Academy for Lifelong Learning

Pittsburgh native and Margaret Morrison Carnegie College alumna Gretchen Lankford (MM‘43, HNZ‘90) confesses her whole life has focused on education.


"Carnegie Mellon is my home," Lankford says. “I have always been active in alumni relations, and admissions.”

Lankford met her late husband, Bill, while he was a doctoral student at the Carnegie Institute of Technology. Several other members of her family are also Carnegie Mellon alums, including her son, John, who is the executive director of Executive Education at the Tepper School of Business. Lankford's brother, William Goldsmith, is an alumnus and an emeritus member of the university's board of trustees.

Shortly after earning her master’s degree in 1990 from what is now the Heinz School, Lankford discovered a way to combine her passion for learning with a desire to serve the university’s neighboring communities. The idea came from Steve Calvert (formerly assistant VP and director of alumni relations), who approached her about creating a lifelong learning program at her alma mater. Thoroughly intrigued, she cancelled plans to move to California to be near her children there, and instead, joined forces with Calvert. In 1992, Carnegie Mellon’s Academy for Lifelong Learning (ALL) was born.

For an annual fee of $40 plus a class registration fee of $50 per term, members can select from a catalogue of 70 to 80 courses. The courses are taught by talented community volunteers from many academic and professional environments, but more volunteer study leaders are needed if the academy is to meet demand; over 530 interested parties are on a waiting list to join ALL.

“From a quiet beginning, our membership now numbers 1200,” says Joe Scorpion, ALL’s administrative director. “It was a trickle that was to become the Mississippi. They keep coming, and we don’t advertise.”

Lankford’s commitment and leadership, along with the support of her board members, have been critical to the academy’s success. But, according to Lankford, it was “word of mouth” that turned ALL into the thriving educational institution it is today.

Lankford, Calvert, and the rest of the academy’s 41 founding members view the retirement years as ripe with opportunities to meet new people, learn new things, and perhaps discover a new interest or new aspect of oneself.

“It fills a great need for people in retirement,” says Lankford. “It has been for me—and others, I’m sure—a motivating factor. It keeps us young, keeps us engaged, providing stimulation and rejuvenation.”

Some courses are “sit, listen, and discuss,” as in the Introduction to Observational Astronomy, Fairness in the Media, and Great Novels and Writers Revisited offerings. Others, like the Writing Workshop and Gentle Yoga: Music and Relaxation, call for more participation. And then there are the students in the Trial by Jury course who learn the criminal justice system firsthand by performing a mock trial in the Allegheny County courthouse. If you happen to acquire the role of Teenage Defendant, you may find yourself wearing a wig and other accessories to dress the part!

“It’s a wonderful concept, continued learning in your aging years,” says Scorpion. “Education has no finish line.”

Currently under the leadership of president Pat Swedlow, ALL is one of the largest Institutes for Learning in Retirement in the nation.


Related Links:
Academy for Lifelong Learning
Campus bookstore, History of ALL