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Tips
for and Examples of Intergenerational Programs For Seniors and Youth
Service
Leader
http://www.serviceleader.org
Many
organizations want to bring people of different ages together as part
of the agency's mission. Often, these programs involve senior volunteers
working with youth. There are many examples of such programs, and
these web sites offer profiles of not only some of these programs,
but also tips far bringing senior volunteers and youth together.
Illinois-Intergenerational
Initiative
http://www.siu.edu/offices/iii/
Explores ways
to strengthen the intergenerational infrastructure in Illinois from
the Illinois Board of Higher Education and Southern Illinois University.
They want to be a starting point for discussion that can lead to a
better understanding of other generations. The website compiles a
large amount of publications regarding service learning of all ages,
intergenerational technology programs, older learner programs, after-school-programs,
involving retirees in workforce preparation etc.
University of Pittsburgh Generations Together - An Intergenerational
Studies Program
http://www.gt.pitt.edu/
An
Intergenerational Studies institute with services and resources of
interest to professionals exploring the interaction between children,
youth, and alder adults.
The
following GT programs are in place:
o
Intergenerational Arts & Educational Program:
uses the skills of the community's old master artists in schools
and other community settings.
o
Youth Community Service Programs: Youth serve frail
elderly in a variety of settings nursing homes, adult day care facilities,
and individual residences.
This center provides a number of intergenerational programs and information:
o Across
Ages: A drug prevention program for high-risk middle school
youth that involves older people as mentors to students.
o Full Circle Theaters: An intergenerational ensemble
of teens and elders addresses social issues through improvisational
theater.
o
Time Out: College students provide respite to families
caring for frail elders.
o
Project WRITE: College students help elders enhance
their reading and writing skills.
o
Project SHINE: Students provide language, literacy
and citizenship tutoring for elderly immigrants and refugees.
Generations Incorporated
http://www.generationsinc.org/
A
nonprofit organization committed to intergenerational programming.
Activities include:
o
Generation Clubs: The program model facilitates
long-term, one-on-one relationships between urban youth and isolated
elders.
o After
School Program: The After School Program brings a group
of older adults into a school or community site to work one-on-one
with elementary children reading below grade level and to work with
middle school students who have been identified as academically
at risk.
Strom
Thurmond Retirement and Intergenerational Studies
http://www.strom.clemson.edu/teams/risl/index.html
The
mission: To focus research on the social, cultural, economic, and
political impacts of retirees across the state and nation, as well
as their potential as significant contributors in the lives of America's
youth. In the Intergenerational
Entrepreneurship Demonstration Project retirees help the
youth operate their own country market out of a renovated dairy
barn. The LINC Project
partners youth with older adults in community service teams.
Generations United
http://www.gu.org
The
premier national organization that focuses solely on promoting intergenerational
strategies, programs, and policies and advocating for the mutual well-being
of children, youth, and older adults. Generations United maintains
the nation's largest resource library and database of intergenerational
programs. GU has also been designated as the national clearinghouse
for intergenerational Learn
and Serve-programs.
Brookdale
Center on Aging of Hunter College (Intergenerational Programs)
Responsible
for developing, administering, evaluating, and publishing pilot projects
that link young and old New Yorkers for their mutual benefit.
o
Intergenerational Life History Project: high school
students are linked to homebound elderly.
o Intergenerational Language Learning: senior citizens
who are native speakers of foreign languages help Hunter College undergraduates
improve their ability to speak and understand foreign languages.
o Intergenerational World War II Veterans Project:
links veterans of World War II with undergraduates and high school
students for the purpose of helping the students gain a better understanding
of the period both in the military and on the home front.
o Intergenerational "Remembering Old New York" Project:
linked high school students with retired working class people who
had lived most of their lives in New York City.
o
Intergenerational Program for Health Careers in Aging:
links high school students with nursing homes and hospitals with
the purpose of helping students clarify their career goals and to
help recruit youth into the field of gerontology.
Rainbow Bridge
http://www.rainb.org/programs2.html
Initiating and cultivating ongoing relationships between nursing home
elders and youth, families, individuals and community organizations.
They have produced Rainbow Bridge, An Intergenerational Musical. Current
programs:
o
Family and Elders Program: facilitates the matching
of volunteers, including youth, adults, and families, who become companions,
advocates, and families for nursing home elders who have little or
no visitation.
o Youth
and Eiders Program: facilitates regular visitation between
school classes and other youth groups and nursing home elders
Open Doors, Open Hearts - A Guide to Bringing Long-Term
Care Residents and Young People Together - Center for Intergenerational
Learning - Temple University http://www.temple.edu/CIL/ResourcesProducts.html
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