NCLER – Resource Library

Older residents in areas affected by natural disasters face a number of challenges, including issues related to housing security and obtaining temporary shelter. Legal assistance and aging services professionals play a critical role in identifying these needs and providing assistance before, during, and after a disaster.

This National Center on Law and Elder Rights (NCLER) training will discuss common housing issues faced by homeowners and renters following a natural disaster, with a focus on how advocates and providers working with older adults can assist them pre-disaster to head off these housing issues. The webcast will also discuss post-disaster resources available to older adults and advocates to help address housing recovery needs following a natural disaster.

Click here to watch a recording of the webinar

Click here to access the PowerPoint slides

Click here to access the FAQ Sheet

To celebrate Black History Month and National Caregivers Day (February 18th), National Center on Law and Elder Rights (NCLER) interviewed Dr. Donna Benton of the University of Southern California’s Leonard Davis School of Gerontology. In this brief video interview, Dr. Benton discusses her work supporting Black caregivers, the importance of caregiving in the Black community, and strategies for advocates who wish to better support their Black older adult clients. She also talks about the need for legal assistance in advance planning and addressing issues involving housing scams in the Black community.

Donna Benton, PhD, is a Research Associate Professor of Gerontology at the USC Leonard Davis School of Gerontology. She received her graduate training in clinical psychology from the California School of Professional Psychology and was a Gero-psychological postdoctoral fellow at USC/Rancho Los Amigos Medical Center. Benton is the Director of the USC Family Caregiver Support Center (FCSC) and the Los Angeles Caregiver Resource Center (LACRC). She has over 30 years of experience in providing direct service, advocacy and programs for families caring for persons with dementia. She was appointed to the CA Master Plan for Aging Stakeholder Advisory Commission and the CA Commission on Aging (CCOA). Her research focus is on the development of online evidence-based interventions for family caregivers to improve mental and physical health and wellbeing and prevention of elder mistreatment. She also serves as a mentor to students interested in advocacy for caregivers

Watch a video recording of the interview here