setting up business policies and procedures that ensure competent and ethical delivery of guardianship services.

This summer the NGA Board approved changes to the Standards. The goal was to update the wording of the Standards, which had not been revised since 2016, to reflect changes in the Standards of Practice for Guardians, updated in 2022, and the recommendations of the Fourth National Guardianship Summit held in 2020. While no major substantive changes have been made, the new version provides more clarity and consistency, while providing sufficient flexibility for the many different ways guardian services are delivered. We will highlight the key provisions in the Standards and point out where changes have been made.

Participants will become more familiar with the Agency Standards; learn how to apply the Agency Standards; and be able to enhance their business policies and procedures.

Note: This session is not eligible for continuing education credit. Please disregard the codes that are announced during the webinar.

Intended Audience:  All guardians and especially those who lead programs and public guardianship agencies.

A copy of the Agency Standards may be found Here.

About the Presenter: Sally Balch Hurme, JD

Elder law attorney, Sally Hurme, has spent decades advocating for enhanced guardianship practices. Most recently she was the co-lead of the national task force that developed a model bill of rights for adults with a guardian and the chair of the NGA team that updated the NGA Standards of Practice and the NGA Standards for Agencies and Programs.

NOTE: A separate live Q&A session will be held with the presenter on

Wednesday, December 17, 2025 @ 3:00 pm Eastern (2:00 Central, 1:00 Mountain, 12:00 Pacific).

https://us06web.zoom.us/j/83943120885?pwd=Lb2yyBCuhDAssRLBqlITlC4abw7EYe.1

Space is limited to the first 100 to join. Registration is not required for the Live Q&A

The Q&A session is not eligible for continuing education credit. It will not be recorded.

Click below to register for the webinar.

A half million seniors a year will walk away from their life insurance policies – with little or nothing. This happens because they no longer want, need or can afford the policy and they (and their advisors) do not know there is another option. This webinar focuses on educating the audience about all aspects of life insurance settlements including: what they are, how they work, their history, regulation, why anyone would want to sell their policy, how the market works, how much policies can be worth (hint: tens of thousands or hundreds of thousands of dollars), how money can be used, real client case study examples, when a life insurance settlement does, and does not, make sense, etc.

The participants will be fully versed in life insurance settlements, so they can:

• Identify situations when a settlement may make sense for a client
• Describe to clients how a settlement works
• Understand the timing, regulation, and transparency of the process

Intended Audience: Fiduciaries, financial advisors, guardians, elder law attorneys, daily money managers, insurance agents, or anyone that works with seniors or clients that are incapacitated.

Note: This webinar is not eligible for continuing education credit. 

About the Presenter: Lisa Rehburg

Lisa Rehburg has been in the insurance industry for over 30 years and works with professionals nationwide to help their clients. She is a life settlement broker. Her fiduciary duty to clients is to market their policy to obtain the highest amount for it that she can. Her focus is on education, so professionals understand life insurance settlements, and when (and when not) they can be a good fit for clients. Lisa has spoken hundreds of times to organizations such as: Professional Fiduciary Association of California chapters, Aging Life Care Association, Financial Planning Associations, American Association of Daily Money Managers, Estate Planning Councils, National Association of Professional Financial Advisors study groups, Health Underwriters, National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors chapters, and more.

This webinar will define grief (It’s a wider definition than most think), dispel myths about grief and share the hidden things that make the experience of grief so difficult. The presenter will discuss the connection between grief and health and give practical strategies to support yourself and stay well as you work hard to support others.

Participants will learn how to support themselves and support others in meaningful ways (physically, intellectually, emotionally, and spiritually) amid loss and change. Practical strategies and words to say (when you don’t know what to say) are included.

Intended Audience: Anyone who wants to know how to better care for themselves and/or others amid loss and change. Those, like guardians, who support/care for others professionally are the obvious audience, but anyone can participate and learn.

Note: This webinar is not eligible for continuing education credit. 

About the Presenter: Rachel Weinstein, M.S. Ed.

Rachel Weinstein has over 25 years of experience in the field of grief and loss and has appeared as a grief expert on local and national television, on syndicated radio programs, and in syndicated newspapers in the United States. She is the owner of “Jacksonville Center for Grief and Loss” and provides support, education, and consultation for loss and life transition. She spent the early part of her career as a general therapist prior to experiencing a personal loss. That loss awakened her to how little most well-intentioned helping professionals know about distinguishing grief from clinical depression and often what was done and said made the grief experience even harder. Family and friends were equally ill-equipped to show up in a way that felt supportive. After getting through her loss, she pursued additional training on understanding and supporting grief and loss. Rachel is passionate about helping others, particularly helping professionals, better understand grief, literally support it, and take care of themselves in their quest to support others.  

Discussions around end-of-life planning are often difficult and uncomfortable. For guardians, particularly those who have little to no history with the person under guardianship, having this conversation in the early stages of the relationship can be beneficial to both the guardian and the person under guardianship. During such conversations, the guardian is afforded the opportunity to involve the person in decision-making to the greatest extent possible, employing the standard of self-determination. Likewise, the discussion can provide the guardian with the information necessary to advocate for the goals, needs, and preferences related to end-of-life care, a key standard in decision-making. In the absence of such conversations, guardians find themselves in the challenging place of making difficult decisions without a clear understanding of the end-of-life wishes of the person under guardianship. While having this discussion promptly is vital, how and when to initiate it can be hard. By employing the use of Five Wishes, an advance directive tool, the guardian and person under guardianship have the opportunity to discuss and document end-of-life wishes expressed during the conversation.

 Participants will:

1. Gain an understanding of the challenges associated with End-of-Life conversations as they relate to guardianship.
2. Recognize the importance of using an advance directive tool early in the relationship to know the End-of-Life wishes of the person under guardianship.
3. Learn how to use Five Wishes Advance Directive Document for End-of-Life planning for the person under guardianship.

About the Presenters: Traci Cucinotta and Paul Malley

Traci Cucinotta, MSW, MBE, LICSW is the Education and Training Specialist for Guardian Community Trust, Inc. (GCT), a non‐profit organization located in Andover, Massachusetts, that advocates for guardianship reform through research, education and an active grant‐making program. Her experience as a Medical Social Worker spans critical care, dementia, chronic mental illness and end-of-life. Her education in the field of Bioethics has given her the opportunity to teach the principles of decision-making, particularly pertaining to the ethics of end-of-life care. She is a current board member of the Massachusetts Guardianship Association, National Association of Social Workers and American Society for Bioethics and Humanities.

Paul Malley, MA, is President of Aging with Dignity, a national non-profit organization based in Tallahassee, Florida, with a mission to help individuals and their families receive the care they want in case of a serious illness. Aging with Dignity, is the creator and distributor of America’s most popular advance directive, Five Wishes, an easy-to-use legal document – used by more 35 million people – that addresses important medical issues as well as personal, emotional and spiritual matters at the end of life.  Paul brings more than 20 years of experience as a national advocate for dignified care for those who are most vulnerable.

Continuing Education Credit
Note: This webinar is not eligible for continuing education credit. 

The webinar will address tips and tools designed to help make the search and selection process of hiring a private-duty caregiver as smooth as it can be. The presentation will include the unique needs of someone living with Alzheimer’s disease or dementia.

Participants will learn how to recognize signs that in-home help is necessary, the different in-home provider options, things to consider, questions to ask, regulations, caregiver responsibilities, and how to ensure a successful transition when bringing a caregiver in the home.

About The Presenter – Scott Greenberg

Scott Greenberg is currently CEO of ComForcare Senior Services, a private-duty, non-medical home healthcare agency serving Palm Beach, Martin, St. Lucie and Indian River counties. Scott serves as Treasurer of the National Guardianship Association and is Past President and a current board member of the Florida State Guardianship Association. He is also on the Advisory Council for the Area Agency on Aging. He has served on Alzheimer’s Community Care’s special goodwill task force, and is a former AmeriCorp volunteer. Scott is a highly sought after speaker on senior issues important to boomers and their parents, is the author of an award-winning book entitled “Oh My God, I’m Getting Older and So is My Mom” and the host of a weekly radio show on 95.9FM True Oldies with the same title. Scott received his National Certified Alzheimer’s Educator designation from the National Certification Board for Alzheimer Care in July 2014.

Continuing Education Credit

Note: This webinar is not eligible for continuing education credit. 

Since time immemorial, death has been both celebrated and feared. This training covers burial customs of different cultures and faiths. The purpose is to provide conservators and guardians with information which may be useful as they make burial arrangements for their clients who die. The training is a survey of the different ways we dispose of our dead and how culture and faith affect our actions.

Original Presentation Date – May 18, 2017

About The Presenter – Chris Fierro

Chris Fierro worked for a guardianship/conservatorship agency from 1975 to 2008, in various positions, including the last 19 years as the deputy director in charge of the County of Los Angeles, CA, Office of the Public Guardian, the state’s oldest and largest. LA County Office of Public Guardian has thousands of cases; and approximately 20 clients die each month. Because the county is diverse in ethnicities and religions, a familiarity with how burial customs differ among the various groups is critical in making appropriate burial arrangements. After retirement, Chris continued working as a consultant, developing policies and training modules.

Continuing Education Credit

Note: This webinar is not eligible for continuing education credit. 

Excellence in guardianship is built on the foundation of the Ethical Principles, the support provided by Standards of Practice that elaborate on those principles, and the structure found in the Fundamentals of Guardianship. Sally Hurme, who has been instrumental in developing each of these NGA documents, will explain how guardians can use the documents to uphold excellence in guardianship every day. Electronic copies of the Standards of Practice and the Ethical Principles will be provided.

Note: This webinar is an introductory course, and is geared toward guardians who are newer to their responsibilities, or for those needing a refresher.

Original Presentation Date – June 13, 2017

About The Presenter – Sally Hurme

During multiple terms on the NGA board of directors, Sally has served on the committees that developed and updated the Standards of Practice, Ethical Principles, and Fundamentals of Guardianship.

Note: This webinar is not eligible for continuing education credit. 

The financial industry does a great job of confusing people by over complicating the simplest of things. The goal of this webinar is to help expose some of those dirty little secrets, specifically related to the different products and fees charged by the industry. It goes into great detail of the true “all-in” costs of specific products with real life case examples and provides “red flag” information on many issues that signal that it’s time to make a change.

The presentation will also provide valuable tools and resources to help private professional fiduciaries select, partner and retain a competent investment advisor, and will go into detail on decision making protocols to help fiduciaries protect themselves from unnecessary risk.

Original Presentation Date – Tuesday, August 9, 2016

About The Presenter – Daniel Cutter

Daniel Cutter is a Vice President and Senior Financial Advisor at Merrill Lynch. He helped to create the Merrill Lynch Fiduciary and Special Needs Group and has been in the financial industry since 1999. Daniel earned his MBA in Finance from the University of San Francisco and is a Chartered Retirement Planning CounselorSM. He is a special consultant on the book, ‘Special Needs Trusts: Planning, Drafting, and Administration’ through the California Continuing Education of the Bar.

Continuing Education Credit

Note: This webinar is not eligible for continuing education credit. 

Guardians face many challenging budgeting decisions. This webinar will help Guardians learn methods to analyze complex life decisions and justify their actions to courts and families, as well as outline tools and processes to justify financial decisions and foster cooperation among interested parties. A variety of actual case studies will be presented to explore these topics. Compliance with state codes and liability protection for the Guardian will also be highlighted.

Original Presentation Date – December 2, 2015

About The Presenter – Scott MacDonald

Scott MacDonald is a Senior Vice President and Senior Portfolio Manager for Merrill Lynch, with more than 28 years of industry experience. Mr. MacDonald has been featured in a variety of publications on serving clients with disabilities, including the San Francisco Chronicle, New York Times, Oakland Tribune, The Street.Com, Advisor One and a cover story in On Wall Street Magazine. He was a consulting author and editor of the attorney training manual — Special Needs Trusts: Planning, Drafting, and Administration through the California Continuing Education of the Bar as well as for the book, Administrating the California Special Needs Trust. He has lectured extensively for various Bar and Consumer Attorney Associations, the Special Needs Alliance, the National Guardianship Association,

Continuing Education Credit

Note: This webinar is not eligible for continuing education credit. 

Elder care is heading for a crisis. The number of elders needing care is rapidly increasing, while available beds and the number of caretakers is decreasing. Caretakers and fiduciaries must use technology to “fill the gap.” This webinar will look at today’s technology, and future technology, which can and will be used to care for enders and to ensure their safety.

Participants will learn:

• Care needs of elders and incapacitated persons.
• Safety needs for persons who are “aging in place” and in care facilities.
• Monitoring, caretaking, and dispatching technologies currently available.
• Using technology to provide information and to alert caregivers in a timely and appropriate manner.
• Artificial intelligence and predictive technologies.
• When technology cannot be relied upon.

Intended Audience: Guardians and care providers.

Note: This webinar is not eligible for continuing education credit. 

About the Presenter: Frank R. Acuna

Frank R. Acuna is a founding partner of Acuña Regli, located in Pleasant Hill, California, with satellite offices in Oakland and Fairfield, CA. Mr. Acuna is certified by the State Bar of California as an estate planning, probate, and trust administration specialist. His practice is built around the needs of licenses professional fiduciaries.