Osher Lifelong Learning Institute Renewed For Third Year After Achieving 2009 Membership Goal

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Osher members enjoy a bird watching class at Lake Leatherwood in Eureka Springs

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – The Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at the University of Arkansas Global Campus has secured an extension of its funding for the 2010 fiscal year by reaching its membership goal before the June 30 deadline.

The institute met its goal of 300 members before the end of the 2009 fiscal year, earning the program a renewal of its $100,000 yearly grant from the Bernard Osher Foundation. The grant will help fund the third year of the Institute’s programs and courses for adults age 50 years and older.

“We owe our success to the overwhelming support we have from our members,” said Kathleen Dorn, the institute coordinator. “They make it happen, from hosting a class to participating in committee meetings. We feel sure our program will continue to grow, providing more classes for people who find joy through continued lifelong learning.”

The Bernard Osher Foundation, established in 1977, supports 120 Osher Lifelong Learning Institutes on university and college campuses in 49 states and the District of Columbia and funds the National Resource Center for the Institutes at the University of Southern Maine. The Osher Foundation provides each program with an initial grant of $100,000 for each of three years with an eventual endowment of $1 million should the program demonstrate potential for success and sustainability.

In Fayetteville, the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute offers study groups with classes on a variety of subjects; a lunch program, “Dine & Discover,” with an array of lectures presented while participants eat at local venues; a field trip program that takes participants to educational sites in northwest Arkansas; and a travel series that sends groups on trips outside the state.

The Bernard Osher Foundation administration was impressed with the Global Campus’s renewal proposal for the institute and thought the program had taken volunteer involvement to a new level. “Mary Bitterman (Foundation President), Mr. Osher, and I congratulate you, your colleagues, and your remarkable volunteers on your many accomplishments over the past year,” said David Blazevich, senior program officer for the Bernard Osher Foundation, in a letter sent to the Fayetteville institute. “Bravo!”

The institute courses are noncredit, with no tests, grades or papers to write.Courses and events cover thought-provoking and wide-ranging topics on local and worldwide issues, ranging from global events to the arts and from history to health science research. For more information on the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute, visit http://olli.uark.edu/index.html.