The Cupertino Courier

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Never too old to learn and have fun doing it

By Erin Hussey

While the majority of people are slaving away in cubicles, a number of lucky retirees are out enjoying life. Some are out on the green, many are traveling and a few are at the UC Santa Cruz Extension building on Bubb Road. But the seniors aren't the ones lecturing; they're the students.

"It's a wonderful program, especially for retirees who don't want to go into the classroom and take tests," Sylvia Lianides, retired medical professor, said. "You meet all these people that are so interested in what's going on in the world, and you also develop new ideas about what you would like to do," Lianides added.

In addition to the UCSC Extension Osher Lifelong Learning Institute, a number of other universities and colleges throughout the United States offer the OLLI classes. The Osher Foundation, which was created in the 1977 by Bernard and Barbro Osher, founded OLLI in the 1990s. The courses are designed for adults over 55 who share a joy of learning and an active intellectual curiosity about the world today.

"These are people that ask good questions, and no one is sleeping in the back of the room," Cathy Sandeen, UCSC extension dean, said. "I think it's the best of what you experience in college."

The Osher program at the UCSC Extension offers a variety of courses throughout the year, such as the modern American presidency, poetry, watercolor, contemporary literature and the Israel and Arab world. The classes are taught by working professionals, field experts and university professors.

"The instructor we have here, he's like a walking encyclopedia," Lianides said, referring to Ismail Agayev, whose subject is the Middle East. "I can't believe how much he knows."

David Rader, who is teaching the American presidency course at OLLI and was also a professor at San Jose State, said his senior students are much more engaged.

"They are more enthusiastic about the topics, and across the board they are just more into the class," he said.

In addition to learning new things, becoming more informed and meeting new people, several OLLI students said the classes keep their minds active.

"I like the intellectual stimulation," Ed Swartz, a retired junior high school teacher, said. "A lot of my friends are out there playing golf, but everyone has what makes them happy, and this is what makes me happy."

According to a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine, older adults who regularly participate in mentally stimulating activities are more than 63 percent less likely to suffer from cognitive decline.

"For their mental acuity, it's critical," Rader said. "Being 63 myself, I believe that."

The majority of the OLLI classes are held in the afternoon and meet once a week for two to four weeks.

"The shame of the thing is that there aren't more people taking these classes," Swartz said. "People should not be intimated in any way. It's a very easygoing atmosphere. I think it's what education truly is: It's questioning, it's the learning without having to worry about tests and all that. You feel free."

For more information on the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at the UCSC Extension call 408.861.3876 or visit www.ucsc-extension.edu/OLLI.