LLI CELEBRATIONS & CONGRATULATIONS

September 2008

BOLLI REACHES NEW MEMBER HIGH
2008 was a remarkable year for the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at Tufts University in Medford, Massachusetts. Not only did they reach the 500 member level required by the Osher Foundation, they topped that by hosting 600 members before the fiscal year ended. Well done, OLLI!

20th ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION
The University of Minnesota, Duluth is celebrating their "Roaring Twenties" with a year long celebration after 20 years of University for Seniors. Each month will have a different celebration. The opening is September 6th at the University with Dr. Arthur Peterson (brother of their president, Gertrude Jacobson and who helped us start our organization). He will speak on "Learning in Retirement and our Successor Generations". In October they entertain the Minnesota Lifelong Learning group, with a train ride up part of the North Shore of Lake Superior. In October there is a tour to New York theater, and in the Spring a trip to Iceland, with a study class of Iceland prior to the expedition. It truly will be an exciting year. This coming fall they have 46 study classes offered, with over 400 members, and over two-thirds of the classes are peer-led. Congratulations, University for Seniors.

CARNEGIE MELLON AWARDED SECOND GRANT
Congratulations to the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburg. With over 1,500 members, and another 500plus people on their waiting list, they have been awarded a second $100,000 grant from the Bernard Osher Foundation.

GRANITE STATE COLLEGE AWARDED OSHER GRANT
Granite State College was recently awarded a $1 million gift from the Bernard Osher Foundation to establish an endowment in support of its Osher Lifelong Learning Institute. A member-based organization, OLLI provides adults age 50 and over with the opportunity to pursue new knowledge simply for the love of learning. The Bernard Osher Foundation is headquartered in San Francisco.

“It is an honor to accept this award from the Osher Foundation,” said Granite State College president, Karol LaCroix. “This level of support for the program demonstrates the importance of encouraging lifelong learning and allows us to remain true to our mission of providing programs throughout the state for adults of all ages.”

OLLI at Granite State College began in 2004 with an initial $100,000 grant from the Osher Foundation and has continued with subsequent $100,000 grants in each year since.

Through this ongoing support OLLI has continued to be a source of intellectually stimulating lifelong learning opportunities for New Hampshire residents age 50 and over.

OLLI now has more than 500 members across New Hampshire and offers more than 60 different classes during two eight-week sessions each year. Classes are held at sites in Concord, Manchester, Exeter and Conway. Class subjects are developed in direct response to the expressed interests of OLLI members.

“The focus of OLLI is on the joy of learning with programs rich in content, shared interests and life experiences,” said Virginia Martin, Director of OLLI at Granite State College. “OLLI members choose the topics they wish to explore – so the curriculum is diverse. Popular topics include current events, the arts, world cultures and religions, film, politics, history, literature, social sciences, technology and the environment.”

OLLI at Granite State College is one of 119 Osher Lifelong Learning Institutes located across the country.