CONTINUANCE - Southern Illinois University

Stories and Ideas for Increasing Graduation Rates and WellnessHarper CollegeThere was consensus about the energy that civically engagedolder adults can bring to schools.November 16 - PalatineMark Mrozinski, Dean ofContinuing EducationSuccess StoryThe Community ConsolidatedDistrict 15, serving the Palatinearea, features a program called SeniorExchange. Over the years, retireeslike Joe Arrigo, who visits classroomswith his creative science called FromPeanut Butter to Diamonds. An organicchemist, Arrigo is a walkingadvertisement for science. He spent27 challenging years in industrialresearch, then launched his secondcareer lecturing, writing, and teachingreal-world chemistry. Now heis in his third career, describing theimpact of chemistry to young peopleand helping them learn about scienceas a possible career.DiscussionPresident Kenneth Ender, presidentof Harper College, invited 17education and aging professionalsto Harper’s campus to discuss theissues of health, civic engagement,and high school dropout rates.The participants shared vignettes ofrecent successes in the areas of studentachievement and intergenerationalprogramming. For example,one district related increases inmath scores as a result of a multigenerationalfamily learning program.Through this initiative, thedistrict has increased family partnershipsand connections betweenfamilies and the school. The nextarea of focus for that district will beliteracy efforts and mentoring programsfor middle school students.Discussion naturally transitionedto intergenerational collaborations,and more specifically, how seniorserving organizations are currentlyengaging older adults with today’syouth. Everyone noted the energyand impact that civically engagedolder adults can bring to theprimary and secondary educationenvironment. Several examples werecited that demonstrated this impact.Finally, obstacles and future goalswere discussed. Participants agreedthat lack of coordination betweenorganizations did not allow forthe leveraging of resources, andin many cases, partnerships werereinventing the wheel when areadily available model might savemuch time in planning. Participantsalso noted the lack of resourcesneeded to fulfill legal and regulatoryissues when bringing older adultsinto the educational process.Participants agreed that arepresentative group of educatorsand senior serving organizationsshould be established for thepurposes of collaboration andcoordination of services andprograms. New intergenerationalprograms might be spawned thatwould benefit both youth andolder adults. The local communitycollege is the obvious hub for thisdiscussion. As Harper Collegerecently launched an aggressivestrategic plan focused onstudent success, there is a certainPresident Kenneth Ender“In order for the next generationto earn a middle class wage, apost-secondary education willbe required. Thus, we must doeverything in our power to preparestudents for credentials beyondhigh school. Older adults, throughcivic engagement and service, canfill a vital role in helping studentsprepare for, and succeed in postsecondaryeducation.”confluence of vision, which joinsthe College with primary andsecondary educators, and theuntapped resource that older adultsplay in the educational process.Ideas and Action• Conduct an inventory of allthe volunteer programs andpartnerships among schools andsenior serving organizations inHarper College’s district.• Shift focus from dropout rates tocollege readiness. College readinessmay resonate more strongly withlocal educators.• Review dropout and collegereadiness data for high schooldistricts within Harper’s community.• Explore resource sharingamong schools and senior servingorganizations, specifically withregard to intergenerationalprogramming.• Explore grants to provide resourcesto schools and senior-servingorganizations for assisting with thedevelopment of volunteer programs.http://www.iii.siuc.edu/ 27