Senior students: Statewide program puts new meaning into being a senior
Who says going to school is only for the young? Florida citizens can attend classes for free at certain colleges and universities in Florida, as long as they are at least 60 years old and meet certain requirements.
A Florida State Statute has allowed seniors to be audited into classes at certain public colleges and universities since 2010. Participating institutions in Greater Tampa Bay include the University of South Florida, Hillsborough Community College, Pasco-Hernando Community College and St. Petersburg College. Here, senior students embark on new learning adventures for a variety of different reasons and interests.
At USF, Mark and Cindy Anderson decided to pursue their continued education careers together. Cindy enjoyed a longtime career in what she calls the narrowly focused field as an IT turnaround specialist for failing software companies. She wanted to go back to her adolescent love of anthropology and earth and environmental science.
Decades later, her motive to learn is stronger. With climate change looming, she wants to know as much as she can about the subjects on an academic level.
“I think that provides a good basis for what I read and will learn later on about it,” she said.
A friend tipped off Cindy about the senior audit. She was truly intrigued, however, after reading about seniors specifically settling down near universities for further education, while doing her research on the best places to retire.
Since studying under Dr. James Ivey, Cindy sees the environment through a different lens. Take, for example, the Mayan ruins in Mexico. When considering the Mesoamerican civilization now, she thinks about its environmental future, rather than pondering its past.
For Mark, attending classes is all about the sheer joy of learning versus the pressure of taking a test.
“We can just be there and absorb it and have fun with it,” he said. “Back when we were getting our degrees, I don’t know how much we learned, since we were studying for the test rather than to understand.”
The traditional student and senior audit experience are reciprocal, according to Cindy. She said that instead of soaking up all their retirement in the sun, the couple’s time inside the classroom speaks volumes.
“If we are spending our time there, then we must see value in the education,” she said.
Dr. Ivey agrees, which is one reason he accepted the Andersons into his class. Seniors may be audited into classes based on availability, with students who pay tuition and fees taking precedence.
He said that continued education is one reason he supports the senior audit, and that age and maturity bring more knowledge into the classroom.
“When Mark and Cindy first contacted me, I immediately accepted them into it,” he said. “The younger students don’t have it yet, so when Mark and Cindy comment, they bring that experience, in addition to what I can contribute.”
Though he has his Ph.D., Dr. James Ivey admits he was a poor student, but his love of people and the environment pushed him to get a research degree in optical oceanography at USF. He was a researcher studying Florida’s red tides for eight years before he started teaching until 2016.
“What a Ph.D. teaches me, how much I don’t know,” Dr. Ivey said. “Mark and Cindy are really good examples when it comes to lifelong learning.”
There is something to be said about different generations learning together. Traditional students use their knowledge to make professional career decisions that affect people’s health and life, while senior learners educate friends and the community. All that learning is good for the mind, according to the Andersons, who both agreed when they retired, they would not slow down when it came to their physical and mental health.
“The senior audit program sure helps with the mental part of it,” Mark said.
Interested? The senior citizen audit application includes completing an online application accompanied by two forms of residency showing prior residency of 12 months. Once a student is accepted, they must contact the respective professor to ask to attend a class.
By Angela Underwood
