By Staff
Athletic Management, 17.3, April/May 2005, http://www.momentummedia.com/articles/am/am1703/wuagegap.htm
At Howard High School in Ellicott City, Md., the advanced weight training class isn’t just for students—it’s for senior citizens, too. In a partnership that began six years ago, Howard County General Hospital refers seniors to the school’s Advanced Weights class, where their progress is monitored by students, including student-athletes on the football, baseball, and track teams.
"People talk all the time about values education," says Howard Athletic Director Vince Parnell, "but very rarely do you see it working as well as it does here. I know that each student in the class is gaining something from it. There’s a genuine affection that bridges the generation gap, and it gives the students a new appreciation of their elders and a new sense of being part of the community."
Led by Physical Education Teacher Rick Oursler, the two-semester course meets five days a week, and is open to athletes and non-athletes who have previously taken Weight Training I and II. On Monday, Wednesday, and Friday mornings, the students lift on their own, and on Tuesdays and Thursdays, they spot for 15 to 25 seniors, who rotate around the room’s weight machines. The senior citizens also performing cardiovascular workouts on ellipticals, Stairmasters, treadmills, and stationary bicycles.
"This program was designed to help both seniors and students, both physically and emotionally," says Oursler, who took over the class three years ago when original instructor Dan Ross retired. "The students get to see older folks in a very different light, and they get to put their training to work, demonstrating the difference between good and bad lifting."
At the beginning of the year, the hospital trains and certifies each of the students in CPR, and in class Oursler maintains safety by closely supervising all activities as he walks from station to station. Concerns about liability are taken care of by the hospital, which processes all the paperwork, including the waiver that each senior signs to take personal responsibility for any injury that might occur.