College of Human Services helps aging process

Everyone ages - ASU's College of Human Services helps us do it better

“Years may wrinkle the skin, but to give up enthusiasm wrinkles the soul.” – Samuel Ullman

There’s no lack of enthusiasm within Arizona State University’s College of Human Services for helping residents of metropolitan Phoenix make the most of the aging process. In fact, the college recently introduced new bachelor’s and master’s degree programs in aging and lifespan development.

“The aging of the baby boom generation will have a significant impact on public and private institutions of all sizes, and these new degree programs will help prepare professionals in a variety of fields to address those challenges and opportunities,” says Kathleen Waldron, interim director of the School of Aging and Lifespan Development.

But this curricular advancement is just one part of the story. Talented faculty members and students are lending their expertise to a range of initiatives across the Valley of the Sun to encourage healthy aging.

One of the college’s most visible programs is the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute, funded through a $1 million endowment from the Bernard Osher Foundation. The Osher Institute provides stimulating, university-quality learning experiences for adults who want to explore topics from computers to politics to poetry.

Classes are taught by a mixture of ASU faculty, both current and emeritus, and community scholars. “The community scholars bring a lifetime of knowledge to their classes. Some teach topics related to their career; for others it’s an opportunity to share their passion about a particular subject with others,” says Diane Gruber, Osher Lifelong Learning Institute director.

The Institute’s slate of classes, workshops and lectures, which already spans metropolitan Phoenix from Buckeye and Surprise to Mesa and Florence, is set for further expansion. Collaboration with the city of Tempe has established “Tempe Connections” course offerings starting this fall at the Tempe Library. The Institute also has formed partnerships with Arizona Opera and the Phoenix Art museum to offer joint programming.

An Osher Institute program enabling retirees to express their passion for community involvement is the Legacy Leadership Project. Volunteers living in Sun City Grand and Sun City Festival recently participated in an intensive two-week training session and then became public relations consultants for two nonprofit groups, the Maryvale Revitalization Corp. and Jobs for Arizona Graduates. Plans call for the Legacy Leadership Project to expand and assist more community organizations.

“We’re seeing people moving into a very different type of retirement experience these days,” Gruber says. “They may still be interested in their club time and golf time, but there’s another layer. They want meaningful engagement in the community, and they want their engagement to utilize and build on the skills they’ve developed throughout their lives.”

Even travel has evolved for retirees. They may want time at the beach, but they also want to learn about the world around them. The Osher Lifelong Learning Institute has formed a partnership with TraveLearn to offer tours to locations including Italy and Greece, led by knowledgeable guides.

Back at ASU’s West campus, which houses the College of Human Services, retirees and traditional-age college students are working together on research and instructional projects to benefit local communities. Communication studies professor Vincent Waldron’s community research team (CRT) has studied the educational needs and preferences of Sun City Grand residents. Team members worked with Waldron to publish an article about the process.

“The idea behind CRT is to build intergenerational connections, provide meaningful service learning opportunities, and involve talented retired people in the university’s teaching and research missions,” Vincent Waldron says.

CRT has yielded productive side effects. Two of the retirees served as educational consultants to Vincent Waldron’s Communication and Aging class. They shared their experiences through class discussions and podcasts and by helping to choose films that accurately convey aging-related themes.

Human Services students also are participating in psychology professor David Coon’s longevity study, conducted in collaboration with the Sun Health Research Institute Center for Healthy Aging. Researchers are interviewing adults from their 50s up past the age of 100, to gain a better understanding of the many factors involved in healthy aging.

“Taking part in the project has given me the opportunity to have greater face-to-face interactions with older adults in the community,” says Maureen Keaveny, who is pursuing a graduate certificate in gerontology through Human Services. “The information obtained from this project will increase our understanding of what it takes to age successfully.”

“It’s extremely beneficial to our students to have this type of collaboration among ASU’s colleges,” Kathleen Waldron says. (Coon, co-principal investigator for the longevity study, is a faculty member in the New College of Interdisciplinary Arts and Sciences, also located on ASU’s West campus.)

Kathleen Waldron knows a thing or two about collaboration; she reaches out to the community in countless ways. Because she has developed a reputation as an expert in aging and other family issues, she is regularly contacted by community members looking for assistance with an aging relative, as well as by reporters from local and national media outlets seeking her take on developments in aging and lifespan development.

Her efforts also include leading a support group for West campus employees who meet monthly to share concerns and solutions related to issues with their own aging relatives. She coordinates the popular Conference on Aging, held most recently on ASU’s West campus in March 2008, and is collaborating with several community organizations to offer a new conference, scheduled for February 7, 2009, that will focus on intergenerational communication among family members.

“This ties in with my major interest area, family issues and how they are impacted by aging,” Kathleen Waldron says. “Care-giving concerns, family dynamics, and the ways social policies affect aging individuals and their families are just a few of the issues that will have a growing effect on society in the years to come.”

Thanks to the work of dedicated faculty, students and staff in the College of Human Services, people throughout the Valley and beyond will be better prepared to address these issues and make the most of their lives as they experience the aging process.

Information about ASU’s new degree programs in aging and lifespan development may be found at http://chs.asu.edu/ald/. For details about the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute, visit http://lifelonglearning.asu.edu/.



There’s no lack of enthusiasm within Arizona State University’s College of Human Services for helping residents of metropolitan Phoenix make the most of the aging process. In fact, the college recently introduced new bachelor’s and master’s degree programs in aging and lifespan development.

“The aging of the baby boom generation will have a significant impact on public and private institutions of all sizes, and these new degree programs will help prepare professionals in a variety of fields to address those challenges and opportunities,” says Kathleen Waldron, interim director of the School of Aging and Lifespan Development.

But this curricular advancement is just one part of the story. Talented faculty members and students are lending their expertise to a range of initiatives across the Valley of the Sun to encourage healthy aging.

One of the college’s most visible programs is the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute, funded through a $1 million endowment from the Bernard Osher Foundation. The Osher Institute provides stimulating, university-quality learning experiences for adults who want to explore topics from computers to politics to poetry.

Classes are taught by a mixture of ASU faculty, both current and emeritus, and community scholars. “The community scholars bring a lifetime of knowledge to their classes. Some teach topics related to their career; for others it’s an opportunity to share their passion about a particular subject with others,” says Diane Gruber, Osher Lifelong Learning Institute director.

The Institute’s slate of classes, workshops and lectures, which already spans metropolitan Phoenix from Buckeye and Surprise to Mesa and Florence, is set for further expansion. Collaboration with the city of Tempe has established “Tempe Connections” course offerings starting this fall at the Tempe Library. The Institute also has formed partnerships with Arizona Opera and the Phoenix Art museum to offer joint programming.

An Osher Institute program enabling retirees to express their passion for community involvement is the Legacy Leadership Project. Volunteers living in Sun City Grand and Sun City Festival recently participated in an intensive two-week training session and then became public relations consultants for two nonprofit groups, the Maryvale Revitalization Corp. and Jobs for Arizona Graduates. Plans call for the Legacy Leadership Project to expand and assist more community organizations.

“We’re seeing people moving into a very different type of retirement experience these days,” Gruber says. “They may still be interested in their club time and golf time, but there’s another layer. They want meaningful engagement in the community, and they want their engagement to utilize and build on the skills they’ve developed throughout their lives.”

Even travel has evolved for retirees. They may want time at the beach, but they also want to learn about the world around them. The Osher Lifelong Learning Institute has formed a partnership with TraveLearn to offer tours to locations including Italy and Greece, led by knowledgeable guides.

Back at ASU’s West campus, which houses the College of Human Services, retirees and traditional-age college students are working together on research and instructional projects to benefit local communities. Communication studies professor Vincent Waldron’s community research team (CRT) has studied the educational needs and preferences of Sun City Grand residents. Team members worked with Waldron to publish an article about the process.

“The idea behind CRT is to build intergenerational connections, provide meaningful service learning opportunities, and involve talented retired people in the university’s teaching and research missions,” Vincent Waldron says.

CRT has yielded productive side effects. Two of the retirees served as educational consultants to Vincent Waldron’s Communication and Aging class. They shared their experiences through class discussions and podcasts and by helping to choose films that accurately convey aging-related themes.

Human Services students also are participating in psychology professor David Coon’s longevity study, conducted in collaboration with the Sun Health Research Institute Center for Healthy Aging. Researchers are interviewing adults from their 50s up past the age of 100, to gain a better understanding of the many factors involved in healthy aging.

“Taking part in the project has given me the opportunity to have greater face-to-face interactions with older adults in the community,” says Maureen Keaveny, who is pursuing a graduate certificate in gerontology through Human Services. “The information obtained from this project will increase our understanding of what it takes to age successfully.”

“It’s extremely beneficial to our students to have this type of collaboration among ASU’s colleges,” Kathleen Waldron says. (Coon, co-principal investigator for the longevity study, is a faculty member in the New College of Interdisciplinary Arts and Sciences, also located on ASU’s West campus.)

Kathleen Waldron knows a thing or two about collaboration; she reaches out to the community in countless ways. Because she has developed a reputation as an expert in aging and other family issues, she is regularly contacted by community members looking for assistance with an aging relative, as well as by reporters from local and national media outlets seeking her take on developments in aging and lifespan development.

Her efforts also include leading a support group for West campus employees who meet monthly to share concerns and solutions related to issues with their own aging relatives. She coordinates the popular Conference on Aging, held most recently on ASU’s West campus in March 2008, and is collaborating with several community organizations to offer a new conference, scheduled for February 7, 2009, that will focus on intergenerational communication among family members.

“This ties in with my major interest area, family issues and how they are impacted by aging,” Kathleen Waldron says. “Care-giving concerns, family dynamics, and the ways social policies affect aging individuals and their families are just a few of the issues that will have a growing effect on society in the years to come.”

Thanks to the work of dedicated faculty, students and staff in the College of Human Services, people throughout the Valley and beyond will be better prepared to address these issues and make the most of their lives as they experience the aging process.

Information about ASU’s new degree programs in aging and lifespan development may be found at http://chs.asu.edu/ald/. For details about the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute, visit http://lifelonglearning.asu.edu/.