Lifelong Learning Institutes, or "LLIs", are called by many names, but each is a unique organization reflecting the needs and goals of its sponsoring campus and participants from the local community.

The first known LLI was called the Institute for Retired Professionals, created in 1962 in New York City under the sponsorship of the New School for Social Research. During subsequent years, the idea spread, primarily by word of mouth with little media attention. In 1988, twenty-four LLIs collaborated with Elderhostel, Inc. to form the Elderhostel Institute Network, with a mission to strengthen and support the effectiveness of their programs and spread the LLI concept to new communities.

Today, the Network links independent programs at institutions of higher learning across North America. LLIs are working well at institutions large and small, private and public, and in communities both urban and rural. LLI sponsors include Auburn University, Duke University, Harvard University, and many other state universities; liberal arts colleges such as Hope College in Michigan and College of Notre Dame in Maryland; and community colleges like Lincoln Land Community College in Illinois and Cape Cod Community College in Massachusetts.

LLIs are different from Elderhostel programs.
When most people talk about Elderhostel programs, they are thinking of the well-known model which attracts older adults from afar to visit campus for a week or so and take one-three mini-courses, usually taught by members of the faculty. These Elderhostel programs are marketed nationally through the Elderhostel catalog.

In contrast, an LLI offers to local adults the chance to be involved in ongoing academic programs that are geared specifically to their interests.

The Elderhostel Institute Network (EIN) is a voluntary association of LLIs, funded by Elderhostel, Inc., a non-profit organization dedicated to providing educational opportunities for older adults.

EIN exists to provide information, promote communications and encourage the development of new LLIs. EIN does not prescribe fees or approve curriculum; those decisions are made by each LLI independently. And because LLIs are for local participants, all advertising and registration are handled locally, by each LLI. These are some ways in which sponsoring an LLI is quite different from sponsoring a residential Elderhostel program.

Many institutions are successfully sponsoring both types of programs: residential Elderhostel programs for the national audience and an Lifelong Learning Institute for the local community.

What is a Lifelong Learning Institute?
Imagine a school without grades or tests, a place where the only prerequisites are an active mind and a desire to learn in a congenial atmosphere. Fill the classrooms with dedicated students of retirement age. They are a community of learners who design their own college-level curriculum according to their own needs and interests, people whose common bonds are intellectual curiosity and the experience of their generation. They share opinions, knowledge, and expertise with humor, creativity and mutual respect.

When classes are over, the lively discussions don't end. The talk spills out to the hallways, the cafeteria, or the student lounge. Younger students passing through are impressed by the vitality of this enthusiastic bunch. Learning is obviously lots of fun.

Pursue learning through your local LLI.