Seniors head back to the classroom without ever leaving home
Kathy Leeds grows increasingly animated as she describes the courses she is taking this fall, including classes in current events, art and literature.
But Leeds will never step foot on a campus or in a classroom for that matter. She is a 79-year-old widow who has multiple sclerosis and is confined to a wheelchair in her Manhattan apartment. "It gets me out emotionally. It releases me from the four walls around me," said Leeds, who has participated in the program for 12 years. Leeds is one of about 500 people enrolled for the fall semester in a telephone-based educational program for homebound seniors called DOROT University Without Walls, believed to be the largest program of its kind in the country. The curriculum includes more than 250 courses and runs the gamut, from understanding feng shui and poetry writing to discussions on moral, ethical and philosophical issues and a discourse on women of the progressive era. Informational classes on money management, Internet surfing and medicine also are available. While the majority of the students are from the New York area, seniors from as far away as Alaska, Iowa and Texas have joined in. The oldest participant, who was 105, died last year. As the nation’s population grows older, experts say programs like University Without Walls help engage seniors’ minds and expand their social network by giving them something stimulating to do — factors helpful in diminishing the onset of depression, dementia and other ailments. The classes are taught by professionals in the world of art, history, science and medicine who often volunteer their time. Each 50-minute class meets once a week for up 18 weeks. Class size is kept small, no more than 10 people, to keep discussion lively. Fees also are low: $15 per course. Experts and those involved with the program say that it provides a valuable service to homebound seniors. "They say to me ‘I have something to talk about now (with friends and family). I have a life. I don’t have to wait for someone to take me out. I can just pick up the phone, and I’m there,’" said program director Bonnie Jacobs. Jacobs says she has her own proof of the vigor that the participants bring to the program: "Some people put on their lipstick even though no one can see them." - By Ula Ilnytzky
Associated Press Writer
