Spanning generations

In its 5th year, Grandparents University brings together Spartans of all ages

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Fred Dolehanty attended MSU when Hubbard Hall was brand new, the Reserve Officers’ Training Corps, or ROTC, was a required course and men had to wear a shirt, tie and sports jacket to dinner. Now, he returns with his grandson, Liam, for their third year of fun, bonding and learning at Grandparents University, a three-day camp for grandparents and children to experience MSU.

“There’s not a more beautiful place in the spring or fall than this campus,” Dolehanty said. “It really has it, and just the whole atmosphere.”

Although most attend Grandparents University for the fun, it has meant something more to Dolehanty, a 1971 alumnus, after his son, Colin, died in 2000.

“My one son did graduate from Lyman Briggs (College) and he lived in Holmes Hall,” Dolehanty said. “(MSU) has meaning to us.”

The program

Wanting to find a way to get more alumni back to campus and involved with the university, the College of Natural Science, College of Agriculture and Natural Resources and the School of Packaging invited grandparents and their grandchildren to campus for a three-day summer conference to participate in various classes and activities.

In its fifth year, MSU’s Grandparents University has participants from 35 states and two countries, employs more than 125 faculty members and volunteers and is the largest grandparent university in the nation, said Kathryn Reed, assistant director of alumni relations and special events and Grandparents University planning committee member.

“The first year of Grandparents University, there were 220 participants from 13 states,” Reed said. “This year there are 940 from 35 states. There are 13 colleges in the nation that host an event devoted to grandparents and grandchildren. There are three in Michigan, and MSU has the largest in the country.”

Grandparents University allows alumni and their grandchildren a chance to enjoy the college experience while spending quality time together, Reed said. Participants attend classes of their choosing, live in the residence halls and explore the sights of campus.

“It sparks a lot of positive energy,” Reed said. “We would love for these 400-odd students to make MSU their place for higher education. Faculty love the wide-eyed curiosity.”

While reconnecting alumni with their alma mater, Grandparents University also builds bonds between the generational gaps of grandparent and grandchild, said Connie Lawson, assistant director of development and alumni relations and Grandparents University planning committee organizer.

“The way careers and families have organized themselves these days, grandparents aren’t always around the block,” Lawson said. “Grandparents University focuses on three days of bonding; they learn what excites their grandkids.”

With 19 MSU colleges teaching classes such as the “No Yolk” Construction Challenge, So You Want to Play A Bell?, LEGO Robotics Challenge and Programming in Scratch, the classes entertain as well as educate.

“It’s really hard to get kids excited about accounting, but we do it,” Lawson said.

Keeping in touch

The conference is open to people across the nation but is very popular with locals, such as 1968 alumna and Okemos resident Pat Lipsey, who attended the conference with her husband and fellow 1968 alumnus, Mike, along with their three grandchildren, Claire, Harrison and Emma Granger.

“We’ve had such a wonderful time and it’s a good way to spend time with the children,” Pat Lipsey said.
The Lipseys’ involvement with the university and their grandchildren goes beyond Grandparents University, Pat Lipsey said.

“We live around here, the grandchildren live close as well,” she said.

“My husband reads for (WKAR Radio Reading Service), (we attend) a lot of the Wharton (Center) events, the international seminars and we enjoy hosting for the English Language Center when folks are here from Korea or other countries are needing a place on the weekend to get to know an American family.”

Although the Lipseys do a lot on their own, they still enjoy Grandparents University and continue to attend, Pat Lipsey said.

“It brings back a lot of memories,” she said. “In one sense, I’m just here to have fun.”

The memory

Not just for grandparents and grandchildren, some participants, such as alumnus Paul Unrue, have attended Grandparents University for years. Unrue’s daughter, Erica, attended her second Grandparents University last year with her grandparents, but because of health issues, they were unable to come back with her, Unrue said.

“We live four miles away from Ohio State (University), but I graduated from here, so I drive her here each year,” he said.

“It’s a subtle brainwashing. … It’s different from Ohio State. MSU is unique.”

For Paul Unrue, Grandparents University provides more than just good fun and bonding; it is a chance for him to introduce his daughter to the school from which he graduated.

“There’s a sense of purpose and pride,” Unrue said.

“I wanted her to see the overall campus and the environment of campus.”

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