Lifelong Learners

When Deborah Singer ’74 returned to Massachusetts after spending her professional career in New York, her classmate, the late Lucy Smith ’74, introduced her to the senior enrichment programs offered by Stonehill’s Martin Institute for Law and Society. Thanks to Smith’s advice, Singer began attending the lectures and presentations there, especially the ones about state and local politics. 

“The presentations grounded me after a major move and helped me to become a more informed Massachusetts resident. The ways in which Stonehill professors are engaged with the world at large impress me. A presentation by Professor Cheryl Schnitzer, for example, expanded my perspective on sustainability,” recalls Singer, who also participates in the Martin Institute’s popular book clubs.

Offered several times throughout the academic year, the book clubs explore both fiction and nonfiction. For Singer, the clubs have exposed her to literature that she may not have tried on her own, such as The Covenant of Water, by Abraham Verghese and The Radium Girls, by Kate Moore.

“Being back at the College has not only expanded my horizons, but it’s also good for my soul,” says Singer, who notes that she parks a distance away from the Martin Institute so she can enjoy a longer walk through campus.

A Return to Class

In addition to the lectures and book clubs, the Martin Institute also offers four mini non-credit courses, two per semester, each with four or five classes, for senior citizens, alumni and neighbors. Just weeks after the start of the Israel-Hamas war, in October 2023, Anne (Hoffman) Durgin ’90 was one of 20 students taking the course called Contested Homelands, taught by Associate Professor Anwar Mhajne, an authority on Middle Eastern politics.

The course resonated with Durgin, a lifelong learner and former evening division student at Stonehill, who has taken previous Martin Institute courses. “Professor Mhajne had a balanced, calm approach, dynamic and insightful, on an unfolding, complex world event. I learned so much about that conflict from her and the course. A great resource, the Martin Institute keeps me engaged and informed about the world,” says Durgin.

Students in the Contested Homelands course asked Mhajne and Martin Institute Director Katie Currul-Dykeman to consider a follow-up course exploring the conflict’s more contemporary developments, and they agreed. The course ran in the fall.

Range of Interests

Several years ago, former evening division student Maureen O’Neil ’00 began taking non-credit courses at the Martin Institute, ranging from an online class about genealogy to one about constitutional law. She appreciates that so many offerings relate to current events and history.

“One [course] tells you what is happening now and the other explains how things unfolded. Along with the book clubs, the courses broaden my mind and my range of interests. I also enjoy meeting new people while engaging with faculty and my fellow students in lively discussion and debate,” O’Neil says.

Easton residents Edward ’64 and Bernadette (Crowley) ’65 Paré consider themselves fortunate to live close to Stonehill, given the depth of offerings, which are like a “goldmine for the local senior community,” says Edward.

At election time, he finds the Martin Institute presentations featuring candidates, elected officials and faculty members helpful because they provide insight into the big issues. Bernadette points to the variety of programs, from a mini course on film director Alfred Hitchcock to a concert by the Stonehill Trio, a piano-violin-cello ensemble. “What’s not to like about those options?” she says.

Rooted in Community

For the past nine years, Currul-Dykeman has been leading the Martin Institute, tapping into expertise on campus while developing strong roots in the local community to ensure that the Institute offers engaging and diverse events, courses and presentations.

“While we cover many of the major challenges in our world today, we also find ways to discuss more personal matters. Last spring, Professor Monique Myers gave a wonderful talk on happiness and communication, which attracted a full house and resonated with students on campus as well as our senior citizen students and alumni,” says Currul-Dykeman. At the students' request, Myers, an associate professor of communication and media studies, taught a 5-week course on the same topic to senior citizens this spring.

In addition to the one-day programs and lectures offered by faculty, the Martin Institute offers more robust mini courses, limited to 20 students, that allow seniors to dive deeper into topics. Along with the free book clubs and lectures, these mini courses are offered for only $30 per course, thanks to the multiyear generosity of the Trustees of the Home for Aged Men in the City of Brockton, also known as the Howard Home grant.

“Their generous funding keeps course tuition at a minimum while underwriting faculty stipends as well as administrative and hospitality costs. We are so pleased to collaborate with such good neighbors and are deeply appreciative of their longstanding, generous support,” says Currul-Dykeman.

The lectures, book clubs and courses also align closely with the Martin Institute’s founding mission. While these programs focus on senior enrichment with the Howard Home grant funds offsetting program costs for senior attendees, all Martin Institute programs are open to the public and are supported by the College’s financial investment in the Institute.

As Currul-Dykeman notes, “At the Martin Institute, our mission is to open campus so that education remains a lifelong journey accessible for the Stonehill community, our neighbors and for senior citizens who are curious, open-minded, engaged and whose quest for continued knowledge is very inspiring.”