Club - Students to Seniors

Students to Seniors believes that social interaction between students and the elderly is valuable to both generations, as members can learn from the experience of their elders while the aging population benefits from an opportunity to engage and connect with others. Originally founded by a neuroscience-focused student, the idea of Students to Seniors was based upon a growing body of research suggesting that a lack of total environmental enrichment can lead to neurodegeneration. Despite the sustained efforts of leading researchers around the world, no current cure or treatment exists for Alzheimer’s Disease or any other forms of dementia. Thus, our best bet to decrease the burden of neurodegeneration and its other effects on mental health in our senior population is by capitalizing on preventative mechanisms, such as environmental enrichment. Students to Seniors will accomplish these goals by bringing mentally stimulating activities and social interaction to various populations of the elderly at least once a month. In order to ensure that the organization, above all, does no harm, there will be a mandatory training session for all volunteers before their first volunteer outing. The training sessions will occur in place of a general body meeting, and will include a presentation and discussion on geriatric health. Students to Seniors will furthermore keep in mind the pervasive presence of health inequities, and it will be an interrelated focus of Students to Seniors to ensure that served and underserved populations are addressed equally and with great care. Lastly, this organization will include a learning component by hosting a speaker once a semester related to neurodegenerative disease.