In the mid 1900s, University of Kentucky President Herman Donovan had a dream The UK would open its classrooms and lecture halls to senior adults who were eager to learn.

Now the Kentucky Office of Lifelong Learning is celebrating 60 years in operation and program participants gathered to celebrate the value of education no matter your age.

We take a look at the program as part of our next Chapter initiative, where we explore the joys and challenges of aging.

So within the Office of Lifelong Learning, we have two different programs.

The first is the Donovan Scholars, which is for adults 65 and older, who would like to come back to UK and take academic classes, either working towards a degree or just auditing it for the joy of learning.

And then our second program is the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute for the UK, which is more enrichment classes, a lot more focus on social and staying engaged as we age.

So with the Donovan program, it covers all of the tuition and also the mandatory fees.

So it really does cover a lot of those fees associated with coming back to school and that is good for undergraduate graduate classes.

So you can take it and earn your degree.

We just had somebody complete their doctorate in social work.

Or you can just take it in audit classes because you're interested in a certain subject.

Well, I first heard about Donovan Scholars about 50 years ago when I was a student at Duke, and people would talk about all these old folks that were taking classes around campus, but I never really saw them, didn't notice them.

So when I retired, I wanted to look into that and take all the classes that I didn't get an opportunity to or didn't have time to the first time around.

One of the most important things that as we age is that we stay engaged.

And so one of the ways we do that is keeping our mind active.

And so the Donovan really helps out with that.

The other thing is that a lot of times people that come to us say, I, you know, I really wish that I could have completed this degree or studied this field and it just didn't work out when I was younger.

And so now they're coming back and exploring those passions and really getting to achieve those dreams.

I originally started my doctorate back in the 1900s in 1990, and I didn't get to I finished all the coursework but didn't actually get to the end of it and do the qualifying exam and my children always told me, Mom, when you start something, you should finish something.

So I started in 2022.

I have finished all the required coursework.

I am now just auditing a class that I need for my dissertation and I should be finished with that in December.

It's a great asset to the university and to the people of Kentucky because I just know in my experience interacting with young people in my classes and I'm all always the oldest person in the class is just fabulous.

I just love it.

And I think that there are some things that happen and they get sad that they wouldn't think about coming from somebody who's sort of been around the bar at one time already.

So I think it's a great interplay between, you know, the Donovan scholars and, you know, the younger students that are at the university.

I would say get off the couch, know that there is the program, but you don't have to go for a degree in the Donovan program.

You can audit classes.

A lot of the people that I've met through the Donovan program, they're interested in making wine, so they're doing wine or they want to learn a new language.

Just get yourself in there.

You don't have to go for a degree.

You don't have to do the papers.

You don't have to take the tests.

You know, if you're really interested, you have a passion for something.

Go for it.

It's open to you.

I can't imagine that you just stop learning, because it seems to me like you would be a, you know, a plant or fire or they just wilt because there's so much to learn, so much that we don't know.

So much that I don't know.

There's just just a blast to learn.

And I love I love it.

What I hope people who participate in any of these programs is that they feel a sense of connection, that they feel a sense of accomplishment, and that they're really still exploring those passions and those dreams because education is really a lifelong process.

And I never think that any of us stop learning.

The UK Office of Lifelong Learning has remote and hybrid activities that seniors all across the state can participate in.

You can find more aging related stories and resources at Kate dot org slash the next chapter.