Edward Alan Miller, chair of UMass Boston’s Department of Gerontology, will serve a three-year term on the Gerontological Society of America’s (GSA) leadership team.
Edward Alan Miller, chair of the Department of Gerontology at the University of Massachusetts Boston (UMass Boston), has been elected to a three-year term on the Gerontological Society of America’s (GSA) leadership team. GSA is the oldest and largest organization dedicated to research and practice in aging. Miller will serve as GSA vice president in 2027, president in 2028, and board chair in 2029.
Miller is a researcher at the LeadingAge LTSS Center @UMass Boston and serves on its steering committee. The center, a partnership between LeadingAge and UMass Boston’s Gerontology Institute, was established in 2017.
“Eddie has been a vocal advocate for gerontology at UMass Boston and will take this passion into his leadership role at GSA,” says Michelle Putnam, director of the Gerontology Institute and a GSA fellow. “This is important for all GSA members, particularly at this moment: having someone who knows the history of GSA, has played an active role in it, and seeks to ensure that aging-related research and education continue to advance and grow.”
Miller has been active in GSA for more than 25 years. In 2024, GSA honored him with the prestigious Maxwell A. Pollack Award for Contributions to Healthy Aging, recognizing his work bridging research, policy, and practice, including his tenure as editor-in-chief of the Journal of Aging & Social Policy.
“Eddie is an excellent choice to lead a large, complex, and multidisciplinary organization like GSA,” says Bo Fernall, dean of the Manning College of Nursing and Health Sciences at UMass Boston. “Eddie’s long and successful career as an eminent scholar and leader in gerontology has earned him the respect of both the field and the organization and provides the understanding needed to be an effective leader. Gerontology is inherently a multidisciplinary field, and Eddie epitomizes multidisciplinarity through his own scholarly work, his understanding of the field of gerontology, and through his various leadership roles.”
Miller’s interdisciplinary background includes a PhD in political science and health services organization and policy, along with training in biology, psychology, public affairs, and health policy.
“One of my longstanding beliefs is that ‘all careers are careers in aging,’” Miller says. “The opportunities and challenges of an aging society require contributions from many disciplines—not just those who identify as gerontologists or work directly in aging services. I also hope to strengthen connections across GSA’s sections and scholarly communities and to help bring together researchers who might not otherwise have opportunities to collaborate.”
As GSA vice president in 2027, Miller will assist the GSA president, learning and preparing to lead the organization. As president in 2028, he’ll serve as GSA’s leading spokesperson, partnering with the board and CEO to set the group’s strategic direction. The following year, as chair of the board, he’ll preside over all meetings of the board of directors.
“I have enormous respect for the people who have served GSA in these leadership roles before me,” Miller says. “Seeing what they accomplished has been deeply motivating. It’s humbling to be considered among this notable group.”