Seniors Program

A university that believes in learning for life

Our Seniors Program is one of the largest and most successful of its kind in North America. We've been offering courses to adults 55+ for almost 40 years—because we understand the importance of lifelong learning:

Keeping your mind active is both fun and beneficial
Learning something new takes your mind off your worries
Studying helps you stay connected to your world
Education improves your memory and your health

History: How we began

Dr. Jack Blaney was the first dean of SFU’s Continuing Studies unit, and the originator of the Seniors Program in the early 1970s.

Dr. Blaney was always looking for ways to encourage more people to participate in post-secondary education. With the help of a provincial grant, Blaney launched the first academic program specifically designed for lifelong learners in North America.

“[The Program] sought to enhance and support seniors’ intellectual enlightenment, rather than simply facilitating recreational activities.”
– Dr. Jack Blaney, Dean of Continuing Studies

SFU established a series of Continuing Studies courses for seniors, along with a quirky short-lived half-hour seniors’ television show called the Age of Options.

“One of the greatest needs of older adults is the challenge of an important personal goal. Such a program, the first of its kind on this continent, could serve that need and others. I think it is within SFU’s capability to mount a diploma program for older adults that in content and methodology would be highly rewarding both for its students and this institution.”

– Dr. Jack Blaney, Dean of Continuing Studies

In February of 1975, the Seniors Program offered 12 courses in a variety of subject areas, including creative writing, photography, theatre, reading and study skills, and sculpture. It was later noted that 251 Lower Mainland seniors had taken courses in that first semester. With sponsorship assistance, courses continued into the spring of 1976, branching out into other disciplines, including music, archaeology, and psychology.

As a growing number of municipalities started offering similar classes for seniors, it was eventually decided that SFU’s Seniors Program would focus exclusively on academic courses, and has continued to do so until today.

Today, the Seniors Program offers 70+ six-week courses, workshops, and free forums taught by experts. Beginning in the fall of 2011, we offered additional courses to adults of all ages in the evenings and on weekends at Harbour Centre and the Surrey City Centre Library.

Your gift makes all the difference!

The Seniors Program continues to enjoy tremendous enrollment growth, but we need your financial help to ensure our innovative and successful programs and services thrive. In 2011/2012 we are planning an ambitious expansion project, offering more free forum events and outreach services to lifelong learners. At the same time, we are committed to keeping our course fees low, so all seniors can embrace the joys of learning. Your gift to the Seniors Program will ensure that we can expand our current course offerings, start new projects, and still ensure our tuition fees remain stable.

Donating is easy:

You can donate online. A tax receipt will be mailed to you by the university.
You can mail us a cheque (made payable to the SFU Seniors Program) at: 2300–515 West Hastings Street, Vancouver, BC, V6B 5K3. A tax receipt will automatically be mailed to you by the university.
You can also call us at any time to request a giving package, or to learn more about the various donation options available to you. The Seniors Program Assistant can be reached at: 778-782-5212.

Up to $99.99
FRIEND OF THE SENIORS PROGRAM
Everyone needs a friend! Friends of the Seniors Program help us each and every day with donations that make it possible to cover smaller expenses mailing letters and photocopying teaching materials.

$100.00 to $500.00
ADVOCATE OF THE SENIORS PROGRAM
Advocates provide contributions that help us cover the rising costs associated with providing courses. A single $500.00 contribution, for example, can help us pay for the cost of renting a lecture hall for a class.

$500.01 to $2,500.00
PATRON OF THE SENIORS PROGRAM
Patrons make it possible for us to get our marketing message out to the public, with funding that pays for special events like our Seniors Open House event.

$2,500.01 to $7,500.00
CHAMPION OF THE SENIORS PROGRAM
Champions help us strengthen existing programs and ensure the financial viability of special topics courses offered once or twice every year.

$7,500.01 to $10,000.00
STAR OF THE SENIORS PROGRAM
Stars are guiding lights who demonstrate leadership by their generosity, give stability to our programs and make lifelong learning possible for themselves and others.

$10,000.01 to $20,000
SENIORS PROGRAM VISIONARY
Visionaries are donors who provide significant contributions that enable us to start new programs in our community. Visionaries make it possible for us to transform an idea into reality.

$20,000.01 and beyond
SENIORS PROGRAM COMMUNITY HERO
By their actions, heroes demonstrate significant financial confidence in our Program’s ability to meet and exceed expectations to better serve seniors in our community and province.

To donate, kindly make your cheque out to SFU and mail it to:
The Seniors Program, Continuing Studies
Simon Fraser University
515 West Hastings Street
Vancouver, BC V6B 5K3

Thank you.

Rosalyn Kaplan, Seniors Program Director