Encore News & Views

MY ENCORE MOMENT: Free trips, books in new encore story contest!

David Bank — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 18:31:16 -0400

What inspired your encore career? For some, it’s a voice that grows louder. For others, it’s a sudden calling, a gradual shift in priorities or a life-changing event. Share your encore moment and you could win a free trip. Ten winners of the "My Encore Moment" story contest will receive all-expenses-paid trips to the first-ever Encore Careers Summit December 6-8 at Stanford University.

THE RETIREMENT GAME: Not just about money

Terry Nagel — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 20:29:37 -0400

Juanita Watson, 59, and her friends were laughing uncontrollably at a comedian's jokes about hapless baby boomers when she turned to the others and said, "We have to create a game about this!" And they did. Just launched, the Baby Boomer Retirement Game takes former flower children and yuppies on a nostalgic journey through the last five decades with the end of goal of attaining inner peace. For Watson, who recently retired from her job as a special education administrator, promoting and selling the game has become an encore career. She makes certain that the workers who assemble the games are referred by a nonprofit agency that places highly challenged adults with special needs.

COMMUNITY COLLEGES: Connecting boomers to encore careers

Terry Nagel — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 18:42:38 -0400

Nonprofit organizations, schools and health care providers have openings for experienced workers. Boomers want them. How do you connect the two?

Encore Colleges

ENCORE JOURNEY: From Marine colonel to nonprofit COO

Terry Nagel — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 18:49:21 -0400

Statistically, African American males drop out of high school at nearly double the rate of their white counterparts. That’s unacceptable to Marine colonel-turned-nonprofit head John Boggs of Washington, D.C. To buck the trend, he’s helping run a program that encourages young black males to stay in school and redirect the course of their lives.

ENCORE TEACHERS: The ins and outs of an encore teaching career

David Bank — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 11:04:36 -0400

At 55, Michael Casey decided to pursue the job he had always wanted -- high school math teacher. An engineer and small-business owner, Casey returned to school to get his teaching certificate. He took a 50% pay cut to teach algebra and calculus in inner-city Dallas for five years, before moving to a suburban school in Carrolton, Texas. "Right after 9/11, I decided I wanted to do something that would give something back," Casey told Emily Brandon of USNews and World Report.

Encore for Education

ENCORE QUESTION: If volunteers get perks, are they still volunteers?

joel levinson — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 10:48:56 -0400

Encore.org member Joel Levinson writes: I have always felt there should be certain compensation for volunteers at the city and state levels. Parking passes, tuition credits, food script, entertainment passes, etc. These can be tied into corporate sponsors with little out of pocket expenses for the city. A lot of city jobs are done by citizen volunteers, and cities would have a difficult time with their budget if not for them. How about rewarding volunteers and organizing a union of sorts. It may also encourage more people to participate if there were a little incentive for their efforts.

GROWING POWER: Recognition of Older Innovators

David Cohen — Wed, 01 Oct 2008 13:29:28 -0400

Encore.org member David Cohen, a senior fellow at Experience Corps, contributed this comment:

Choosing Will Allen, the Milwaukee urban farmer, for a MacArthur genius award gave me great pleasure. I was part of a team at the Advocacy Institute--with key colleagues Sharvell Becton, Laura Chambers, Keiko Koizumi and Kathleen Sheekey-- that worked on the Leadership for a Changing World Program (LCW) in partnership with the Ford Foundation and the Robert Wagner School of Public Service at New York University (NYU).

Our purpose was to award through varieties of recognition, including money, social change leadership that tackled intractable social problems systemically and systematically. Our focus was to find those leaders whose leadership made a difference in people's lives but who were largely unrecognized.

Purpose Prize Innovation Network

ENCORE FOR EDUCATION: Riley backs major push to reverse dropout epidemic

Terry Nagel — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 16:27:03 -0400

Former Secretary of Education Richard Riley is calling for a $10 billion investment in a major national mobilization to reverse the dropout epidemic in America's high schools. Riley's call echoes the recent "More to Give" report to the AARP, which called for a national initiative to put 100,000 adult mentors and advocates to work at the nation’s 2,000 “dropout factories.” Such a national mobilization represents an opportunity for tens of thousands of experienced Americans to put their time and talents to work to ensure success for the next generation. Riley and his co-author Terry K. Peterson say boomers who want to give back are one of the best untapped resources for filling the chronic shortage of teachers.

GENERATIONAL CHALLENGE: Adm. Mullen calls boomers to action

David Bank — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 13:52:35 -0400

The year 1968 is often cited as the beginning of a long period of division among baby boomers. But 40 years later, many members of that generation are finding common cause in giving back through encore careers, national service or volunteering.

IN MEMORIAM: Paul Newman, 1925-2008

David Bank — Sat, 27 Sep 2008 12:20:29 -0400

Legendary actor Paul Newman died September 26, 2008, at his home in Connecticut at age 83 after a battle with cancer. During his lifetime, he and his Newman's Own Foundation contributed more than $250 million to thousands of charities.