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SALT LAKE CITY — The vast majority of her student body is made up of seniors. And they're in no hurry to leave. Some of them have been around for 10 years, some as long as 15. Their endgame is not to have an endgame. They look at getting out of school as a punishment.
Who are these incorrigibles?
They're enrollees in the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at the University of Utah, a program for people 50 and over who like to learn purely for the joy of learning. And for the cut-rate price of $99 a class, this is where they can do it to their heart's content.
Jill Meyer is the leader of this band of habitual learners, their principal, as it were, although her official title is director, and a more accurate description might be head cheerleader.
"I have a real passion for this program. I honestly feel like we're the best-kept secret up here," says Meyer, sitting in her office at the Continuing Education Building on the corner of Arapeen Drive and Wakara Way at the University of Utah's Research Park — aka the Osher campus. "It's great for the class members, it's great for the teachers. There are no tests, no finals, no grades. Everyone is here because they want to be here. It's wonderful. It's what learning should be."
The Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at the university, Meyer explains, is one of 125 such institutes affiliated with colleges and universities around the country. They're called Osher in tribute to Bernard Osher, a San Francisco billionaire who in 2001 started giving endowments to schools (Utah got $2 million) to fill a niche for people who are older — "50 and better," Meyer likes to say — and want to go back to school on their own terms.
Some 1,600 people are registered Osher students at the University of Utah, meaning they have paid the $40 yearly membership fee that entitles them to a parking pass, a student card (good for discounts at the bookstore) and the right to register for as many classes as they'd like.
New students sign up every year — the Osher school year is divided into four terms, each six weeks long — but the majority are longtimers.
"The turnover rate is extremely low," says Meyer, "the brand loyalty is extremely high."

Meyer is a case in point herself.
Eight years ago, shortly after she turned 50, she enrolled in her first Osher classes at the university. She was immediately hooked. Soon after that, she joined the faculty to teach art history classes (her major in college).
Then, so enamored and energized by the community she'd become a part of, she joined the administrative staff. In 2020 she became the Osher director.
"There's just such an energy here," she says, "It's like a small liberal arts college" in the middle of the university.
Often, after class, students and instructors will make their way to the cafe on the first floor of the Continuing Education Building to socialize.
The average age of the students, and the faculty for that matter, is between 65 and 70. The oldest student this term is 100, the youngest 18 (A handful of enrollees are younger than 50; the truth is, no one gets carded at Osher.)
About 100 classes are offered each term. The most popular subjects are No. 1: history, No. 2: art and art appreciation, and No. 3: politics and current events. The course catalog offers everything from learning classical guitar to advances in biomedical engineering to Ukrainian egg decorating to one titled, "Live Free of Clutter and Get Organized at Last!" (The Osher rule is that if there's an instructor willing to teach and at least four or five students interested in the class, it's a go.)

But more than just teaching and learning goes on, says Meyer.
"It's a close-knit community people get to be a part of," she says. "The isolation and loneliness thing that's going on, it's not happening here. There's something special about a classroom setting, it's a sacred space to me, to have a teacher imparting knowledge to the students. Something magical happens there."
While the majority of students attend class in person, there are also Zoom classes for those who live farther distances from the university or have circumstances that make it harder to travel. In addition, a few classes are held at the Sandy Center next to the city hall in Sandy.
The whole operation is run by Meyer and a staff of three.
She confesses that the occasional bureaucratic headache will crop up from time to time — the usual administrative red tape.
But she has an anecdote for that.
"If I'm having a bad day I'll just go in the halls and look at all these smiling gray-haired people," she says.
For more information, go to the website for Osher Lifelong Learning Institute.
