The Harvard Institute for Learning in Retirement will celebrate its 20th anniversary on Sunday, April 20, at a gala dinner at the Charles Hotel in Cambridge. The featured speaker will be Harvard President Emeritus Derek Bok, during whose tenure the Institute was founded.

An arm of Harvard's Division of Continuing Education, the Institute for Learning in Retirement is a membership organization which offers courses in a wide variety of subjects to approximately 500 retirees. All courses are designed and led by members themselves and are conducted in seminar format, involving active class participation.

As recent demographic studies show, society is aging rapidly as the overall health of its members improves and its elders live longer and more vigorous lives. In 1950, only one in 12 Americans was 65 or older; by 1976 the ratio had changed to one in ten, and by 2050, it is projected to be one in five. Many European countries already witness retirement at age 55; in the U.S., a similar trend is on the increase. After retirement, how will so many healthy, active Americans fill their days?

In the spring of 1977, Dean Michael Shinagel of the Division of Continuing Education established the Institute for Learning in Retirement based on the early British model of the University of the Third Age. In so doing, the University recognized the importance of cultivating the great wealth of accumulated knowledge of the retired community and the need for members of this diverse group to continue their intellectual growth in a meaningful and creative way. Since that time, over 1,200 men and women have taken part in the Institute's programs.

Through member-led study groups in fields such as history, philosophy, science, religion, music, literature, languages, and creative writing, the Institute offers retired individuals an opportunity to pursue intellectual interests in the company of their peers. In the 20 years since HILR was founded, over 200 institutes of learning in retirement have started across the country and around the world, many based on Harvard's model. A complete list of ILR's in the U.S. and Canada is available from the Elderhostel Institute Network, 56 Dover Road, Durham, NH 03824; (603) 862-0725.

Membership in HILR is not restricted to Harvard alumni or affiliates. For further information on joining HILR, contact Leonie Gordon, Director, 51 Brattle St., Cambridge; 495-4072; or e-mail: gordon@hudce.harvard.edu.