PRESENTS…
ALL ABOUT…
~ SPACE ISSUES ~
Nancy Merz Nordstrom, M.Ed.
Elderhostel Institute Network
March, 2004
Nancy Merz Nordstrom, M.Ed. March, 2004
Elderhostel Institute Network
SPACE ISSUES
How many of your classes are held on campus and/or off campus? Are you considering the
building, buying or leasing of your own space?
From Pam LeMay, Executive Director of the Creative Retirement Institute at of Edmonds
Community College, Lynnwood, WA
All on campus. No, we are not considering our own building.
From Burnell Held, President, Front Range Forum, Fort Collins, Colorado
No problem. We expect to continue to use the space provided by the Fort Collins Senior Center.
Our relationship with it is excellent. We are comfortable with the size of group we have. If it were
to grow much larger, space would be a problem. So too might the recruitment of facilitators to
organize our courses.
From Fiona Valentine, Lifelong Learning, Western Iowa Tech Community College
Almost entirely on site, except for tours.
From Sharon Sokoloff,Director, Brandeis Adult Learning Institute (BALI), Brandeis University, MA
Our Council has just convened a Strategic Planning Task Force and they will be working on this.
Space is our biggest roadblock. Like every campus, Brandeis has big space problems. Currently we
use one space on campus, which is a strength for the program because it has the feeling of
community, 4 classrooms, a Gathering Place, so everyone is in the same area. This is where I’d like
to get one more morning of space but it isn’t encouraging at this time. My dream is to have our own
building but that is not in the foreseeable future. Being off campus doesn’t seem like a positive
solution to me for our program. One of goals as we move forward is to be more part of Brandeis
and give more to Brandeis so being located on campus is important to us. Since we are only in our
4th year, these issues are important but I am still more focused on the quality rather than the quality.
From Carolynn Rafman, MLLI Program Coordinator, McGill Institute for Learning in Retirement,
Quebec
MLLI rents its space - 4 classrooms, a lounge, kitchen and office which are across the street from
campus in an office building which houses the Centre for Continuing Education.
From Sue Pace, LLI, University of S. Mississippi
We recently raised $750,000 to build a wonderful new building that we connected to the original
home where we were holding classes. This is located on University property 4 blocks off campus.
From Teresa Durham, Program Coordinator, LLI, Kellogg CC, MI
We have most or all of our classes on the campus site (we recently moved our department to one of
the college's off-campus sites (M-TEC center). We do not have the funding sources to buy or rent
our own space.
From Carilyn Brown, Director, Lifelong Learning Program, Clemson University, SC
Thirty percent of our classes are held on campus and 70% off campus. Our policy right now is to
look for class locations at no cost to the program.
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Nancy Merz Nordstrom, M.Ed. March, 2004
Elderhostel Institute Network
From Sara Craven, Duke LLI, Duke University, NC
We have 3 dedicated classrooms in the Continuing Studies Bldg. -- they seat 40, 24 and 20. We
usually have one class each semester in each of our 4 big CCRCs, usually in the auditoriums. They
get 1/2 the seats for their residents (who do not pay to take the class) and we get 1/2 for our
members. We are working on the lease of space in the new education building of a synagogue. We
should have 2 classroom of 30 and 1 classroom of 60. Plus a lot of commons space -- something we
do not have in our current building. AND, most important, 150 free parking spaces!
From William J. Hooker, Executive Director, USF Senior Academy, Sarasota, FL
100% of our classes are held on campus. Yes, we are considering our own space but not for a while
From Linda Bailey, Bellarmine University, Veritas Society, Louisville, KY
All classes are held ON campus. The Society does not have funds to build, buy, or lease its own
space.
Sr. Hildegard Grogan, The LINC Program, Neumann College, PA
Right now all but one or two classes are on campus. We are in discussions with County Library & a
Senior Center re collaboration.
From Betty Licht, Coordinator, College for Seniors, Ames, IA
Last question first: No, we have no plans, or funding, to build or buy. We presently rent classroom
space in our Continuing Education Building, as well as computer labs from Extension. We have
rent-free classroom space at the university's Foundation building, the local hospital, 2 of the
retirement communities, and the local senior center. The rent is free, however, these locations have
no technical equipment. We must rent that from our university media resources, including delivery
charges. Of the 14 courses offered this semester, 8 are on-campus and 6 are off-campus. One of
those six is a weekly course being held in 8 different stores in downtown Ames, offering students a
before-hours "behind the scenes" look at cooking and cookware, photography, quilting, flower
arranging, small book seller, arts center, health foods store, and world-wide gift store.
From Linda Crossett, Director, Dewey Institute, Indiana State University
Most of the classes are held at one of the retirement villages in town. Occasionally a class is held on
campus but participants don't like to come to campus because parking is a major problem. DILL
also uses space in area churches for classes. DILL is not considering buying or leasing their own
space. The ISU Center for Public Service and Community Engagement, which houses DILL, will
be moving to a building in downtown Terre Haute. There may be the possibility of space in the new
building for some DILL classes to meet.
From Susan McGough, OLLI, Cal Poly State University, CA
70% off-campus and 30% on-campus. No we have no plans for our own space
From Rose Alsbury, ENCORE, Clatsop Community College, OR
About 2/3. ENCORE pays for any facility costs off-campus they use.
From Sara Hardman, President, LLI at Bard, NY
About 80% of our classes are on campus, The rest are held at historic sites and we sometime rent
space in one off site building.
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Nancy Merz Nordstrom, M.Ed. March, 2004
Elderhostel Institute Network
From Gloria Burke, ElderVision, Lourdes College, OH
99% are held on campus; however, Crestview (the assisted living complex) does give us space for my
writing class as well as for an evening Toledo/Maumee Valley/Ohio history class that has been
ongoing for several years. We are not considering any changes at this time.
From Michael Markowitz, Institute for Retired Professionals, New School, NY
All study groups are on campus. We have talked about raising millions of dollars to purchase space
off-campus but are not pursuing the matter.
From Kali Lightfoot, OLLI, University of S. Maine, Portland
Our classes are all held on campus in Portland on Fridays. We will expand to Saturday mornings on
the other USM campus (in Gorham) in Fall, 2004. We have applied for funding to build our own
building on campus. If that doesn’t come through, we will probably increase our use of off campus
space in retirement homes, and other non-university space.
From Gene Bammel, President, Sun City Vistoso LLI, Tucson, Arizona
Our "host" provides classroom space, storage space, parking space, and all utilities. Our only space
issue is having rooms at the times our members prefer. We "compete" for space with the other
"clubs" within our community.
From Edward R. Lehman, President, Continuing Education Center, San Diego State University,
Rancho Bernardo, CA
We do not have any space on campus due to distance of travel and traffic conditions. We are in local
commercial space, which is not financially viable in this type program.
From Louisa Strock, Center for Lifelong Learning, Northwest State Community College, OH
We are on-campus for all classroom-type activities. We have a spacious new office in the new
Heritage Center pod with "Center for Lifelong Learning" on one wall and a replica of the red
Elderhostel pennant in the window-wall to the pod. We have use of the Heritage Room
conference center for small sessions, and a large conference room for seminars. NSCC is central for
northwest Ohio.
From Linda Bennett, Learning Institute For Elders, Burlington County College, Pemberton, NJ
We only have about 10% of our classes off campus. We are not considering any of the above
options.
From Joan Gamble, ElderCollege at Terra Community College, OH
All classes are held on campus. We are not planning on our own space.
From Diane Melby, College for Lifelong Learning, Shenandoah University Virginia
Almost 100% of our classes are on campus. The University has dedicated space.
Ronald J. Manheimer, Executive Director, NC Center for Creative Retirement
University of North Carolina at Asheville
We built our own building and hold most classes and programs in Reuter Center. We do have some
classes on the premises of Dearfield Episcopal Retirement Center, about 8 miles from the UNCA
campus and open to all members who prefer to go there or who live there.
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Nancy Merz Nordstrom, M.Ed. March, 2004
Elderhostel Institute Network
From Sarah Fletcher, Furman University Learning in Retirement, Greenville, SC
Of the 66 classes we are offering spring 2004 term, 6 will be held off campus. Four of those will be
various hiking and outdoor classes. The other is a cooking class and the last is one on Antiques held
at the Lifelong Learning facility of the local public school district. All the rest are held on our
campus. We are very fortunate to have 5 or 6 different locations on campus that we can use at
various times for our classes. The Community Center on campus, with its 6 different meeting
spaces is used for student meetings evening and weekends, but is usually available to us during the
weekdays. This has allowed us to expand our course offerings each term. We have visited the
wonderful new Reuter Center at the University of North Carolina-Asheville, and would dearly love
to have a similar building of our own at Furman. We are in the early stages of investigating the
possibilities of having our own building on campus. All we need is about $3.5 million!
From Dee Ray, LLI, Copiah-Lincoln CC, Natchez, MS
All of our class are held on campus. We are not considering buying or leasing our own space.
From Wendy Kerr, PLATO, University of Wisconsin
The host/campus holds about 28% of our classes. The rest are held at Senior Centers, Libraries,
Banks, or retirement centers. We are not currently considering our own building.
From Claudia Boles, Anderson College Lifelong Learning, Anderson, SC
100% on campus. No we aren't considering leasing anything. We are church-related and could
perhaps make arrangements to meet in neighbor church. However, we intend to stay on campus
for foreseeable future.
From Jim McGrath, Jefferson Institute for Lifelong Learning, VA
UVA is located on largely hilly terrain with no available parking except for one location. We hold
three or four (of 40+) classes there each semester (and we pay the going rate). We are considering
building a facility.
From Nancy Kress, Quest: An Institute for Learning in the Third Age, WA
Nearly all of our classes are held on campus, excluding field trips and tours. Occasionally an
instructor will have a class in her home, however. The students and instructor seem to enjoy this.
From Carolyn Farnsworth, New Adventures in Learning for Seniors, Sun Lakes, Arizona
We hold most of our classes on campus. However, any class over 25 must be held off campus.
Most semesters this will be 3-4 classes out of 33 classes.
From Joe Denhart, ENCORE, Glendale Community College, CA
All of our classes are held on campus and on Saturdays. No changes planned.
From Marvin Schaffler, RUALL, Rutgers University, NJ
All our classes are held off-campus. We plan to build in 3-6 years.
From Claus (Skip) Oldenburg, WCTC LIR, Pewaukee WI.
All classes are held on campus at this time, but space is getting tighter and more limited and the
future is uncertain at this time relative to classes at the college.
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Nancy Merz Nordstrom, M.Ed. March, 2004
Elderhostel Institute Network
From Paul Flaum, Berkshire Institute for Lifelong Learning, MA
Virtually al classes are held on one of the campuses for the Spring and Fall semesters. We rent space
for our Winter semester due to road concerns. We have no intention of purchasing our own facility
at this time.
From Marge Yanker, The Learning Exchange, University of South Carolina Beaufort
Beaufort Region uses classrooms at the main campus when available. We have had to pay for these,
but my understanding from the business manager is that our University fee is only covering salaries
now--so we have not for this current academic year been contributing to the University for space. I
have been told that we will definitely have to pay for classroom space at the New Campus which is
in the New River region and close to Hilton Head. Right now we get "free" space from asst. care
facilities, banks, Sun City--Del Webb, churches, Community rooms of utilities, etc. wherever we can
find it and this is a real problem and a very time consuming issue. Our group has a "dream" of
having its own building at the New Campus.
From Bob Hartmann, QUEST, New York City
All classes are on site. We have all our classrooms and meeting rooms on one floor which is
excellent for social interaction. We couldn't possibly afford to buy or lease our own space in
Manhattan - it would be financially prohibitive.
From Kathleen Swan, Harper College Lifelong Learning Institute, IL
Our classes are held at the three campus sites and three extension sites. We are not planning on
building. We have partnerships with two independent/assisted living facilities and one church. We
have found that we have good attendance at all of our sites.
From Therese Ruth, The Renaissance Society, California State University, Sacramento
Twenty-two seminars are held on campus and 14 are held off campus on different days of the week.
We are not considering buying or leasing space at this time
From Frank Shoring, Adult Learning Program, Hartford, CT
None of our classes are held on campus. We have in-kind space at two major retirement villages.
We are not considering our own space.
From Shirley Hibarger, University of West Florida Center for Lifelong Learning, Fort Walton
Beach, Florida
Eighty-four classes held on campus; 3 classes off campus. Do not anticipate need to build, buy or
lease space.
From Claire Robinson, College of Charleston, Center for Creative Retirement (CCR)
Charleston, SC
All classes are off-camps, at various venues, with no plans for change. The college is located in the
heart of the city with parking at a premium both in terms of space and expense.
From Cindy Kearns, RAP (Retired Adult Program), McHenry County College, Crystal Lake IL
All classes are held on campus. The college is considering leasing space off campus and RAP may be
able to use it.
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Nancy Merz Nordstrom, M.Ed. March, 2004
Elderhostel Institute Network
From Richard Di Vecchio, Lifetime Learners Institute, Norwalk Community College,CT
We do not see. at least in the immediate future, a need to consider off-site classrooms, although we
have a few spaces in adjacent towns where we hold classes. This is more of a convenience for the
people in the towns rather than a need. We do not anticipate building our own facility or acquiring
more off-sites.
From Rita Wuehrmann, Yavapai Learning Institute, Yavapai College, Prescott, AZ
Most classes are on campus, and for off-campus, we partner in various ways with retirement resorts,
museums, schools, churches, etc. for classroom space.
From George & Jane Richards, Center for Continuing Adult learning, Hartwick College, NY
Nearly all classes are held on campus. We are not thinking of buying or leasing.
From Lorene Porslid, Comox Valley ElderCollege, Courtenay, B.C. Canada
All of our classes to date have been held on campus and we have one room that has been designated
for our use only. Our Lecture Series is held on Saturday morning in the College Theater which
holds 210 people and it is sold out. We have done a survey to see what space is available in the
community should we require it in the future. At this time it has not been required.
From Jo-Ellen Unger, Academy for LIR@Saratoga Springs, SUNY Empire State College, NY
8 of our 15 classes this term will be on campus. Considering that Empire State College is a distance
learning institution and has no real classrooms and no students on campus, we feel fortunate to have
this space available to us. There has been some discussion about leasing space in the community
should the need arise.
From Sharon Simson, Legacy College for Lifelong Learning, The University of Maryland
All on campus in two buildings.
From Diana Marsilje, Hope Academy of Senior Professionals, Hope College, Holland, MI
To the extent possible we hold ALL classes in the classroom we rent (at a very favorable rate) from
the College. In instances where special musical equipment is required, we do "borrow" a local
church facility. Although we always keep our eyes open for better space (parking is our only
negative with our current location), we would always wish to be in College-owned space even
if we were instrumental in locating it.
From Sara Skaggs, Rock Valley College Center for Learning in Retirement, Rockford, IL
The college is very generous for our programming. We have our own space, which includes 5
classrooms, an office, a large multi-purpose room, and a computer lab. Community Education uses
this classroom space in the evening - - we use it all day. The space is off campus and affords ample
parking, no stairs. Used to be a small elementary school.
From Sandra Kerr, LIFE Institute, Ryerson University, Ontario
Classes are all held on campus, except where LIFE Institute chooses to partner with offsite
organizations/institutions, such as an Art Gallery, or a Museum. At the moment I do not believe
LIFE Institute is considering building, buying or leasing their own space.
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Nancy Merz Nordstrom, M.Ed. March, 2004
Elderhostel Institute Network
From Edward N. Aqua, Institute for Learning in Retirement, Nova Southeastern U, FL
Most events are classroom in a reserved space plus some extra classrooms when needed for parallel
sessions. A few field trips to museums and the opera and such.
From Mary Burkhart, Auburn University Academy for Lifelong Learners, Auburn University, AL
Meeting space is the BIG problem for us. We are at a large state university with a serious parking
problem, and no unused classroom space. Because of parking and daytime space needs, we are
limited in where we can meet. We may move off campus to another hotel with meeting facilities
next year. It's cheaper, but less desirable, and many members have mixed feelings. However, rent at
the on-campus facility has more than doubled, so we are really in a bind. We have no plans to buy,
build or lease our own space. We only meet two days a week, using a total of four classrooms, and
can't possibly pay for dedicated space. We'd be delighted to share with someone! We're
administratively in the same unit as the non-credit course program and would love to have the
opportunity to join forces with them (most of their programs are at night, except in the summer) or
some other unit on campus.
From Sandy Kinney, Institute for Learning in Retirement, Nicolet Area Technical College, WI
Nearly all are off campus because the college has record enrollments for several years. We are not
considering the building, buying or leasing of our own space.
From Everett E. Briggs, Taconic Learning Center, Salisbury, Connecticut.
All classes are held at one or another of four venues - two in Salisbury, one in Canaan, and one in
Sheffield. We have no plans to establish independent quarters. Two of the existing venues -- at
lifecare communities -- provide an excellent variety of audio-visual equipment and consider us an
added attraction for their residents.
From Anita Revelle, Senior Professionals, Illinois State University, Normal, IL
Space is not much of an issue. We hold our large over-200 class at a church in town. The concern
that we have is parking on campus, sometimes with large classes we ask that they carpool if possible.
Our parking office has been very generous in our parking situation.
From Steve Appel, Institute for Learning in Retirement, University of Cincinnati, OH
For the past three quarters these are our locations and number of courses – (A) main UC campus-82
(B) suburban UC campus-100 (C) three senior centers-12 (D) other college campus-28 (E) two
religious institutions-62 (F) bookstore-3. About 90% of these courses are eight weeks long. We are
not considering our own space.
From Barbara Reinish, Northwestern University Institute for Learning in Retirement
Evanston and Chicago, Illinois
We operate on two campuses (Chicago and Evanston). In Chicago, we use classrooms in one
building. In Evanston, we are assigned classrooms both on and off campus--wherever we can find
space. We would love to have our own designated, fully equipped classrooms in Evanston, but our
plans for the future do not include that possibility because of the expense.
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Nancy Merz Nordstrom, M.Ed. March, 2004
Elderhostel Institute Network
From Anita Dittrich, MSU for Seniors, Mankato, MN
Classes are held BOTH on- and off-campus, varying from quarter to quarter. Parking difficulties on
campus are driving us more and more to off-campus facilities. NO building/buying/leasing of our
own space is being considered.
From John Kane, Academy for Lifelong Learning, Ocean County College, NJ
In the past all courses were held on campus...part of our restructuring plan includes bringing courses
to senior village's clubhouses. We have over 90 villages in our county. County SR population is
160,000 out of 500,000.
From Michelle Sierpina, UTMB Academy for Lifelong Learning, University of Texas Medical
Branch at Galveston, TX
Our classes are held in community facilities. If our Academy is to survive it must move onto the
campus of the sponsoring university.
From John R. Loch, YSU LLI, Youngstown State University, OH
All sessions are held on campus. Who could afford to build a building?
From Dave Kammer, Albion Academy for Lifelong Learning, Albion College, MI
About ½ of our classes are on campus, the rest are in churches, community centers and retirement
homes. All are provided free, so we have no space problems at all. There are some benefits of
being in a small economically depressed city.
From Catherine Hollins, LLI, Miami University, Oxford, OH
Because space is at a premium on our campus we have moved the majority of our courses off
campus, or about 40% of our curriculum, but again, we are encouraged by the demand from
retirement communities to have us use their space for classes. They have been so receptive that we
are now being asked to have our special get-togethers in their community rooms and they provide
the catered drinks and snacks. No, we will not be buying or leasing our own space.
From Beverly Koutny, Chemeketa Center for Learning in Retirement (CCLR), OR
The Chemeketa Community College center just moved into a very large new building and one room
has been dedicated to our classes three days a week. We have ample space. Some day there will be a
new community center in town and I am hoping there will be space for a senior center and a paid
director to help organize classes.
From George Pettygrove, Modesto Institute for Continued Learning, Modesto, CA
We have a classroom rent-free (except for $40 above) pretty much of our own although an evening
class also uses it. In addition, when the college converted a room at one end of an old warehouse on
campus for our use as a classroom, it also built a small kitchen and added a restroom to two already
there. Parking ($10 per semester) is almost at the classroom door. We are blessed!! The building will
be torn down in a few years, then…
From Jennifer Mackey, Sierra Emeritus College, Rocklin, CA
We currently hold classes at three of our campuses and over ten community locations and work
within the boundaries of scheduling and availability of these sites. We are not considering building,
buying or leasing additional space.
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Nancy Merz Nordstrom, M.Ed. March, 2004
Elderhostel Institute Network
From JoAnn Freeborn, New Frontiers for Learning, Mesa Community College, AZ
The majority of our classes are held on two campuses that we use. As the need appears we are
beginning to use off campus sites such as community centers and fire station community rooms.
From Rosemary McNerney, MALC, Middlesex Community College, CT
How fortunate we have been. This may just be developing. However, our real problem is parking -
lots are full and our members have a long walk, partly up hill to class.
From Vonnie Wheeler, VIVA! University of Denver, CO
We pay rent for our space at a church. "Own space" is frequently discussed, but we feel we would
like to stay where we are for the time being.
From Helen J. Janssen, Old Dominion LLI, VA
All classes and the office are located on a satellite campus. We are not considering building, buying
or leasing our own space at any time in the foreseeable future.
Anne Myers, LLI, Hagerstown Community College, MD
All of our courses are scheduled in the same way and have the same weight as other CE Courses.
From Janet McLean, The Round Table, Stony Brook, NY
All of our classes are held on campus. We are not considering building, buying or leasing our own
space.
From Ann Petersen, LLI, American University, Washington DC
All off campus in classrooms we rent from a church. A nice dream, but we are not actually planning
to buy.
From Marianne Varney, Creative Retirement Center, International College, FL
2/3 to 3/4 are here at the College. We have partnerships with two retirement communities. For a
fee ($7,500 per year) we take 4 courses in winter, 4 in fall and 2 in summer to their campus. Our
members may attend and all of their residents may attend as well. We have just started an
active Advisory Board. They would LOVE to have our own center. We have competition in town
so that may not happen BUT would love a dedicated classroom when the College expands.
From Bo Loomer, Adult Learning Institute, Columbia-Greene CC, Hudson, NY
All classes held on campus
From Kathy Gratzek, Learning in Retirement, Inc., Athens, Georgia
We hold all of our classes and events at either the University of Georgia or at the Athens
Community Council on Aging. The only thing we pay for are University of Georgia parking passes
We hold our two registration meetings (one in the spring and one in the fall) and our annual meeting
at local hotels and pay a fee for these three meetings.
From Jo Brownlie, LLI, Saginaw Valley State U, MI
All of our classes are held on campus. We've considering have some off campus but the logistics
related to that are scaring us away.
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Nancy Merz Nordstrom, M.Ed. March, 2004
Elderhostel Institute Network
From Lorin Goodrich, Lifetime Learning Institute of Northern Virginia
About 1/3 of our classes are held on the host college campus. The rest are held in churches, senior
living centers and government complexes. Although we have to rent space in the churches we have
no plans to acquire our own building.
From Mardi McDaniel—King, Leisure Learning Society, U of West FL
We are considering a building or our own at this time. Our regular university student population is
expanding and our ability to reserve classroom space for our LLI needs has become very difficult.
From Patricia Limbird, Adult Learning Institute (ALI), Oakland Community College, Farmington
Hills, MI
All classes are held at Oakland Community College. We have no plans or interest at this time to
build any place of our own.
Jon Cheston, Senior College, University Of Maine-Orono
All of our classes are held on the Hutchinson Center campus. The University is considering an
expansion of this center. Its regular programs (and our Senior College classes) are bursting its seams.
We intend to continue using only the Hutchinson Center, whether it expands or not.
From Annette Lindsey, Baylor University LLI, TX
All of our classes are held off campus in a church’s activity center. We pay a rental fee. No plans
for any building of our own.
From Marilyn Blumsack, TILL, Tufts University, MA
Space a critical issue if the University wants us to expand. There is mention of hopefully finding a
building or house to accommodate the program within the next few years.
From Jim Lindberg, Academy for Lifetime Learning, University of Alabama-Huntsville
The majority of our classes are held on campus, but we do use off-campus facilities for some classes.
Probably, 10 percent of our classes are off campus. We used to have some facilities on campus for
accommodating activity classes such as Tai Chi, ballroom dancing, etc. However, the University
sold that building and there are no longer such facilities available on campus. We look for off
campus facilities for these types of classes. We also cannot teach any cooking classes on campus.
Although we were able to offer a microwave cooking class on campus last term. We do feel we are
reaching the limit of on campus space. We have been teaching class Monday through Thursday, but
recently we have been scheduling some classes on Friday morning. We might could work out time
for one additional class per day and add more classes on Friday. We may have to give some
consideration to limiting our membership. We also have the potential for a parking problem if we
try to accommodate more students. The University is acutely aware of this problem for the
University in general, so there is a high probability that something will be done about this problem.
We have given some consideration to trying to get our own building, but right now that seems to be
beyond our reach. We have developed a program that is based on low cost and we are not sure the
people that like our program would want to pay what would be required to support our own
building. Doing something is still not totally out of the question though.
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Nancy Merz Nordstrom, M.Ed. March, 2004
Elderhostel Institute Network
From Wichian Rojanawon, LETS Program, UMASS-Boston
All of our 60 classes this academic year (2 semesters) are held on campus. No, we don’t have a plan
to build or relocate, but we are thinking about having a satellite program in Plymouth where UMass
Boston’s Continuing Ed has classrooms that we can use.
From Eileen Duggan, Learning in Retirement Institute, George Mason University, VA
Space for classes, special events, office, meetings and social activities is a continuing problem. In
addition to the campus site provided by GMU, which cannot be expanded, LRI rents classroom
space three days a week in a church at its Reston, VA site. LRI also rents occasional space elsewhere
for large and specialty classes.
From Ellen Christie, The Second Half: Lifelong Learning @ 50+, UmassDartmouth, MA
All our classes are on UMD property. No, we do not have plans to build our own building. As I
said before, we pay rent to UMD for most of the space we now use.
From Jan Olson, Learning in Retirement, University of WI, LaCrosse, WI
All classes are held on campus.
From Nancy Shepherd, Encore: The Senior College at San Juan College, NM
Less than 10% of our classes are currently held off of campus. We will continue to use college
facilities since they are available and have no need at this time to build or lease space.
From Joyce Kister, LLI-NVCC-Manassas Campus, VA
Offered 5 classes in fall 2003---all off campus. Offered 14 classes spring 2004, three on campus, 11
off campus. No plans at this early stage of our organization to build, buy or lease our own space.
From Lisa King, ILEAD, Dartmouth University, NH
95% of our classes are held on campus and 5% are held off campus.
From Maxine Gilbert, SAGE Society, University of AZ, Tucson
We occupy two classrooms on campus. Space is tight and we are considering the possibility of
building or renting off campus. Affiliation would not be affected by this move.
The above survey was conducted during March, 2004.
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Nancy Merz Nordstrom, M.Ed. March, 2004
Elderhostel Institute Network
LLIs AND SPACE NEEDS
From Dick Vernon, LLI, Baldwin Wallace College, Berea, OH – rvernon@worldnet.att.net
We rent rooms for about ¾ of our classes; the college lets us have rooms as available but, like your
experience, rooms are at a premium even for the colleges primary purpose – educating
undergraduates. The college has graciously provided office space (presently at a remote location)
and a computer (with software) for our use. In the near future office space for our LLI will be
included with the offices of the Lifelong Learning Department. We have no separate area for
socializing, unfortunately. My personal opinion is that a dedicated social area would be most
desirable and contribute significantly to increasing member involvement. At one time we had a goal
of obtaining 2 classrooms (available afternoons) which would be located near an LLI office and a
dedicated area for socializing; the goal was so difficult to achieve I think we have dropped it now.
From Norm Bennett, Institute for Continued Learning, Young Harris College, GA –
critter3@whitelion.net
The majority of all our classes are held in college facilities. In fact, the college has identified a
specific classroom for our use because space is not presently an issue on campus, nor is it expected
to become an issue in the near future. The college also provides office space and the facilities for all
our social activities.
From Bob Hartmann, QUEST, City College of New York – bobwea@prodigy.net
Fortunately this is not one of our problems. City College of New York has classes in the evening on
two floors of an office building in downtown Manhattan and we have access to this space during the
day. Our only caveats are that we must be out before 3:30 p.m. and we can utilize up to 6
classrooms, 1 auditorium with overhead audio-visual equipment, and 1 office with computers. At
night the entire 2 floors are used for the CCNY undergraduate students. This system works out
great for us therefore space is not an issue. I know that this is very different from most of our other
groups.
From Art Sherman, Berkshire Institute for Lifetime Learning, Berkshire Community College,
Pittsfield, MA – gdmads@aol.com
You have struck upon the classic problem. We are fortunate in being able to use the facilities of 3
colleges in our area – Williams, BCC and now Simons Rock. However, we have successfully used
the local Pittsfield Library, which has excellent classrooms, and we have accessed the auditorium of
the Clark Art Institute. You may find that the college you are affiliated with has some relatively
obscure places that are not normally used as classrooms, i.e. small conference room(s) in the school
library. We have also found that by using the college faculty to teach courses for us, they somehow
manage to find some of the more obscure locations within the buildings that seem to always be
overlooked when your needs are being considered, but are perfectly adequate. Clearly, the jigsaw
puzzle of matching class space availability, instructor schedules, etc, is the most difficult job our
Curriculum Committee faces. We do not pay rent for the classrooms, however when we are at the
pubic library, we do pay a small fee for room setup. We also use the facilities of the local Holiday
Inn in Lenox because of ease of access and parking for our winter semester for a nominal setup fee,
because the facility is not well used in this season and the owner is civic minded. You might look to
public facilities such as local museums or venues, YMCA, special exhibition spaces, etc.
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Nancy Merz Nordstrom, M.Ed. March, 2004
Elderhostel Institute Network
From Dick Aime, Lifetime Learners Institute, Norwalk, CT – fernaime@juno.com
LLI gives most of our courses in Norwalk Community College’s classrooms, because most of our
classes take place in relative off-hours. Not much in the mornings and nothing in the evenings. We
do give a few courses at off-campus sites, which are free of charge to us. As to office work, we are
an entirely volunteer operation, which takes some doing as we reached a membership of 762 this
past spring term. For socializing, we use the Atrium of one of our two main college buildings from
12 noon to 1 p.m. on Fridays – a light day on campus.
From James B. Woodruff – Lyceum, SUNY Binghamton, NY - ffurdoow@pronetisp.net
Lyceum's office is on campus, managed by a part-time coordinator plus a some-times graduate
student. (telephones, files, computers, voice mail, university contacts etc.). We pay the
Coordinators wages plus some service expenses. Although class space is offered, university parking
mandates classes off campus. For five years we have used a local church where flat parking is
available during the week. The area we have is about 40' X 60' which includes a separate entry,
kitchen and wash rooms, adequate for 106. For larger gatherings the sanctuary is
available. However make it a point to use university facilities for larger meetings and catered dinners
(4-6 times a year). We feel it is important to keep the office in the university to maintain close
contact. The membership considers these arrangements to be ideal.
From Joe Scorpion – Academy for Lifelong Learning, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA –
scorpion+@andrew.cmu.edu
CLASSROOM SPACE: We have a dedicated classroom on campus, which has a capacity of about
32. We try to schedule as many of our classes in this room as we possibly can. It is given to us rent-
free. We did, however, have to furnish it. Through the generosity of some of our members, chairs
and carpeting were provided. We did have to purchase a screen, blackboard and window shades,
etc.-funding from our budget. If we have need for additional/larger classrooms we deal with the
University Registrar. These are provided, where possible, free-of-charge. You must understand that
we are in competition for space. However, the University does their best to accommodate us.
OFFFICE SPACE: We have an office in the basement of the Alumni House. It is rent- free. We
do not pay for any utilities except the telephone. We do pay for use of their copier based upon the
number of copies we use. Also, we do reimburse them for the paper we use in our printer by buying
them a carton of paper 3-4 times per year.
From Ray Beery, LLI, George Mason University, VA
We have successfully expanded classroom and office space. We simply did what colleges and school
systems often do…we bought two doublewide modular buildings. They cost about $30,000 each.
After completing our three-year time payments for them, we will give them to the University in
return for their continued maintenance and utilities services.
From Larry Wakefield, Center for Learnng in Retirement, Rock Valley College, IL
We hold several classes in churches, a museum, art gallery, artist studios, botanical gardens, nature
preserves, an airport, etc. I have not seen any signs that there is any feeling of separation from the
College. Each year we have grown in numbers, courses and attendees.
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Nancy Merz Nordstrom, M.Ed. March, 2004
Elderhostel Institute Network
From Sara Craven, Duke LLI, NC
We have moved classes to outlying locations, retirement communities, the science museum,
churches, etc. Often these locations are great for large lecture classes – and they may have superb
a/v equipment (which we don’t have at our central location) for a film class, etc. People who drive
quite a distance to DLLI often are grateful for a class closer to home. The drawback is that the
overall sense of community is hindered.
From Pamela LeMay, Creative Retirement Institute, Edmonds Community College, Lynnwood, WA
CRI has a dedicated part of a building including two classrooms, one office, one social/meeting
room. I suppose that nothing is sacred as far as space but CRI has definitely made its imprint –
raised funds/volunteered to paint and even plumb in a sink and counter top for the social/coffee
area. It is a former dormitory and across from the main campus with its own parking lots. We do
share the building but have dedicated space.
From Lifetime Learning Institute of N. Virginia, Annandale
Out of necessity the Lifetime Learning Institute of Northern Virginia (LLI) uses between 10 and 16
sites for class rooms each term and most of them are not on the Annandale campus of the Northern
Virginia Community College (NVCC) with which the Institute is affiliated.
In just 5 years LLI has grown from 38 to about 300 members, and its course offerings have
increased from about a dozen to over 30 during each term. Although NVCC (Annandale) is
supportive of the Institute it is faced with having to accommodate an expanding student enrollment
in the same space. Therefore, LLI’s physical campus presence is limited to a small office, the use of a
large meeting room for monthly all-members meetings, and the occasional use of a computer lab or
a conference room for classes. This means we have to find classroom space for most of our courses
that is as close by as possible. These off-campus facilities consist of churches, senior living facilities,
community centers, local government buildings, and instructor homes.
We have found that the dispersal has brought us members just by having a presence throughout a
relatively wide area. Indeed during this past year a few community and senior living centers have
asked us to consider them for our courses. Of course considerable time must be devoted to
administering the off- campus location task. During curriculum planning for each term a number of
factors come into play when deciding on locations—instructor preference (all are volunteers), class
size, audio-visual requirements, parking, availability for the desired class schedule, course location
vis-à-vis LLI member residences and rental cost. We rent space at churches and in exchange for no
charge for space at senior living facilities the residents can attend the LLI courses offered at the
particular facility without having to pay our membership fee. There is no charge for using
community and government centers.
After all of the logistics are set there may be occasions when our volunteer instructors need to
change their availability or we find that more members than expected register for a particular course.
Then its ―off-to-the-races‖ to make these last-minute changes!!
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Nancy Merz Nordstrom, M.Ed. March, 2004
Elderhostel Institute Network
LLIS AND SPACE NEEDS, PART TWO
Original Query from Sara Craven at Duke Institute for Learning in Retirement, NC
We would like to know about any programs that are housed in churches or synagogues.
Are your offices there, or just classes?
How much do you pay in rent?
Do you think that being housed there has perhaps been a turn-off for some of your members? Or
perhaps a turn-on?
How does your sponsoring University feel about this? Any specific policies?
How does being in a church or synagogue affect your identity as apart of your sponsoring college?
Original Query from Mary Burkhart, AUALL, Auburn University, AL
I'm interested in the discussions regarding space. Our LLI has met in our on-campus
hotel/conference center since our beginning 13 years ago. We have enjoyed a 50% discount on
room rent, which we were able to negotiate since we were willing to be "bumped" with 30 days
notice, and because we agreed to hold our classes mostly on Monday, the facility's least busy day. We
learned that we will no longer be given a discount. Therefore, we're checking on other space, and
surveying members to see what they prefer. In order to stay in the conference facility, we will
have to raise our dues by 50%. Parking is a big issue, and essentially rules out the use of any other
on-campus space. We are checking with the large area churches, so I especially appreciate this
exchange. I welcome any suggestions.
From Bernard Dumoff, LLI, Albertus Magnus College, CT
Here at LLI at Albertus Magnus College in New Haven, CT we offer some 30 to 35 classes each
semester, Spring and Fall. With the exception of two or three for which registration exceeds the
capacity of the college classrooms, all of our classes are on campus in classrooms assigned to us by
the Registrar prior to each semester. We have had occasion to utilize space in a local synagogue
once, and we do take advantage of space offered to us by several local assisted living facilities. But
we do prefer to keep most of our classes on campus. Our office space is off campus, since the
college was unable to provide us with that space. All of our administrative services are provided by
our members - we are a totally volunteer organization - no one gets paid for anything, including our
Study Group Leaders. This has worked just fine for us in the 14 years we have been in existence,
and we don't expect any changes in the near future.
From Sarah Benton, Community Academy for Lifelong Learning, State College, PA
1. All of our courses are held in local churches, synagogues, community buildings or retirement
communities. Our offices are located in the lower level of a local bank.
2. We pay a very low monthly rent ($192.00 per month) for our offices. This covers all utilities also.
In return, we consider this local bank one of our partners. We pay all of our churches and
synagogues $50 per course or $100 for two or more courses.
3. Our members very much enjoy taking courses at the local churches, synagogues and community
buildings. They say it allows them to get to know the community and what the buildings look like
inside.
4. We have no sponsoring university. We are an independently run LLI
5. N/A
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Nancy Merz Nordstrom, M.Ed. March, 2004
Elderhostel Institute Network
From Annette Lindsey, Baylor Institute for Learning In Retirement (BLLI), Waco, Texas
All of our classes are held in the activity building of a church downtown. We have no room on
campus during the day, and if we did, parking would be a nightmare. The building we use has ample
parking, a large meeting room on the fourth floor (elevator is nearby), and a convenient area for
making/serving coffee and tea. We pay $25 an hour and each session is one and half-hours. Most
courses run for four sessions. I do not think the location has been a turn off for participants. They
want convenience! People from a variety of religious backgrounds participate; however, most all are
Christians or Jews. While we have many places of worship in Waco, we have very little religious
diversity, mainly denominational diversity. I do not believe that people, regardless of their religious
persuasion, would encounter objectionable situations in the building. Inasmuch as Baylor is a
Baptist university, meeting at the church is not a problem. Prior to obtaining the current location,
we met at various churches around town, and these were not all Baptist.
Our name clearly identifies our institute as a Baylor program. Whenever possible, we arrange to
have special events on campus such as the annual fall convocation/reception and occasional
afternoon lectures. Also, we provide a list of Baylor lectures, concerts, exhibitions, and other
performances to all BLLI members each semester which reinforces our affiliation. This is a benefit
that they appreciate and expect.
From Sara Skaggs, Center for Learning in Retirement, Rock Valley College, Rockford, IL
Our program is housed in a dedicated building. Most classes and office are at this site.
We do not pay rent. This program is under the umbrella of Community Education Outreach.
We offer classes off site, many at churches and a local synagogue. Also, space is provided upon
request from the Unitarian Church, Muslim Center, Church of Latter Day Saints, and others.
Offering classes on world religions at the site does not detract from this program or make us lose
the identity that it is a Center class. Our college encourages outreach - - it's a win-win all around.
From Martha Klee, Lifetime Learning Institute of Northern Virginia
Our organization offers our members 30 to 35 course, three semester a year. We meet at various
churches, synagogues, retirement facilities and county district offices (I believe there is no cost for
this facility) throughout our large area. I am not sure of the cost for use of the spaces, and our
"Space Chair" is out of the country till next week. However, I do know that a local United
Methodist Church charges us $20 for 1-1/2 hour use of their rooms. Our members like meeting at
these facilities, as the parking is ample and there is easy access to the buildings, not to mention,
handicapped friendly. In addition we do have a few classes on campus, but their space is so
limited, and walking to and from the parking lot is difficult for some people. Hope this gives you
some ideas.
From Sarah Benton, Community Academy for Lifelong Learning, PA
Sorry to hear about the increase in your room rents. I highly recommend checking into area
churches. They usually have a large social room and smaller educational facilities. Most will set up
the rooms per your request and will let you use their AV equipment. They are also very available
during the week days and usually have ample parking. We use churches all the time and think it's a
great exchange.
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Nancy Merz Nordstrom, M.Ed. March, 2004
Elderhostel Institute Network
From Joe Scorpion, Academy for Lifelong Learning, Carnegie Mellon University, PA
Our office and three (3)classrooms are all located on the Carnegie Mellon University campus. The
office and one classroom are located in the Hunt Library while two other classrooms are located in
the Student Center. It is rare that we go off campus. However, we have held and our holding an
exercise/movement class at a site operated by the "Religious Society of Friends" for which we pay a
modest rental fee of $100. This has presented no problems for us.
From Sara Skaggs, Center for Learning in Retirement, Rock Valley College, IL
The Center for Learning in Retirement is housed in what was once an elementary school - - 5
dedicated classrooms and office space for the program. We do not pay rent - - we're part of
Community Education, thus part of the college. Most classes are housed in this building; however,
we do venture to churches, synagogues, the Muslim Center, public libraries, etc. when space here is
filled. These are not a turn-off for our members & we don't feel this affects the identity of the
program. The folks who attend these classes know it's a Center program. Rarely, if ever, is a fee
involved with using other space. We plan it that way & usually don't put classes into spaces that ask
for a fee. They're usually glad to open their doors for the programming efforts here. It's good for
them & good for us! Our college encourages us to reach out to the community as part of the
mission of being "the Community's College."
From Stephen Appel, LLI, University of Cincinnati, OH
Local churches and synagogues often have unoccupied Sunday school classrooms available,
especially in the morning. Here in Cincinnati we use eight classrooms, averaging thirty seats each, at
a large synagogue at a very modest rental since this is really found money for them. They furnish the
space and the maintenance; we furnish the audio/visual equipment. It really helps in negotiations if a
member or your board is actively involved in the church or synagogue as well. We work in
partnership with a local Presbyterian church to offer lecture and discussion panels using the meeting
room for smaller gatherings or the sanctuary for large gatherings and concerts. There is no charge to
us since the church considers this part of their outreach program as well. We also offer several
programs at two senior centers at no cost to us. These centers are crying for activities. One caveat,
though, you have to be very careful in choosing a senior center. Too often their membership does
not fit your demographics, and just as often the physical facilities are just not up to par. Frankly, we
are not particularly keen on using senior centers unless there is a very specific reason.
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