University of Minnesota Retirees Association

RSVP by 10/23.  One of UMRA's strategic goals is to increase our visibility and partnerships within the University, and we have an important opportunity to do so.

UMRA’s November 27 meeting will be the first of three “pilot program” luncheons for 2018–19, in the spacious West Wing dining room.  All members of the Campus Club will be invited. Our guest speaker, Kathryn Pearson, associate professor of political science and frequent commentator in the media, will be offering her analysis of the midterm elections. Be sure to save the date!

UMRA’s book group loved the gentlemanly demeanor and “glass-half-full” attitude of Count Alexander Rostov during his decades-long stay at the Hotel Metropol.

After 20 years of dedicated and extensive involvement as University Retirees Volunteer Center (URVC) office manager and project director, Alan Kagan has stepped down from his leadership role to complete writing the book he has been working on for several years.

Family Social Science Professor Bill Doherty spoke about his successful efforts to defuse  polarization and bring understanding across the red-blue divide in America today.

All University retirees from all campuses are eligible for awards of up to $5,000 to advance their projects.

Meet Cherie Hamilton, a member of UMRA since 2009 who has experienced many countries and cultures in a life’s journey that’s taken her from Manhattan to Minneapolis.

Support Lego robotics tournament involving grades 4-12.  Volunteers are needed in both technical and non-technical roles.  Several options of dates and locations.

Join the team to help seniors, low-income, disabled and otherwise disadvantaged taxpayers at metro-area sites prepare 2019 Tax returns.  Substantial training will be available and the volunteer effort continues through the 2019 tax season.

As we start the new year for UMRA, I’m excited by the opportunities and challenges ahead and I’m confident we will continue to find even more ways to enhance the experience of retirees and UMRA members.

With the beginning of our new program year, UMRA welcomes new faces and continuing members to its board and to its growing list of committees and affinity groups.

It was a busy summer for the University Volunteer Retirees Center (URVC), recruiting individuals to assist with events ranging from mock trials and the opening of the new Bell Museum to fresh produce distribution and the Minnesota Fringe Festival.

Longtime URVC Office Manager and Projects Director Alan Kagan will be stepping down at the end of September to complete a book for publication. Several people will be needed to continue his work.

Despite being written nearly a century ago, The Professor’s House by Willa Cather seems timeless. Cather gives us pause to explore the impact of technology and materialism on our lives and encourages us to engage in solitude and reflection.

Meet Ron Matross, a member of UMRA since 2013 whose first job was mowing lawns in Gardiner, Montana, at the north entrance to Yellowstone Park.

Consider contributing to understanding of attention and memory by volunteering to participate in a research study being conducted in the Psychology Department. 

Tutors wanted to with students on developing solid study skills and help with homework.  Murray Middle School near the U of M St. Paul campus offers a comprehensive tutoring/study skills support program during the school day as an elective class Monday through Friday during the last three class periods of the day from 11:08-12:08, 12:12-1:04 and 1:08-2:00 pm.

A new study entitled, Dynamic Effects in Peripheral Auditory Processing, will be conducted by the Psychology Department, and supervised by Dr. Magda Wojtczak of the Auditory Perception and Cognition Lab.

Study participants with normal hearing will be asked to detect the difference between two tones. Determination of "normal hearing" will be done in the lab. The study requires 5 or 6 two-hour sessions in the course of a month, and participants will be compensated $10/hour.