People in the news, Dec. 2. Civitas Senior Living announces leadership transition. Cooper Vittitow has been appointed president and CEO of Civitas Senior Living, and company co-founder Wayne Powell is moving into the role of chairman of the board. The moves, which were effective Dec. 1, are part of the organization's succession-planning process. Civitas was founded in 2012 by Powell with Jay Dempsey, managing partner and co-founder. Powell later served as a mentor to Vittitow. Vittitow has more than 18 years of experience in senior living, including serving in roles ranging from executive director to chief operating officer and, most recently, president. "This transition reflects years of thoughtful succession planning," Powell said in a statement. "I was inspired early in life to give seniors a place to call home. Cooper shares that same commitment. His approach to people, operations and long-term thinking makes him the right person to guide Civitas into its next era." Civitas now owns and operates 32 communities across several states, with more than 2,500 employees serving more than 5,000 older adults. Trillium appoints caroline Ottoviani executive director. Caroline Ottoviani has been appointed executive director of The Trillium in Tysons, VA. Ottoviani has almost two decades of experience in senior living, where she has worked as a licensed practical nurse, assisted living licensed administrator, certified dementia practitioner and dementia friendly certified professional. Meadow Ridge announces assisted living, memory care hires. Maura Nemer has been appointed assisted living program director and McKenzie Strang has been appointed memory care programming coordinator at Ridge Crest at Meadow Ridge, a continuing care retirement community in Redding, CT. In her role, Nemer works directly with residents, their families and the assisted living and memory care teams. Strang is trained in habilitation for adults by the Alzheimer's Association and will be starting a master's program in social work at Quinnipiac University in January. JNL Technologies names brian Vitense national sales director. Brian Vitense has been hired as national sales director at JNL Technologies in Ixonia, WI. Vitense has more than 25 years of experience in the senior living technology market. In previous roles, he built and led sales teams at RF Technologies and TekTone. Vitense holds a bachelor's degree in business management and marketing with a minor in psychology. LCS Foundation awards 2 scholarships. Elisabeth Roadcap and Anastasiia Hutsal have been named recipients of the 2025 Ed and Sue Kennedy Scholarship from the LCS Foundation in Des Moines, IA. The scholarship was founded in 2019 to promote the education and professional development of undergraduate and graduate students pursuing degrees in the field of senior living at any college or university. The program is open each year to qualifying students across the country. The next application process will begin in July. Roadcap is a Master of Health Administration candidate at Cornell University and interned at Broadview at Purchase College. She is involved in campus leadership roles, including serving as a graduate assistant for a senior living course, mentoring peers and contributing to Cornell's Health-Conscious podcast. Hutsal is a healthcare management major at Iowa State University and interned at Green Hills Retirement Community. Her leadership in Iowa State's Pay It Forward club has involved planning and leading service trips to nine US cities, where she coordinated volunteer efforts to support diverse populations through various nonprofits. CALA honors executive director, department director. Brandy McCauley, executive director at The Palms at Bonaventure in Ventura, CA, has received the Palm Springs, CA-based California Assisted Living Association's Outstanding Executive Director Award. Also, Jorge Escobar, the maintenance director at The Village at Sherman Oaks in Sherman Oaks, CA, has been named Outstanding Department Director. CALA presents its annual Excellence in Service Awards to honor individuals who, on any given day in CALA-member communities across the state, step beyond their job descriptions to uplift residents, support teammates and lead with strength. McCauley has 20 years of experience in senior living, including 10 with Integral Senior Living. Escobar has been a part of The Village at Sherman Oaks team for almost two decades. Presbyterian Senior Living inducts 5 into Chairman's Circle. Charles E. Alexander, John J. Bartko and Mary Kay Gentry-Bartko, Elizabeth S. Browne and Tai F. Eng have been inducted into Dillsburg, PA-based Presbyterian Senior Living's Chairman's Circle. Founded in 1988, the Chairman's Circle honors individuals deemed to have donated generously of their time, talent and treasure to further PSL's mission and to have made a unique contribution to PSL's success. No more than five new members are inducted each year, and nominations are submitted by PSL board members, executive directors, employees and other stakeholders. Send your personnel news to Lois Bowers at [email protected]. High-quality color headshots are welcomed but not required.

Civitas Senior Living has acquired two senior living communities in East Texas.