Sun City Vistoso Institute of Learning in Retirement

PURPOSE.  The object of this club is to provide a broad range of educational opportunities to the members of Sun City Vistoso.  The organization is member-driven, and dedicated to enhancing the lives of its members by providing an environment that leads to learning and lively discussion on topics of interest to its members.  To accomplish this, a variety of courses are offered.  These courses meet 2 hours a week and vary from 4 to 10 weeks in length.  There are two sessions:    8 weeks in the Fall and 10 weeks during the Winter/Spring.  In addition to the courses, there is a weekly "Sampler," which provides an opportunity to learn about a different topic each week from a different presenter.

For those who wonder about what "Institutes of Learning In Retirement" are all about, why they exist, how they got started, here is a brief summary.

Institutes of Learning in Retirement, or "Life-Long Learning Institutes," date back to the 1970s. Some retired professionals in New York City asked the New School to sponsor a special program for them; the idea caught on, nd pretty soon Elderhostel assumed some responsibility for developing new programs.  There are now more than 600 ILRs around the country, affiliated with Elderhostel. These programs have some common problems: (1) Space and Parking; (2) Leadership; (3) Admissions and Quality Control; (4) Curriculum. Many ILRs have received funding from The Osher Institute for Life-Long Learning (The OLLI Program at the U. of Arizona is one example.) Most ILRs are affiliated with a college or university, and use classroom space not otherwise allocated.

A second problem for ILRs is leadership. Some ILRs are fortunate enough to have paid staff, but  ILRs are coordinated by their members, and some have problems once their original, highly enthusiastic founders absent themselves from the scene. Fortunately for most ILRs, new leaders eventually appear, and, while programs wax and wane, ILRs are highly dependent on the creativity of their members.

A few ILRs have "admissions" procedures, often including an initial letter of application, and an "interview," to see what the member can contribute. Some ILRs have to turn down more applicants than they accept. Some ILRs make heavy use of college faculty members for their "core" courses, but all ILRs are dependent on their members for coming up with new courses.  As there are always new and interesting books coming out, new movies, travel adventures, and a variety of political and economic events that seek discussion outlets, the potential for new and exciting ILR courses seems unlimited. Many ILRs make heavy use of retired teachers, a resource that goes on giving. Not infrequently, teachers who were scientists have other scientific or literary or political interests, that they never got to discuss in their classrooms, are skilled at leading discussions, and find that they not only open minds to new ideas, their minds are opened by talking to a group of people of mature years and similar experiences. And of course "Humanities" teachers are likely to want an outlet for their life-long interests. Many people who "worked for a living" are enchanted with the opportunity to explore new ideas, read old books, or launch out into new directions for which they never had time. 

It seems like most of the institutions in our society are going through a "shaking of the foundations." ILRs are no different in this regard, and ILRs need to step back and ask the basic questions: What are we really trying to do?  How can we do a better job of delivering our services? How can we keep our program in the Public Eye, so that new members will come our way? Ask questions of any member of an ILR anywhere, and you are likely to get enthusiastic responses. ILRs fill a need that "people of mature years" have, to get together and discuss issues of lasting interest, issues of personal concerns, and sometimes issues that no one else has the good sense to talk about. Now some forty years old, ILRs fill a need in our society. The only questions are, what can an ILR do for you, and, what can you do for your ILR?

      

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        Site Last Modified Wednesday, May 3,  2012