As
part of a Pace University project led by graduate students Kayla DiMuro
and Peter Rubeo, Seidenberg Professor Dr. Jean Coppola and Vice
President/CIO Tom Hull have sponsored the setup of a Geriatric Computer
Lab at New Rochelle’s United Hebrew Center. Pace has been very active
through Dr. Coppola’s Intergenerational Computing Program to perform
helpful projects and sponsor technology donations in order to help the
Center with a high quality of life for their residents. “We are very
excited to be able to provide technology from Pace to such an
outstanding Institution and we are honored to be helpful towards their
mission of improving lives” stated Pace VP/CIO Tom Hull. The Center is a
vibrant, not-for-profit, non-sectarian, multiservice senior living
campus nestled on 7.4 acres in New Rochelle, New York. Known for its
caring and nurturing environment, UHC has been serving the
Westchester metropolitan area since 1919, and works with over 600
clients daily through its rich array of skilled and community‐based
programs and services.
Kayla and Peter were part of the Intergenerational Service Learning
Computing course taught by Dr. Jean Coppola, Seidenberg. The computing
skills learned by the senior residents at the United Hebrew included
Internet usage and research techniques, e-mail, SKYPE, Google searches,
IM, and more which were led by Pace students enrolled in Dr. Coppola’s
course. This program’s objectives include improving the quality of life
for these residents emotionally, cognitively, and socially. The Pace
students in this course receive theory and training specifically geared
for teaching technology to the elderly.
The culmination of this course was a graduation ceremony on April 24 to
recognize United Hebrew’s senior residents who participated in learning
basic computing skills. At this event, Tom Hull and Jean Coppola
presented a plaque commemorating this collaboration to Linda Forman, VP
for Community Relations, United Hebrew. This has been a great
collaboration for both Pace and United Hebrew. Linda has been quoted
saying that the students working with these seniors form close
friendships “that last beyond the class” and “this program helps
residents feel they are not left behind”.
For more information on this program, go to: http://csis.pace.edu/gerontechnology
