Liepāja's Seniors' Growth Academy: From Weeding to Artificial Intelligence
The Seniors' Growth Academy run by Liepāja's Education Board has graduated ten groups, and demand exceeds the available places. Its head says some graduates have returned to work or started small businesses.
In Liepāja, a city in western Latvia, the Seniors' Growth Academy has operated for several years under the city's Education Board. Older residents learn new skills there free of charge. The programme is led by Agnese Lejniece, head of the Personal Growth and Development Department, who calls herself the academy's "class tutor". She described how the idea came about and what the academy offers in an interview with the magazine "Likums un Taisnība".
How it began
The idea emerged after the Covid-19 restrictions, when studies showed that seniors worldwide had been staying at home for long periods. In 2021 the Education Development and Methodological Support Centre started work, and its new department began handling adult education. A tenth group graduated this summer, and the eleventh is due to begin this month.
There is no fixed timetable. At the first meeting, participants name the topics they want, and each group gets its own plan. Typical choices include digital skills, artificial intelligence, yoga or physiotherapy, candle and soap making, floristry, first aid and family history research. The academy has also held Art Nouveau architecture walks, sessions in a community garden and a meeting with a lawyer about inheritance and pensions. All classes take place in person.
Participants and results
More than 200 people have graduated, mostly women; seven were men. The oldest participant was 87. People also travel from the neighbouring South Kurzeme municipality, as Liepāja's city council signed a cooperation agreement with it in 2021.
Lejniece says one graduate became a certified nanny, others began home production or sell their handmade items, and some became carers or volunteers at events linked to the European Capital of Culture.
Funding and needs
The academy is funded only by Liepāja's municipality, and the amount changes each year. The money mainly goes to lecturers' pay and study materials. Each group has a maximum of 20 places, while 40–50 seniors want to study. Lejniece believes attitudes toward seniors in Latvia need to change.
