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Adults are welcome to learn in St. Olaf classrooms

By Charlie Whittlesey '77
June 14, 2007

What if you could take classes at St. Olaf for half price? Or audit classes at 80 percent off the normal fee?

If you are 25 or older, or a St. Olaf graduate, you are invited to do just that. For people 60 or older the discount is 90 percent. Adults can register for two reduced-tuition classes per semester or four per year.

"The college opened its classes to adults in 1977 after surveys showed that alumni had a desire for intellectual engagement with the college beyond graduation," says Karen Hansen '77, executive director of the Center for Lifelong Learning.

St. Olaf opted to offer that opportunity not only to alumni but the broader public as well -- which is good for traditional-age students.

"The classes also benefit undergraduates by exposing them to the experiences of adults from different age groups and walks of life," Hansen says.

Meeting some of these lifelong learners may be just the inspiration you need to take advantage of the program.

Learning Russian to help others
In 1995, Jan Adams, a physician in Chaska, Minn., visited Moscow to work with Hunter "Patch" Adams, the celebrated "clown doctor" whose life was the subject of the movie Patch Adams, starring Robin Williams.

While in Moscow, Adams (no relation to Patch Adams) met Maria Yeliseyeva, who was running a small art studio for orphans. Her specialty was teaching children with mental disabilities to paint as a way of building their self-image and confidence.

Adams immediately took a liking to Maria and sympathized with her cause: Adult orphans in Russia have high rates of unemployment, crime, poverty and suicide, and the average life expectancy is only 25 years.

Adams made a life-changing decision to help Maria and her children. Back in the United States, she started a foundation called Maria's Children International. She raised more than $100,000 in donations, applied for visas for 12 of the orphans, and held exhibitions of their work in a four American cities.

Maria's Children has since expanded into Haiti and Mexico and has grown exponentially -- from the original 12 children it served to more than 400.

Not surprisingly, Adams' work requires her to be nearly fluent in Russian. "I tried tapes and books, but they didn't work for me," she says. Eventually she saw an ad for St. Olaf College in Mpls.St.Paul Magazine and signed up for her first class; she's now in the middle of her fourth.

"The classes have made all the difference in the world for me," she says. "They freed me from being dependent on everyone around me."

One feature that attracted her to St. Olaf was the small class size; the college boasts a student-professor ratio of about 13:1. "In my undergraduate days some of my classes had 500 students," she says, "but here there's plenty of personal attention and no barrier to the professor."

Adams has become well acquainted with several of her professors in the Russian Department and on occasion has lunch with them. "I may not be their peer in the classroom," she says, "but I'm their peer in life."

Being as busy as she is, Adams finds it a challenge to keep up with her studies. She runs her foundation by day and works at the Chaska Urgent Care nights and weekends, but still manages to drive 30 miles to classes four days a week.

Just like the younger students, she has to study for tests, do homework and write papers. She also receives a grade each semester, which "may not mean much at this point in my life, but it's still a motivator," she says. "Overall, the experience is stressful but enjoyable, and more than worth the effort."

Dancing for joy
Dean Neuburger, a 47-year-old process engineer at the Multek plant in Northfield, is taking his fourth modern dance class this spring; the classes, he says, allow him to explore the more physical, artistic and spiritual sides of his personality.

Neuburger became interested in dance through friends at his church, Bethel Lutheran near campus. It was there he met St. Olaf Artist-in-Residence Anthony Roberts, whose performance of "Swing a Club," which expressed his angst over losing his brother to cancer, deeply moved Neuburger.

Roberts encouraged Neuburger to sign up for a choreography class. He wanted to experience dance itself first, so he enrolled in Modern Dance 1 with Sherry Saterstrom.

Although most middle-age men might be intimidated by the thought of practicing with students in their late teens and 20s, Neuburger adapted readily.

"It took him a while to lose his masculine stiffness," Saterstrom says. "Dance requires you to open up and be vulnerable and to let your emotions drive your movements, but Dean has really come a long way since his first class."

In fact, Neuburger looks ageless on the dance floor, moving with the energy and grace displayed by the younger dancers. His face radiates joy as he glides across the floor, improvising his moves with apparent ease.

The class setting in the recently refurbished Dittmann Center seems to relax and open up all the dancers. Two musicians play wind chimes, wood blocks, and conga drums, giving the class a pastoral feel -- as if you were sitting in a meadow watching deer lope or birds flutter by.

Neuburger enjoys working with his classmates, "who have been very welcoming to me," he says. "I would have taken classes anyway, but it's nice to be accepted."

At the same time, Neuburger was looking for a challenge. "I could have taken dance classes in town, but here, I'm not a client, so there's no special treatment. I don't want to be treated gently. I want to be pushed, and to see results."

Neuburger also has taken Spanish and art classes at St. Olaf. He gets more out of his classes now than he did as an undergraduate because the classes he chooses more accurately reflect his values.

"It also helps to know my instructors better," he says. "They're not just grade-givers anymore; they're friends who can help me improve my life and reach the goals that are important to me."

How to register
Some of the most popular classes at St. Olaf may be filled by full-time students. But many other semester classes usually are open. Click here for a list of courses.

Register in person on or after the first day of class each semester (early September and early February). To start planning, contact Katherine Baker, associate registrar for student services, at 507-786-3758 or bakerk@stolaf.edu.

Contact David Gonnerman at 507-786-3315 or gonnermd@stolaf.edu.