Laurie Schmidt has seen it all. She’s climbed Kilimanjaro, hitchhiked in Nairobi and survived two types of cancers.
She’s also life-long scholar, holding a bachelor’s degree in humanities, amd a master’s degree in social work. She even has more than 33 years of experience as a potter.
Three years ago, at age 65, Schmidt took her love of learning to the classroom again through Program 60, a state-mandated Ohio program that allows anyone older than 60 to attend classes for free, but without earning course credit.
At Ohio State, classes range from the sciences to literature, but not all classes are offered through the program. Medical classes, piano classes and upper-level aviation classes, among others, are excluded from the program.
Students in Program 60 are allowed to take graduate classes if they qualify, said OSU program coordinator Diane Dortmund.
There are certain benefits that come with taking classes through the program.
Students can talk to the instructor about the amount of work and participation they do in the class, and can simply observe if that’s what the instructor arranges, Dortmund said.
From its start in 1975, Program 60 has seen a steady increase in interest.
“The number keeps moving up every year,” said Samantha Zaczyk, assistant to Dortmund. “For example, last autumn we had 250 students. This autumn we have 300. We’re putting a lot of outreach out there so we’re getting more people.”
Students in the program come from a wide variety of backgrounds, including professionals and those like Schmidt.
“It’s so exciting. When I started I was not into the 20th century with [my knowledge of] artists,” Schmidt said. “But my teachers here educated me so well in this art department. They bring books every day and encourage me to go on and study.”
It’s also been a good pastime as she’s gotten older.
“As you get older, you get weaker and you can’t do what you used to,” Schmidt said. “Now I can sit down and paint if I want.”
Schmidt says there are still many things she wants to learn and take advantage of in the program, but that participated in the program to find what she loved.
“I retired at 62 from social work and thought, ‘I am going to work for pleasure,'” Schmidt said. “I wanted to live and I wanted to find things I loved to do. And I did.”
Program 60 receives no funding from OSU and is a required program for all state-funded schools in Ohio. Students must still pay for their own books, parking passes and other course-related materials.
To learn more about the program, visit ced.osu.edu.
