Encore Nation

Preparing boomers for encore careers

Terry Nagel — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 17:42:38 -0500

A new report profiles 10 community colleges that are attracting experienced workers, engaging local employers and helping prepare boomers for meaningful work in the second half of life.

Encore Colleges

PEACE CORPS ENCORE: 'Today is my someday'

Terry Nagel — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 16:24:26 -0500

A growing number of boomers are choosing encore careers with the Peace Corps. Spokeswoman Josie Duckett says in USA Today that applications of those age 50 and older have increased 50 percent since it launched a campaign targeting boomers last September.

Part of the appeal of the Peace Corps is that it was established by President John F. Kennedy, who was a role model for many boomers in their youth. The current campaign directed at boomers is called “Still Asking What You Can Do for Your Country?”

Loyci Stockey, 64, who recently left Seattle to start a Peace Corps assignment in Uganda, told USA Today that she never forgot JFK’s message when she heard it during high school. “I tucked it away in the back of my head to act on someday,” she said. “Today is my someday.”

Encore Nation

ENCORE JOURNEY: Alice Waters' Edible Schoolyard

Terry Nagel — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 14:07:39 -0500

Alice Waters wasn’t content to start a national revolution around organic and locally grown food. At age 64, she’s 12 years into an encore career to transform the way schoolchildren think about what they eat.

She spends the bulk of her time traveling, speaking and raising funds for her Edible Schoolyard project, which gives children the experience of planting, growing and preparing foods that they share together.

Encore Nation

ENCORE JOURNEY: Dentist spearheads low-income clinic

Jenny Griffin — Fri, 09 May 2008 19:20:28 -0500

Seymour Rettinger was devastated when his orthopedic surgeon looked at his arthritic fingers and told him he had to stop practicing immediately. Rettinger had been a dentist for more than three decades.

Now he has a new career heading a nonprofit dental clinic for low-income families in Middlebury, Vt.

He is amazed to find himself doing things he never imagined, like writing business plans, meeting with local funders to solicit grants and combing census data. He’s now working more than full time and loves his new career.

“The need is here,” he said, “and uniquely, I fill that void because I have the skill, the motivation and the time. And the time is the most important. I can give all my time to this.”

Encore Nation

ENCORE JOURNEY: Near-death experience gives anesthesiologist new purpose

Terry Nagel — Tue, 06 May 2008 19:43:47 -0500

Dr. Frank Artress’ encore moment came at 18,500 feet.

Climbing Mount Kilimanjaro was supposed to be a celebration of his 50th birthday, but it nearly ended in death for the cardiac anesthesiologist from Modesto, Calif.

Encore Nation

ENCORE JOURNEY: City manager recruits new local leaders

Terry Nagel — Tue, 06 May 2008 12:35:36 -0500

Frank Benest is stepping down in June as city manager of Palo Alto, Calif., after 36 years in local government. But he’s not retiring. Instead, he’s graduating to an encore career devoted to finding and preparing leaders to work in the public sector.

While serving as majordomo of one of California’s most innovative cities for the past eight years, Benest has laid the groundwork for a campaign to convince more people to work in local government. Come June, he’ll make it his primary concern.

Encore Nation

GENERATIONAL CHALLENGES: Candidates vie for older voters

David Bank — Wed, 30 Apr 2008 13:05:53 -0500

Move over, race, gender and even class. Here comes age as a major issue in the seemingly never-ending presidential campaign.

It’s not just the age of the candidates, even though John McCain, at 72, would be the oldest new president in history; Hillary Clinton, 60, is the quintessential baby boomer; and Barack Obama, though technically also a boomer at 46, has positioned himself as an antidote to the boomers’ decades-long divisions and self-absorption.

It’s also the age of the voters.

Encore Nation

Rewarding longer working lives

Terry Nagel — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 13:53:25 -0500

We’ve complained that politicians seem to prefer sticks to carrots when it comes to encouraging people to extend their working lives.

Senators Herb Kohl (D-Wisc.), Gordon H. Smith (R-Ore.) and Kent Conrad (D-N.D.) are offering some carrots, in the form of The Incentives for Older Workers Act. The bill would extend the Social Security bonus for recipients who postpone claiming their benefits beyond the “normal” retirement age. The change could mean bigger monthly checks — for life — for those who choose to keep working.

Encore Nation

ENCORE QUESTION: Are you covered?

David Bank — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 12:05:52 -0500

How are you handling health care coverage in your encore career or encore transition?

Securing adequate health coverage is perhaps the biggest challenge for people considering or embarking on their encore careers. Fear of losing coverage keeps many people from leaving their current jobs, while the inability to find or afford coverage can limit encore career options. Retiree health benefits are becoming ever more rare. Some employers (Home Depot, Starbucks) offer health coverage for part-time work, but few nonprofits and social sector employers have followed suit. High costs and exclusions for “preexisting conditions” often rule out individual coverage.

Encore.org is interested in how people are managing this challenge. Are you:

Getting employer-sponsored health benefits in your encore job?
Staying in your current job to keep health coverage?
Covered under a retiree health program, your spouse’s or partner’s plan, or Medicare?
Taking advantage of COBRA benefits?
Working at a part-time job in retail or elsewhere, primarily for the health coverage?
Paying for individual coverage, perhaps a high-deductible (“catastrophic”) plan?
Going without?

Encore Nation

ENCORE AFTER SCHOOL: Recruiting experienced adults

David Bank — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 15:01:57 -0500

The expansion of after-school programs for California children is creating encore opportunities for experienced adults interested in paid positions leading afternoon classes or offering specialized enrichment programs.

Encore After School, an innovative program to train and place experienced workers in after-school programs, is seeking about 40 people for positions in schools in Oakland and Santa Clara County. Training will begin in August for the school year beginning in September. Leaders of after-school classes (approximately 20 students) will work five afternoons a week, while those providing enrichment activities can work two or three afternoons a week. Pay levels will also vary.

Encore for Education