EngAGE Stories

EngAGE Founder & Executive Director Tim Carpenter shared this timely message from Marci Alboher, author of The Encore Career Handbook:

The Itch to Fix The World: from New Grads to Aging Alums

Graduation season is a time for celebration and reflection – for new-minted grads and in many cases, the adults who’ve helped them along the way. This month, some long-ago graduates are asking the same questions that young degree-holders share: What’s next for me? What matters most? Where can my talents, skills and passions make a difference in the world?

In my recent New York Times story, “Partnerships that Blend the Skills of Two Generations,” I wrote about a theme I frequently see: The cross-generational approach to solving big social problems, which runs counter to the conventional wisdom – generations in conflict, vying for jobs.

The story was the lead piece in the Times’ Booming newsletter, reaching millions online and – I hope – challenging people of every generation to think about how they can collaborate, combining the best attributes of the young and the seasoned. I hope you will find the story compelling and share it widely with friends on social media and through conventional networks.

Work with meaning is the golden ticket that idealistic new graduates often seek. On the flip side, many of those in midlife and beyond choose – or, ahem, are encouraged by circumstances – to ask the same kind of questions when a job situation shifts or ends entirely, or when life evolves and offers a return to the ideals and activism that inspired them.

This month, former New York Times executive editor Jill Abramson spoke with Wake Forest University graduates about their plans – and her own nervous excitement, in anticipation of her next act.  “We humans are a lot more resilient than we often realize,” she said, in a sentiment mirrored by so many on the cusp of an encore career. Down in New Orleans, Scott Cowen, outgoing head of Tulane University, wiped away tears and, complete with decorative parasol, danced across the stage with Wynton Marsalis, before talking about his own next act, when he’s looking forward to “my encore career and [a] return to what I enjoy most: the classroom.”  Cowan, following the same passion and instinct that led him into academic leadership, will close the long, satisfying circle by coming home to where his career first began. And it coincides nicely with Tulane’s announcement of its “encore careers” initiative within its alumni career services program.

Colleges and universities around the country are showing increased interest in helping alumni and others well past midlife prepare for new kinds of work with social impact. These schools recognize the importance of leveraging the part that people with years of experience can play in solving social problems, whether local or global, and are committed to providing pathways for those interested in exploring how they can help improve the world.  Schools like Pace University in New York City are crafting Encore Transition Courses to help people make the often-challenging shift into new roles. I had the honor of moderating an encore panel in Washington DC hosted by the Princeton Alumni Corps, an initiative that engages college alumni across the generations (from Princeton and beyond) in public service initiatives.

We’ll continue to report on higher-ed’s encore-focused offerings soon, so stay tuned.

Summer may be a time for beach reads and barbeques, but, between the hot dogs and lemonade, here’s to some serious talk – across the generations – about our ideas for improving our world!

Best,

Marci Alboher, author and Vice President of Encore.org