Dr.  Karen Kopera-Frye is the Biedenharn Endowed Chair in Gerontology and Professor in the Department of Gerontology, Sociology, and Political Science at ULM.  Dr. Kopera-Frye is new to the Department, arriving from the University of Nevada-Reno, School of Social Work in August 2009. 

Dr. Kopera-Frye’s research interests include:  improving long-term care services, especially among rural populations; mental health issues among older adults; health promotion and quality of life among older adults; ethnically diverse elders; kinship care/intergenerational relations; needs assessment/program evaluation; and student service learning.  Dr. Kopera-Frye has served as an evaluator for governmental entities such as Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) and has been involved in grantsmanship for years.  She has published her research in such journals as the International Journal of Aging & Human Development, Family Relations, and Aging and Mental Health.  Dr. Kopera-Frye received the prestigious national Distinguished Teacher award from the Gerontological Society of America, Association for Gerontology in Higher Education for her teaching in gerontology in February 2009.  Dr. Kopera-Frye is a frequent presenter at the Gerontological Society of America, Association for Gerontology in Higher Education, and American Psychological Association conferences. 

Dr. Kopera-Frye is constantly involved in community-university partnership research, and collaborates with national and international researchers.  She welcomes student involvement in her research and teaches primarily graduate level gerontology courses here at ULM.