Hurley School Board OKs 'Seniors to Seniors'

By RALPH ANSAMI

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Hurley — The Hurley School Board on Monday gave its blessing to a “Senior to Senior” project designed to bring the younger generation closer to their elders.

Mark Marczak, head of the Iron County Senior Citizens Center, said there’s a “generational gap” between students and senior citizens and he’d like to bring them closer together.

The high school students will help senior citizens with tackling social media, such as using Facebook.

Marczak said many elderly people have reservations about using computers.

He said through service learning projects, “Both (students and the elderly) can learn from each other.”

One of the areas where students can benefit is simply by making eye contact with the elderly, school board members were told. In an age of communication by social media, learning by simple conversation has taken a back seat, board members were told.

Shannon Peterson, senior class advisor, said students can help out with iPads and they are eager to teach the elderly.

Peterson said the students will write about their experiences with the senior citizens.

Other plans are for the students to tour the Iron County Museum and mingle with Historical Society members.

Marczak said the program could lead to exploring other ideas down the road, possibly including fund-raising efforts.

“There’s a lot we can do. I hope we can bridge this generational gap,” Marczak said.

A meeting will be held in October to get the ball rolling for the program.

The school board unanimously approved the Senior to Senior program after hearing a presentation that also included middle-high school principal Melissa Oja, who also sees potential in the project.