August 25, 2026
Instead of a “bucket list” bestselling author David McNally keeps a “one day I’m going to” list. On it was going to college, so at the age of 72 he enrolled at the University of Minnesota as a freshman.
Eight years into it and still years from graduation, David says being an older student is an “incredible experience.”
While not everyone David’s age is interested in pursuing a college degree, thousands of older adults are interested in lifelong learning.
According to a study of men and women 60+ years of age conducted by TheSeniorList:
- Nearly one-third of older adults (31 percent) are interested in continuing their education;
- Enjoyment of learning, increase in personal development and personal fulfillment are top reasons older adults are pursuing education;
- More than one-third of older adults (35 percent) interested in continuing their education want to earn degrees, including 20 percent that are interested in a graduate or doctorate degree;
- Older adults are open to online learning, with just 10 percent say they want “in-person only” education.
And learning is good for the aging body and brain. Studies have found that learning and reading can help reduce stress and muscle tension, along with depression and loneliness.
Cognitive benefits include improved memory skills, and more.
“A research study conducted by neurologists at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland found that engaging in a lifelong pursuit of mentally challenging activities may actually help prevent Alzheimer’s disease. The study found that seniors who frequently read, played mentally challenging games like chess, or engaged in other intellectually stimulating activities are 2.5 times less likely to have Alzheimer’s, which impacts approximately 4 million Americans,” according to myLifeSite.
Class is in session
Like many states Ohio offers a robust lineup of lifelong learning opportunities for older adults. Ohio’s four-year universities and two-year technical colleges allow residents age 60 and older to attend classes at no cost – that’s a total of 35 institutions. Participation is limited to space availability and permission from the instructor.
In addition, 22 colleges have lifelong learning institutes, offering classes on everything from retirement finances to writing poetry at a nominal fee for students 50 years or older. Some classes are remote, others just one session. The institutions may have different names for their institutes and tend to follow the college’s academic calendar. For instance, Lorain County Community College’s is called Center for Lifelong Learning and at Cuyahoga Community College it’s called Encore Campus.
Remote learning is big
Thanks to a pandemic, online education is ubiquitous.
Kiplinger recently published a list of 10 free (or cheap) online classes that might be of interest to older adults.
Here are 3 of them:
- AARP Senior Planet
- Carnegie Mellon University’s Open Learning Initiative
- Coursera, with offerings from world class universities like Yale and University of Michigan
Another online option is MasterClass, which offers a wide range of subjects and skills taught by masters like Serena Williams, John Legend, Hillary Rodham Clinton and Amanda Gorman. The site has several membership plans.
Lifelong learning at Kendal
Continuing learning is one of Kendal’s Quaker-based values and is encouraged for both residents and staff. Lifelong learning classes are offered on-campus and are taught by academic professors from Oberlin College and elsewhere along with residents. For instance, this fall resident Jonathan Entin, Case Western Reserve University Professor Emeritus of Law, is teaching a three-session course entitled “The Disruptive Supreme Court.”
And other residents, such as Betsy Mirel, like to audit classes at Oberlin College.
“Auditing classes at the college has been both satisfying and stimulating for me,” Betsy says. “I have been taking classes since 2020 when Oberlin was beginning to cope with the pandemic. My first class was Plague Narratives, taught by Matt Senior, on Zoom. We had students in China and in Mauritius as well as in this country. As I recall, Matt was in Wisconsin.
This fall I’m taking Passport Please with Mauro Lazarovich, a course that ‘explores literature and visual arts (film, theatre, photography, and installations) concerned with passports (acquiring and losing them), borders (crossing and policing them), mobility (from leisure travel to forced displacement), and belonging (somewhere, everywhere, or nowhere at all).’ I thrive on such intellectual stimulation.”
