Town-Gown

photo credit Oak HammockAs the baby boomers reach retirement age, institutions across the United States will have to find creative solutions to accommodate their burgeoning numbers. Despite this growing need, a retirement community on a college campus might not seem to be a great idea. It’s not difficult to imagine late-night police calls from seniors who think midnight is entirely too late to be playing loud music, or are appalled by the undergraduates who trample the beloved garden of a 90-year old during their late night escapades. But Oak Hammock at the University of Florida, Inc. has created just such an unlikely pairing, a relationship in which university administration, students, senior residents, and other stakeholders have found a lot to like.  

photo credit Osher Lifelong Learning Institutes

Now a network of 117 higher education institutions spread across the country, Osher Lifelong Learning Institutes (OLLI) offer college-level courses designed to appeal to the interests and experience of older adults. OLLI programs are adapted to the needs and desires of the communities they serve, but they benefit from OLLI’s National Resource Center, which provides a network for sharing innovations in lifelong learning and also sponsors an annual conference. The institutions comprising OLLI range from top research universities to community colleges, and all provide unique programs.

Duke University’s is one of the most successful Osher Lifelong Learning Institutes in the country. The program began as the Duke Institute for Learning in Retirement, which was founded in 1977 as a joint venture between Duke Continuing Education and the Center for the Study of Aging and Human Development. Duke became one of the Osher Lifelong Learning Institutes in 2004.

Founders Award for Civic Leadership

For his contributions to the Baltimore community through his leadership at MICA and local organizations involved in the arts.

How does a city aspire to be livable when the outside public seemingly brands it as ‘dying?’ How does the city grow when it is told that is 'shrinking’? With eyes that are turning away from the core industrial cities and onto the technological hubs of the twenty-first century: can the city sustain itself?

For Mayor Jay Williams of Youngstown, OH, hearing his city being labeled by Forbes Magazine as one of  Americas 10 Fastest-Dying Cities, inspired him to take the city in a new direction; one that leveraged successful development upon its own definition.

At the “Building Livable Communities” forum held at Washington, DC's Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden on September 22, 2010, Mayor Williams held a detailed discussion on how civic institutions in Youngstown redefined their role to promote dynamic change as amenity rich centers.

As many traditional economic drivers leave our cities, institutions like libraries, colleges, and arts organizations are now the key to supporting vibrant communities.  Given the right leadership and resources, these “anchor” institutions can act as fulcrums of change for leveraging stronger development agendas. 

In order to achieve this goal, institutional leaders across the country are seeking guidance on how to use their own missions to improve their communities.  A new report, released by CEOs for Cities and Living Cities, responds to this call for direction.  How to Behave Like an Anchor Institution presents six case studies of institutions that have successfully become “community anchors, developers and forces of change for their neighborhoods.”

Read more about the project and download the full report by clicking here. 
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Click here to learn more about Partners’ related program, Institutions as Fulcrums of Change, which seeks to initiate changes in the philosophy and programming of community institutions to help them strengthen their communities.

Jackson, MS

A former shopping mall that has been converted into a comprehensive, multidisciplinary health care complex.

North Adams, MA

A cultural institution has brought stupendous growth to the surrounding community.

Louisville, KY

A partnership between United Parcel Service and local universities to provide financial aid to college students in exchange for specified work hours.

Entrepreneurial American Community Award

For their role in strengthening Denver’s public elementary schools and their surrounding neighborhoods by designing new multi-dimensional school playgrounds.

Bridge Builders Award

Greater Homewood Community Corporation and The Johns Hopkins University Center on Aging and Health for developing a unique, ten-year partnership that has resulted in the Baltimore Experience Corps, a model program that brings the time, experience, and wisdom of older adults to bear in improving the academic and behavioral outcome of children in Baltimore City Public Schools.

Entrepreneurial American Community Award

For its spirit and risk-taking in the implementation of the Kalamazoo Promise, a tuition assistance program for the Kalamazoo residents.