Take Action
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Update: September, 2014
Now that SB 173 is no longer a threat (see "President's Report") we are suspending this campaign to contact the listed legislators. However, the arguments for continued funding of older adult programs remain valid and we students must remain vigilant and ready to resume our efforts in case the political scene changes. California has historically been committed to offering its citizens "lifelong learning" opportunities. So even if you are not yet a senior or a student at Emeritus College, as a Californian you should be appalled when the State Legislature considers a bill to cut off education funding for a vulnerable elderly population. |
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--Through good and bad economic times, the state has continued to fund all types of education to fulfill its goal of life-long learning. California is now running a modest surplus and has no need to cut its tiny contribution to older adult classes.
--Funding classes for seniors is a good investment for California. If money is not invested in their educational needs, it will be paid out in the medical part of the budget.
--Medical studies uniformly show that older adults who participate in exercise and mind-stimulating programs, such as those offered in Emeritus College, stay active and healthier longer.
--A major benefit of creating a community of peers is that it offers seniors, often widowed or without family, a chance to socialize. Kaiser Permanente Southern California studied 2,200 clients over 78 years old for four years and found that those with large social networks were less likely to develop dementia than more isolated women.
--One of the study's major recommendations is return to the classroom.
--A famous study known as the Kungsholmen Project followed 1,375 seniors in Sweden over nine years. It found that seniors who participated in physically, mentally and socially stimulating activities contracted dementia at a rate 18% lower than those who did not. (American Journal of Epidemiology, vol. 155, no. 12, June 15, 2002).
--California's community colleges were designed to serve the entire community. Older adults are a contibuting part of every community.
Trustees Linda McFarland (L) and Betty Hiroto present Assemblyman Richard Bloom with ESU t-shirt after meeting to enlist his support in defeating SB173, a state bill that would end funding to older adult classes.
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--Many charities, museums and other non-profits depend on their senior volunteers to keep operating.
--Seniors are taxpayers and loyal voters. They overwhelmingly supported Prop. 30 to allocate funding for communiuty colleges, assuring its passage. --Emeritus College which serves over 3,400 students from Santa Monica, Los Angeles, Pacific Palisades, Culver City, Brentwood, Encino and other areas is very cost effective. Administrative costs are kept to $1.6 million per year because volunteers do most of the clerical work. --It is a model in the state for educating and improving the lives of seniors, surely a worthy governmental goal. |
Support from Doctors
California State Senator Marty Block
State Capitol Room 4090
Sacramento, CA 95814
March 31, 2013
Senator Block:
Our country’s shift toward utilizing health care dollars in areas of wellness and prevention is overwhelmingly supported by financial and medical experts. Nowhere is this more important than our seniors. Health care dollars are disproportionately spent in the final days of life and preventative efforts which are vastly cheaper are a far better use of our limited resources.
The health benefits to our seniors - both mental and physical - by regular exercise and socialization are huge and should never be underestimated. Focusing on diet, exercise, attendance, and participation in these programs can be the difference between being hip or breaking a hip – in a theater chair or a wheelchair, being at home or in a nursing home – just to name a few.
As a California native, I am frustrated (like many) by the fiscal woes of our state and I do recognize the need for cutting programs, limiting waste and optimizing state spending but I am often reminded of the quote stating, “if you want to understand the quality of a society, look at how it treats its elder members “.
You as a member of the education subcommittee have the power to shape policy in this critical area and your upcoming decision will help shape us as a society, setting a path for the respectable future that our elder citizens deserve and for which all Californians can be proud.
Thank you for your time and understanding…and your vote.
Sincerely;
M. Ramin Modabber, MD
Chief of Surgery, Saint John’s Health Center
President, Managing Partner
Santa Monica Orthopaedic and Sports Medicine Group
2020 Santa Monica Boulevard, Fourth Floor
Santa Monica, CA 90404
California State Senator Marty Block
State Capitol Room 4090
Sacramento, CA 95814
March 31, 2013
Senator Block:
Our country’s shift toward utilizing health care dollars in areas of wellness and prevention is overwhelmingly supported by financial and medical experts. Nowhere is this more important than our seniors. Health care dollars are disproportionately spent in the final days of life and preventative efforts which are vastly cheaper are a far better use of our limited resources.
The health benefits to our seniors - both mental and physical - by regular exercise and socialization are huge and should never be underestimated. Focusing on diet, exercise, attendance, and participation in these programs can be the difference between being hip or breaking a hip – in a theater chair or a wheelchair, being at home or in a nursing home – just to name a few.
As a California native, I am frustrated (like many) by the fiscal woes of our state and I do recognize the need for cutting programs, limiting waste and optimizing state spending but I am often reminded of the quote stating, “if you want to understand the quality of a society, look at how it treats its elder members “.
You as a member of the education subcommittee have the power to shape policy in this critical area and your upcoming decision will help shape us as a society, setting a path for the respectable future that our elder citizens deserve and for which all Californians can be proud.
Thank you for your time and understanding…and your vote.
Sincerely;
M. Ramin Modabber, MD
Chief of Surgery, Saint John’s Health Center
President, Managing Partner
Santa Monica Orthopaedic and Sports Medicine Group
2020 Santa Monica Boulevard, Fourth Floor
Santa Monica, CA 90404
Office of the Director, Memory & Aging Research Center
Jane & Terry Semel Institute for Neuroscience & Human Behavior University of California, Los Angeles
760 Westwood Plaza, Suite 88-201
Los Angeles, California 90024-1759
April 13, 2013
The Honorable Carol Liu, Chair
Senate Education Committee
State Capitol, Room 5097
Sacramento, CA 95814
Re: Agenda Item 6870 Community Colleges-Adult Education
Dear Honorable Chair Liu:
As Director of the UCLA Longevity Center, I strongly urge you to continue funding older adult education
classes, such as those offered at Emeritus College, Santa Monica. Considerable scientific evidence indicates
the importance of both physical and mental stimulation to keep seniors living longer and more productively.
Our own research group recently found that middle_aged and older adults who are more active physically
have less evidence of Alzheimer's disease in their brains (Merrill et al. Time spent sitting is associated with
medial temporal thinning in non_demented older adults. 17th Annual Research Conference on Aging, June
2012). We have also shown that combining mental and physical exercise improves objective cognitive
measures (Miller et al. The Memory Fitness Program: Cognitive effects of a healthy aging intervention. Am J
Geriatr Psychiatry 2012;20:514_23). We have also shown the tremendous cost of dementia and cognitive
decline on our society (Small et al. The impact of symptom severity on the cost of Alzheimer's disease. J Am
Geriatr Soc. 2002;50:321_327).
It is in the state's fiscal interest to keep seniors healthy. By providing a community of peers, Emeritus helps
ward off the isolation and loneliness that can lead to mental and physical deterioration. Healthy seniors do
not need costly nursing homes or medical procedures. Not investing education funds in its aging population
means the state will wind up paying for increased medical costs in its health part of the budget.
Emeritus College which serves over 3,200 enrolled students from Santa Monica, Los Angeles, Culver City,
Pacific Palisades, Brentwood, Westwood, Encino and other areas is cost effective. Volunteers do most of the
clerical work. Operating for the past 37 years as part of Santa Monica Community College, it is a model in the
state for educating and improving the lives of seniors, surely a worthy governmental goal.
The UCLA Longevity Center promotes healthy aging lifestyles and strives to build a community that helps
people live better longer. Ranked by U.S. News and World Report as one of the top three geriatrics programs
in the entire country, UCLA has a long tradition of excellence in gerontology and geriatrics.
Sincerely,
Gary W. Small, M.D.
Parlow_Solomon Professor on Aging
Professor of Psychiatry & Biobehavioral Sciences
Director, UCLA Longevity Center
Director, Division of Geriatric Psychiatry
Jane & Terry Semel Institute for Neuroscience & Human Behavior University of California, Los Angeles
760 Westwood Plaza, Suite 88-201
Los Angeles, California 90024-1759
April 13, 2013
The Honorable Carol Liu, Chair
Senate Education Committee
State Capitol, Room 5097
Sacramento, CA 95814
Re: Agenda Item 6870 Community Colleges-Adult Education
Dear Honorable Chair Liu:
As Director of the UCLA Longevity Center, I strongly urge you to continue funding older adult education
classes, such as those offered at Emeritus College, Santa Monica. Considerable scientific evidence indicates
the importance of both physical and mental stimulation to keep seniors living longer and more productively.
Our own research group recently found that middle_aged and older adults who are more active physically
have less evidence of Alzheimer's disease in their brains (Merrill et al. Time spent sitting is associated with
medial temporal thinning in non_demented older adults. 17th Annual Research Conference on Aging, June
2012). We have also shown that combining mental and physical exercise improves objective cognitive
measures (Miller et al. The Memory Fitness Program: Cognitive effects of a healthy aging intervention. Am J
Geriatr Psychiatry 2012;20:514_23). We have also shown the tremendous cost of dementia and cognitive
decline on our society (Small et al. The impact of symptom severity on the cost of Alzheimer's disease. J Am
Geriatr Soc. 2002;50:321_327).
It is in the state's fiscal interest to keep seniors healthy. By providing a community of peers, Emeritus helps
ward off the isolation and loneliness that can lead to mental and physical deterioration. Healthy seniors do
not need costly nursing homes or medical procedures. Not investing education funds in its aging population
means the state will wind up paying for increased medical costs in its health part of the budget.
Emeritus College which serves over 3,200 enrolled students from Santa Monica, Los Angeles, Culver City,
Pacific Palisades, Brentwood, Westwood, Encino and other areas is cost effective. Volunteers do most of the
clerical work. Operating for the past 37 years as part of Santa Monica Community College, it is a model in the
state for educating and improving the lives of seniors, surely a worthy governmental goal.
The UCLA Longevity Center promotes healthy aging lifestyles and strives to build a community that helps
people live better longer. Ranked by U.S. News and World Report as one of the top three geriatrics programs
in the entire country, UCLA has a long tradition of excellence in gerontology and geriatrics.
Sincerely,
Gary W. Small, M.D.
Parlow_Solomon Professor on Aging
Professor of Psychiatry & Biobehavioral Sciences
Director, UCLA Longevity Center
Director, Division of Geriatric Psychiatry