Joycelyn “JJ” Jones strolled into the classroom, sat at her desk, turned on her computer, opened the internet, and found her Facebook page.
She joined several other senior citizens in Room 211 at Raintree Hall, located on the campus of Indiana University Northwest in Gary. Here, seniors 55 and older attend free classes to enrich their lives, further their education, or learn new skills in our ever-evolving society.
Welcome to Senior University, a longstanding program at IUN offering courses such as Smartphones 101, Introduction to Computers, Email and Internet, The Changing World of Medicare, Drawing and Photography, Retirement Finance, and Personal Health Records.
“I’ve been using a computer for a while, but I didn’t always know what I was doing,” said Jones, a military veteran from Gary. “These classes help me figure out what I didn’t know. I’ve learned more than I thought I would, that’s for sure.”
Jones is a student at Ivy Tech Community College in Gary, with hopes of opening her own electrician business someday. She first wants to improve her computer skills and Facebook presence, for marketing and organizing reasons, at Senior University.
“Look at you, you’re Facebooking!” said Chelsea Whittington, the class instructor told a classroom of seniors on a weekday evening. “You don’t have to have a thousand friends on Facebook. You don’t have to like everyone else’s posts. And you don’t have to use it every day. But you DO need to protect yourself and your privacy.”
“It all depends on your privacy settings, so we’re going to talk about this subject tonight,” said Whittington, who’s been a Senior University instructor for many years.
I’ve been a Facebook user for 10 years, creating thousands of posts, yet I still learned new things from her class, which taught seniors how to customize their Facebook page, communicate with family and friends and protect their personal information. They also were given the opportunity to learn about other social media platforms, including Instagram, LinkedIn and Twitter.
“I wanted to learn things about social media that I didn’t know,” said Susan Anderson-Rivera, of Merrillville. “This is my fourth class here. I’ve already taken classes on Microsoft Word, smartphones and a business class.”
The Introduction to Smartphones class teaches seniors how to download apps, check email messages, send texts, customize settings, and much more. I’ve heard nothing but positive reviews about this course, and many other ones offered to seniors at no charge. Grant money typically funds the program.
Last year, a steering committee of senior citizens was formed to determine which classes might attract the most interest.
“They helped us figure out which classes should be priorities,” said Ellen Szarleta, director of the Center for Urban and Regional Excellence at IUN, which oversees the program. “We learned that there are many seniors who want to learn new skills involving computers or the internet, or to protect themselves against scams and privacy invasion.”
There are not enough opportunities in our region for seniors to interact with professional instructors to learn new skills and to interact with each other in this type of setting, she noted. Some of the participants are in their 80s and 90s, proving that learning is an ageless endeavor.
“In the last year, this program has picked up quite a bit, mostly from word of mouth and, yes, from Facebook,” Szarleta said as seniors learned how to adjust the privacy settings on their Facebook account.
“How can we stop someone from posting something X-rated on our page?” one older man asked Whittington. “I don’t need none of that going on.”
Whittington explained to the class step by step how to avoid this from happening.
“I didn’t know it was that easy,” the older man replied.
Last year, 188 seniors from 19 Northwest Indiana communities attended classes at Senior University, focusing on four areas of education – finance, health and wellness, arts and culture, and computers and technology. Since the program began in 2012, classes have also taken place in locations frequented by older populations of residents, including senior centers and community buildings.
The class on Medicare provides clear information, helpful checklists and pertinent timelines to help participants determine the right type of plan to fit their lives. The class on personal health records is taught by IUN nursing students, who provide step-by-step guidance for creating both electronic and hard copy versions of their health history.
I didn’t realize how many classes were offered here. Not only internet-related classes, including step-by-step instructions how to create an email address, create secure passwords and attach documents or photos, but also classes on recreational interests or simply for fun.
In April, the university will offer a three-part blended workshop on chair yoga and low-impact aerobics. And also a class titled, “History of the Vocalist in Jazz,” a two-part workshop featuring the early 1900s, and the influences of Louis Armstrong, Bing Crosby, Billie Holiday, Ella Fitzgerald and current era jazz singers.
Pam Mandich, of Merrillville, attended a two-part class in November on smartphone usage.
“I actually knew what the instructor was talking about. However, there were several people who did not,” she told me. “One lady did not know her own phone number.”
“There were some tips I felt were helpful, so then I explained them to my husband,” Mandich said. “It was worth the time. I learned more about my phone, and it became less intimidating to me.”
Registration is required for all Senior University programs. For more information or to register, call (219) 980-6907, email Amanda Smith at ams43@iun.edu, or visit www.iun.edu/cure/ways-we-engage/outreach.htm.
