Impact of PDGR program is deep and wide
The Professional Development Grants for Retirees (PDGR) program is the only grant program in the United States to offer funding to retirees who want to continue their intellectual work. Whether in their academic field or starting something fresh, PDGR grant recipients can stay engaged for personal fulfillment and also for greater academic and societal benefit. Since 2009, the PDGR program has awarded more than 130 grants for a wide range of projects, from advancing international prevention science to documenting the life of civil rights activist and University leader Josie Johnson.
To date, these grants have helped to generate nine books, 48 journal articles, and an untold number of public and professional presentations. In addition, a mix of videos, websites, public exhibits, software, and educational material has been produced or updated with PDGR funding. Many of these achievements are recognized and used nationally and internationally, thus enhancing the reputation of the University of Minnesota.
Most grant recipients (71 percent) said the PDGR program was their only source of funding. More than half the others said their PDGR awards helped them to leverage additional funds.
Engineering Professor Emeritus Patrick Brezonik received nearly $680,000 in National Science Foundation and other grants. He said, “I am convinced that none of these grants would have been obtained without the seed funding the PDGR provided.”
Gaining new knowledge
In a survey of grant recipients from 2014 to 2019, PDGR grant recipients cite the benefits of gaining new knowledge and expanding professional networks. Many received recognition, requests for keynote presentations, and offers to organize sessions or write (or edit) a book on topics originally supported with a PDGR grant.
Emeritus Professor of History William D. Phillips Jr., to cite just one example, used his grant to study the ethnographic observations of foreign travelers in Iberia in the 15th and 16th centuries. “It enabled me to begin a successful post-retirement trajectory of scholarship,” he said.
Strikingly, more than two thirds of the projects have benefited society at large, both in the United States and around the world.
2014-19 PDGR-supported projects
Here is a sampling of the projects supported over the past five years.
Art. A dance film based on a refugee's memoirs of Nazi Germany; new metal sculptures, displayed worldwide.
Early modern history. Evidence of global trade through a study of dress and textiles in Nigeria; foreign travelers' views of slavery in 15th and 16th century Iberia.
Education and learning. A new approach in learner social identity for people acquiring a second language; a multicultural video series showing parent-child interaction, and a new company to disseminate the videos.
Environment. Determining water quality in lakes through remote sensing; how Spanish fishermen controlled the mainstay tuna population in the 14th to 16th centuries; a video series on the critical importance of mining to the U.S. economy and national security.
Exemplary achievement. A biography of a woman who contributed to the successes of both Planned Parenthood and the Boundary Waters Canoe Area; folk and fairy tales of a forgotten folklorist; early American Indian writers—the “founding mothers” of Native American literature.
Health. Using biostatistical data to develop approaches leading to better outcomes for younger AIDs patients; analyzing circadian rhythms in chronomics.
History. Interviews with women in Minnesota local government 1970–2000; archiving historic documents on campus religious organizations; collecting an oral history of the founders of early lesbian organizations in Minnesota.
The human condition. Suffering and quality of life; evolutionary developmental psychology theory on personality and how individuals respond to the environment.
Racial equity. Josie Johnson's civil rights memoir; a history of the U of M's early racial housing policies; an online anti-bias course for New York police.
Statistics. Summarizing large amounts of data with a single number; game theory.
A complete listing of the projects supported since 2009 can be found under Grants for Retirees on the UMRA website.
—Will Craig, member, UMRA Board of Directors
News
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UMRA’s Professional Development Grants for Retirees are intended to support projects related to University of Minnesota retirees' research, instructional or work history, or new scholarly interests that contribute to the academic reputation of the University.
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Professor Emeritus Alan Kagan has played many roles in his nearly 30 years of service with the University Retirees Volunteer Center. From assisting with phone calls to becoming office manager and eventually serving on and chairing the Volunteer Center’s board, Kagan helped build the organization into the robust operation it is today.
We’re already getting organized to identify and recruit members to step into leadership roles in 2027. As a well-informed and engaged UMRA member, you are invited to play a role in the process.
I’ve been an UMRA member for more than a decade and each year I’m impressed anew by the energy and dedication of the volunteers who do the work of the organization. I invite you to join in their efforts. But if that’s not possible, there’s something else you can do to help support UMRA: Renew your membership.
You don’t have to go far, and you don’t have to drink coffee. It’s the conversation that matters. It’s a new, experimental effort being organized by the wizards of UMRA; a meet-up of members who live in the same zip code.
Beginning January 1, 2027, the University of Minnesota is making updates to medical plans, the pharmacy vendor, and the Wellbeing Program incentive that apply to retirees and dependents enrolled in these plans.
The University of Minnesota has had a presence at the Great Minnesota Get-Together for 167 years. And on September 3, 2026, UMRA made its Minnesota State Fair debut to talk with fairgoers (on Seniors Day) about retirement and to promote opportunities to volunteer through our University Retirees Volunteer Center.
Like all of us, UMRA member Barbara Heinemann has been reflecting on 9/11 and life in the 25 years since then, with mixed feelings.
December 31 is the application deadline for UMRA’s 2027 Professional Development Grants for Retirees competition. Retirees from all five University of Minnesota campuses are eligible to apply. We invited Brad Hokanson, professor emeritus, UMN Department of Design Innovation, to tell us about the work supported by his 2026 grant to promote teaching creativity in high schools.
Meet UMRA member and volunteer extraordinaire Kay Louis. She devoted her career as an Extension educator — “bringing the University to the people” — to developing and providing programming for adults and youth.
The UMRA membership year runs from July 1 through June 30 of the following year. If you haven’t yet renewed your membership for 2027, it’s definitely time to do so!
UMRA has a Facebook group that is open to UMN retirees and others with close ties to the University, for posting messages about anything University- or retiree-related. Learn more.
This will be a new regular column where you can find organizational tasks that need your help! We are currently looking for help researching a new UMRA Membership Database and URVC volunteer database, and a co-producer for UMRA's Zoom webinars. See more details: