I, Witness to History program revived thanks to WSU
As part of our Intergenerational Program with Wichita State University, Larksfield Place Independent Living residents engage and share with the WSU students as they write their life stories. Thanks to Jacie Green, MA, Director of Graduate Programs, Associate Educator, she offers a freshman seminar course called Connecting Generations. Ms. Green explains it best in her blog: “Connecting Generations immerses students in aging studies and provides practical application beyond the classroom. The first half of the semester establishes a foundation of introductory aging population knowledge. Students learn about the importance of studying aging and the demographics of our aging population. They explore stereotypes and address ageism, consider the implications of the physical aspects of aging, education, work, and retirement trends, and they begin to recognize the importance of engaging with members across generations. The second half of the semester is spent with residents at a local senior living community, as they share their life story with the class. Students are paired with residents and capture their resident’s story to produce a Life Story Book and Banner that are presented to each resident at the end of the semester. The end product is certainly valuable to the resident and their family, but the journey is just as valuable for the student. Connecting Generations is an effort to reduce ageism across the life course through positive engagement and intentional time spent learning we all have a story to tell and that we are so much more than a number.”
The residents experienced how it feels to be a current college student by going to the WSU campus this week. They shared stories of car racing, advice on having a lifelong marriage, growing up with technology verses playing stick ball, working the farm, and walking home from school. They even shared a moment of ballroom dancing.
