Colette Thayer

ABOUT

Colette Thayer, Ph.D., is senior director at AARP Research where she leads a team of experts focused on financial resilience and health security issues. Her team conducts studies on financial issues such as planning for retirement, building saving and managing debt, navigating work/jobs, preventing fraud, and understanding Social Security as well as on health security issues such as accessing health care, enrolling in Medicare, engaging in healthy living, providing caregiving, and maintaining brain health. Thayer’s work supports the mission of AARP by helping decision-makers, thought leaders, and others understand the opinions, experiences, wants, and needs of people ages 50 and over. 

Previously at AARP, Thayer conducted brand research and managed opinion research on a wide variety of topics, including attitudes about aging, personal fulfillment, social isolation, and economic security issues. Her studies have been cited in Congressional testimony and quoted in the New York Times, the Washington Post, the Wall Street Journal, and other major media outlets. 

Before joining AARP, Thayer conducted evaluation research at Fannie Mae Foundation. Prior to that, she provided evaluation and program design consultation to nonprofit organizations and foundations.

She holds a doctorate in public administration from George Washington University, a master’s in public administration from New York University and a bachelor’s in sociology from Oberlin College. 

CONTACT

Email: CThayer@aarp.org

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/colette-thayer-8734737/

X: https://x.com/colette_thayer

For media inquiries call 202-434-2560 or e-mail media@aarp.org.