Research has shown that a key for healthy living for seniors is to keep their minds active. But that’s not all.
`It’s also very important to have social interaction,` said Jo-Ellen Unger, the executive director of the Academy for Lifelong Learning in Saratoga Springs.
A.L.L. marries those ideas by offering a variety of study groups and gatherings. Sponsored by Empire State College, A.L.L. is comprised of seniors who decide what kind of classes and activities they want to take part in. This fall, offerings include Midful Doodling, Secret Lives of the First Ladies, Connect with Tech, Religion’s Attempt to Control Women’s Lives, Interpretive Hikes at Moreau State Park and many more.
Seniors pay $250 for an annual full membership to A.L.L., which entitles them to enroll in up to three study groups in both the fall and spring terms. In addition, they’re invited to all special events and programs. It’s a chance, Unger said, to `nourish your body, nourish your mind` — the theme for 2012-2013, A.L.L.’s 20th anniversary.
Started in 1992, ALL draws members from around the Capital District, most older than 50. Full memberships aren’t the only option; people can be members for just the fall or the spring, and they can be associate members, which lets them attend ALL’s social events but not study groups.
Pat Davis heard about A.L.L. for years from her mom, who was one of ALL’s founding members. She couldn’t wait to try it out herself when she retired.
She wasn’t disappointed.
`There’s such a wide range of classes,` she said. `It’s a chance to meet people who are interested in the same things you are. You make friends.`
Davis is taking conversational Italian in the fall and is part of a group that takes trips to the theater. She has her eye on a paddling group in the future.
Lou Tirelli, the chair of A.L.L.’s curriculum committee, joined A.L.L. when he retired in 2004 and his wife bought him a membership. An engineer, Tirelli had always enjoyed drawing, so he’s taken part in the doodling study group. The leader, he said, `gives us a little help, some suggestions,` but the class is low pressure.
That’s true, he added, of all of A.L.L.’s offerings. There are no tests or grades, `no degree hanging at the end.`
`You get out of it what you put into it,` he said.
He’s gone on hikes and taken history classes, as well as attended some social events. `I’ve met some people I’m still hanging out with,` he said.
A.L.L. courses typically attract 180 to 210 people each term, but class sizes are kept small to encourage discussion. That’s another way A.L.L. differs from a traditional classroom setting; discussion is encouraged and appreciated. If a class runs for two hours, the speaker will traditionally talk for no longer than 90 minutes, leaving the rest of the time for questions and answers.
`We try to make it interactive,` Tirelli said. `We have a lot of academics and worldly people. They love to have discussions.`
A lot of the discussion this fall will center on the the `Nourish Your Body, Nourish Your Mind` theme. A number of special events are planning, like a trip to a local farm that makes its own cheese, talks by experts in the fields of food and nutrition and a food forum.
It’s an exciting chance to celebrate a program that really is unmatched in the Capital District, according to Unger.
`Members decide everything that happens. We’re really unique in that respect,` she said.
ALL is also unusual in that it offers daytime classes and runs only during the spring and fall, a nod to those who spend their summers or winters elsewhere. As the times have changed, so have ALL’s offerings, with an emphasis on technology and other relevant topics.
Unger said members regularly fill out surveys about what they like best about ALL. The academic offerings come first, but `the social aspect came up right behind it.`
With that in mind, ALL is kicking off the fall semester with a brunch social and orientation on Friday, Sept. 7, at 10 a.m. in Room 143 at SUNY Empire State College, 113 West Ave., Saratoga Springs. Study group leaders will be available from 9:45 to 10 a.m., and there will be information on special interest groups for topics such as tennis, bridge, gardening and cross country skiing.
Unger said ALL is a great way for people who are new to the community to meet others. Even those who have lived here for years are bound to make friends through ALL.
`I’d definitely tell people to give it a chance,` Tirelli agreed. `You meet a lot of great people.`
ALL’s website has its fall brochure, which lists all of the study groups offered and information on how to register. Find it at www.esc.edu/ALL or call ALL at 587-2100.
