Ginny Paulson has thirty years of experience as a program director, grant manager, and trainer in government-funded programs, with the last fourteen at the national level of the aging network. She has served in her current role as the State Health Insurance Assistance Program National Technical Assistance Center (SHIP TA Center) director at Northeast Iowa Area Agency on Aging (NEI3A) since 2014, after having been NEI3A’s Senior Medicare Patrol (SMP) National Resource Center director from 2007 - 2014. 

Prior to these national roles, she worked at the state, regional, and local levels. At the state level, Ginny managed Iowa’s statewide caregiver support and information & assistance programs at the Iowa Association of Area Agencies on Aging (i4a) from 2002 - 2007. In that role, she helped form Iowa’s first Aging and Disability Resource Center, a collaborative effort of Iowa’s aging and disability referrals networks. She also launched new information & referral software statewide. From 1997 – 2002, she worked at Hawkeye Valley Area Agency on Aging (now part of NEI3A), coordinating refugee outreach, caregiver support, information & assistance, and outcome measurement. She began her non-profit career in the field of children and family services. From 1992 – 1997, she managed local and regional childcare information & assistance programs at two community-based organizations in Iowa. 

As the SHIP TA Center director, Ginny ensures that Center goals and objectives are achieved in accordance with ACL policies, manages the overall grant processes, collaborates with leaders of other national resource centers, coordinates Center provision of technical assistance to SHIPs, and monitors the ongoing progress of Center staff and consultants in fulfilling their responsibilities to the project. She oversees the development of the Center’s website, training events, publications, and other online tools. In her national roles, Ginny has supported the launch of three federal data systems. She has written or edited newsletter articles, website content, and other training materials for SMPs and SHIPs, including data reporting manuals, Medicare training manuals, and volunteer risk program management and policy materials. From 2009 – 2014, she served on the national committee that oversaw the development and implementation of the national SHIP and SMP Volunteer Risk and Program Management policies, and she continues to provide technical assistance regarding these policies. Ginny earned a bachelor’s degree of English in 1986 from the College of Saint Benedict, St. Joseph Minnesota.

Emily McDonald leads the programmatic content and customer service strategy and execution across NCOA’s economic security product portfolio. She has 10+ years of experience working in multi-community, rapid-cycle innovation programs for older adults. Prior to joining NCOA she worked at the Center for Social Development at Washington University. Emily received her degrees from Trinity University and the School of Social Work at Washington University in St. Louis.