Expertise 

• Assisted Living Administration
• Continuous Quality Improvement

Education

• MS in Gerontology, Virginia Commonwealth University 
• MA in Psychology, College of William and Mary 
• BS in Psychology, Hollins University 

Research Interests 

Long-term care organizations with a particular emphasis on the assisted living industry; administration, management and leadership in long-term care; education and training for the long-term care workforce; ageism and aging anxiety in long-term care practice; best practices in long-term care administration related to higher quality of life and higher quality of care for individuals living in these communities. 

Bio

Jennifer Yañez Pryor is the graduate program director for the Department of Gerontology at Virginia Commonwealth University. She also serves as the co-director for the NAB-accredited assisted living administration concentration within the Master of Science in Gerontology program. Jennifer teaches and mentors undergraduate and graduate students in the areas of healthcare management, human resource management and long-term care administration. She has volunteered with the National Association of Long Term Care Administrator Boards (NAB) since 2014, primarily serving in the roles of education committee member, vice chair and chair. At the state level, Jennifer has been an invited participant in ongoing regulatory advisory panel work examining assisted living administrator preparatory processes. In 2023, she received national recognition as a top leader in Virginia by Women We Admire. Jennifer was the co-recipient of the Innovative Research on Aging Gold Award, Mather Institute, 2021 for a research paper on the off-label use of antipsychotic medications in assisted living. She is also the co-host of the Aging for All podcast which strives to bring insightful conversations to listeners by covering engaging and informative topics that are important to all.

Jennifer co-leads a number of popular workforce training programs throughout the year, including a leadership master class series, best practices in long-term care administration and an exam preparation class for the Residential Care Assisted Living (RCAL) national exam. She expects to earn her PhD in Health Services Organizations and Research from Virginia Commonwealth University in 2026. Jennifer holds Masters degrees in Psychology from the College of William and Mary and Gerontology from Virginia Commonwealth University. Jennifer also holds a Post-Baccalaureate Graduate Certificate in Nonprofit Management from Virginia Commonwealth University. She has been a licensed assisted living administrator in the Commonwealth of Virginia since 2014. Jennifer’s personal and professional goal is to challenge the paradigm of the long-term care continuum and promote innovation and development in the long-term care sector to foster inclusiveness, community and awareness of ageism.

Highlights

Invited member to the Vision 2025: University and Senior Housing and Care Symposium to discuss the advancement of the profession of long-term care administration and create a strategy for achieving the vision, 2019-2022

Participated as a regulatory advisory panel member for the Virginia Board of Long-Term Care Administrators to make recommendations regarding the Administrator-in-Training (AIT) process, 2019

Spearheaded the establishment of the Assisted Living Administration Specialty Area as part of the Master’s in Gerontology, 2016

Spearheaded the successful accreditation from the National Association of Long Term Care Administrator Boards for the Masters in Gerontology with the Assisted Living Administration Specialty Area, 2016, 2021

Publications/Projects

Aging for All Podcast and Blogspace (2024)

Inker, J., Pryor, J., Arbogast, C., Op de Beke, M., & Okhravi, H. (2020). "Can you just give us something to help her?!" Off-label antipsychotic medication use in Virginia assisted living facilities. Seniors Housing and Care Journal.

Gendron, T., L., Pryor, J. M., Welleford, E. A. (2016). Lessons learned from a program evaluation of a statewide continuing education program for staff members working in assisted living and adult day care centers in Virginia. Journal of Applied Gerontology, 1-19.

Gendron, T., Pelco, L. E., Pryor, J., Barsness, S., & Seward, L. (2013). A telephone support program for adult day center caregivers: Early Indications of Impact. Journal of Higher Education Outreach and Engagement, 17 (1), 47-60.