May 2012

 

The OLLI at Boise State University decided that one way to "give back" to its host institution as well as strengthen ties to it is to support university faculty who need a small grant to do research. OLLI members initiated an Osher Institute Faculty Research Grant program funded by generous contributions from members and community partners. The OLLI raised $16,000 which was divided into four $4,000
grants. The grants were distributed to faculty in Theatre Arts, Biological Sciences, and Electrical and Computer Engineering from a field of 23 proposals by faculty members from departments across disciplines.  Read more about this innovative program at the Idaho Statesman website . . .


- submitted by Ellie McKinnon, Director of the OLLI at Boise State University.

We know that many people who move to our area want to know all about their adopted home, so we offer courses and lectures that provide them with information about the Southern Appalachians. One of our most successful (and on-going) courses is called An Appalachian Sampler. It is an eight-week course that, each week, offers members a different aspect of our region. We've had outside speakers and performers come in to talk about the geography and geology of the area, music and dance (we even had the Bailey Mountain Cloggers perform, who have won the national clogging title 23 times!), literature of the South, arts and crafts of the area, the Cherokee--and much, much more. So I'm "tooting our horn" about the new Speakers Series. The event will be free and open to our members as well as to the Asheville community, so I'm expecting standing room only!  Learn more about the Appalachian Summer Author Speakers Series.

Mac Rawson, President of the OLLI at University of Georgia, displays a proclamation presented to the OLLI by the Mayor of Athens, Nancy Denson. The Mayor  attended OLLI@UGA's Volunteer & Presenter Appreciation Social on April 11 to present the proclamation designating the week of April 9-13 OLLI@UGA Week in Athens. The proclamation noted the important role OLLI plays in helping adults over 50 remain mentally, physically, and socially active, thereby contributing more to the Athens area community.

-submitted by Katy Crapo, OLLI at the University of Georgia

One hundred years ago, it wasn't just the rare four-way presidential election that took people by storm. In March of 1912, an exhibition of American painter (and Delaware native) Howard Pyle's work at the DuPont Building in downtown Wilmington drew crowds five to six people deep. So thick were the crowds at the exhibition, which followed Pyle's untimely death in November of the previous year, that a woman was asked to remove her hatpin or walk with her head tilted, for fear that the crush of people might cause the pin to skewer one of Pyle's artworks. One "ragged and tousled" little boy, questioned as to why he was in line a second time, responded, "Can't you see 'em twicet?"

Susan Yelton, immediate past president of OLLI at Florida State University, has been making headlines in recent months for OLLI and for her work as a volunteer in the Tallahassee area.

In February, Yelton was selected as one of the Tallahassee Democrat's 2012 "25 Women You Need to Know." In April she was honored as the Tallahassee Democrat's Volunteer of the Year in the Education category-representing lifelong learning and students over 50--a unique choice for a contest that typically honors public school volunteers who serve youngsters. She won these recognitions despite tough competition, vying against over 180 nominees in the "Women You Need to Know" contest and 44 candidates in the Volunteer of the Year contest.

 

As many of you know, "citizen science" has been receiving increasing interest from both researchers and citizens interested in participating in research. It is particularly suited to the kinds of studies that require multiple observation sites, out of doors, over periods of time. And the concept is one that is often compatible with OLLI goals -- an activity that can be done in a group (special interest group?) by people with no previous scientific training or background.

Here is a link to an article by the National Science Foundation with links to several ongoing projects that have received NSF support. Local chapters of Audubon or other nature organizations may also be looking for OLLI partners.