University of St. Thomas Selim Center for Lifelong Learning Director Bob Shoemake spoke to the Minnesota Star Tribune about how older Minnesotans are embracing education to stay mentally sharp, socially connected, and civically engaged.
From the story:
As the U.S. population continues to gray and people live longer, the crop of older adult students will probably grow, too. The Population Reference Bureau expects the number of U.S. residents age 65 and older to reach 82 million (or 23% of the total population) in 2050, up from 58 million (17%) in 2022. ...
The benefits to older adults – and the larger community – go well beyond learning. Group courses create a sense of purpose and community for participants. Furthermore, research shows engaging your brain and making social connections can benefit mental and physical well-being, which can boost happiness, prevent loneliness and depression, and help ward off dementia. ...
Some lifelong learning programs aim to foster intergenerational learning. Toward that end, WSU’s Senior University has no age requirement, and St. Thomas’ Selim Center for Lifelong Learning and OLLI are flexible on their age requirements. ...
Last year, Selim Center students for the first time participated in an annual undergraduate civil rights study tour to Alabama and Tennessee.
On the trip, “one older adult was a nurse and one of the undergrads was a nursing student and they bonded over health care in the South,” said Bob Shoemake, director of the Selim Center, which is one of the state’s oldest such programs. “That’s the kind of thing where you can build these bridges and learn from each other to make a difference in the world.”
The University of St. Thomas and the U’s Twin Cities and Duluth campuses are designated age-friendly universities, meaning they follow tenets encouraging the participation and acceptance of older students.
