Academy of the willing: Osher Lifelong Learning Institute sharpens minds while building community

Lucille Salerno knows the value of education. She holds an M.A. from City University of New York and a Ph.D. in social psychology from the University of Missouri. But for Salerno, education is more than letters after a last name or a long college experience. Rather it’s an ongoing process of challenging and sharpening the mind — and it’s a process without an age limit.

Salerno is the director of the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute in Columbia. Funded through the Bernard Osher Foundation and MU Extension, the institute offers courses that encourage continued education for individuals above age 50, or “50 and better,” as Salerno put it. “But we don’t card anyone,” she added with a laugh.

The institute’s course catalog includes an impressive list of classes, 25 total for the fall 2009 semester; from Shakespeare to de Tocqueville to Chinese cuisine, the subjects are detailed and diverse. Salerno teaches a ragtime course during some semesters, a subject she approaches with obvious enthusiasm. “It’s such happy music,” she said. “The left hand keeps the 4-4 rhythm, and the right hand plays a completely different rhythm, putting the accent on the ‘off beat.’ … The right hand makes you want to dance.”

For the ragtime course, Salerno often shows videos through the computer. “YouTube is a wonderful resource,” she said. “You can really see the rhythm of ragtime.” Digital projection is only a part of the high-tech equipment that students and professors use in the Osher facility. Smart boards and computers are available in each classroom, and two of the classrooms are capable of transmitting live feeds that allow professors to telecast their classes to eight library locations and 10 county Extension offices in rural Missouri. Students in the Columbia facility can see and interact with students in the participating locations, and vice versa. During classes, a techie at the Columbia location monitors the digital feed to ensure its quality.

All professors who teach at Osher volunteer their time; some are retired or emeritus MU professors; others currently teach at the university. “The program does have a good reputation, and largely it’s the people who teach here who have created that for us,” Salerno said. She added that there’s a wonderful chemistry between older students and professors who are used to teaching a younger generation that requires more effort to command their attention. “But here, our program is what I call ‘the academy of the willing.’ None of our students have to be here.”

Although interesting courses and top-notch instructors engage students’ curiosities and challenge their thinking, Salerno said the greatest part of the program appears in the community that builds within the facility. “People come for a class, and they discover each other,” she said. “You come here, and suddenly everyone here has walked the earth the same time. They’ve all had the same sort of societal experiences. … And it’s a serendipitous finding. That’s not what you expect.”

The Osher Lifelong Learning Institute is located at 3215-B LeMone Blvd. For more information, call 882-2582 or visit extension.missouri.edu/learnforlife/