Like most young men of draft age during the Vietnam War, Lawrence McMahon knew that any delay in graduating from college could send him off to war.
Lawrence and Judith McMahon
As an economics major at the University of Tennessee-Knoxville in the early 1960s, McMahon needed to graduate in four years or face the strong possibility of deployment to Southeast Asia. So when as an upperclassman he considered changing his major to liberal arts, he had little choice but to keep working toward a business degree.
As it turned out, McMahon went to Vietnam anyway – as an officer in the U.S. Army. But he never gave up on his dream of pursuing a liberal arts degree. He began taking courses at the College of Charleston in 2003 and earned a degree in his first love, art history, in 2006. Now 72, McMahon has continued to audit courses every semester and has now amassed more than 175 credit hours.
McMahon and his wife, Judith McMahon, are among hundreds of senior citizens who participate in a program at the College that enables South Carolina residents 60 and older to take academic courses tuition-free, as long as there is space available.
Admissions officials and professors at the College say that older, non-traditional students add value to the academic experience of their younger classmates and that their continued thirst for knowledge and the life experience they bring to the classroom are a source of inspiration to the entire campus community.
“Our faculty really enjoy having them in class because they bring a different perspective,” said Dorinda Harmon, admissions director for special enrollments. “They just like to continue to learn.”
RELATED: Learn more about the Senior Citizen Program.
Lifelong Learning
When the senior citizen program was first started at the College in the late 1980s, it had only a few dozen participants. For the current semester, the College has about 330 senior citizen students.
Students in the program can take undergraduate or graduate courses. Most choose to audit one or two courses at a time, but some take full for-credit class loads and pursue degrees. One former student in the program, the late Maree McConnell of Charleston, earned multiple degrees at the College before her passing in 2011.
RELATED: Read an article about Maree McConnell.
The senior citizens come from all walks of life and professional backgrounds. Many have a previous connection to the College. Their ranks include alumni, parents of alumni, retired faculty and staff of the College and transplants.
The program’s students are often clustered around courses such as art history, studio art, Jewish studies, religion and political science. This semester, senior citizens are enrolled in eight different foreign languages.
Harmon said students in the program who take courses in business and sciences and mathematics are often retirees from those fields. “These are often retired professionals who don’t want to be bored and want to stay current on their former professions,” she said.
College Sweethearts
Lawrence and Judith McMahon, 1964.
Lawrence and Judith McMahon met when they were students at the University of Tennessee-Knoxville in the early 1960s. She was one year behind him in school. They married during his senior year in 1964. This November marks their 50th wedding anniversary.
They raised a family and built careers in Tennessee. When the couple relocated to Charleston in the early 1990s, Lawrence retired. Judith, a business management analyst, continued working. She was one of the earliest employees at Boeing Charleston before her retirement in 2010.
With his wife still working, Lawrence had free time on his hands. And having never lost his interest in the liberal arts, he jumped at the chance to pursue the degree that had eluded him as a young man.
Judith McMahon joined her husband as a student at the College after her retirement. They always take classes together. Many days, the couple can be seen strolling through campus, just as they did 50 years ago as sweethearts at the University of Tennessee-Knoxville. Only now, they tote an iPad to class.
With grandchildren nearly as old as their classmates, the McMahons say they try their best to blend in. There are times when class lectures or discussions may veer toward topics they know about first-hand – like the Vietnam era or European art – but for the most part they act just like any other students.
When he was working on his art history degree, McMahon participated in group projects and meetings outside of class, always conscientious about pulling his own weight. During the summer of 2006, he even went to Italy for six weeks to study art history with his professor and 23 other students. He says he has never once felt unwelcome by his professors or fellow students.
In fact, younger students have told the McMahons that they are an inspiration. The McMahons say the feeling is mutual. “It’s very inspirational as a senior citizen to be in class with these younger students and to observe their dedication to learning,” Lawrence McMahon said.
He also raves about his professors, particularly those in art history. He’s worked in business, been to war and traveled the world – he knows quality and dedication when he sees it.
Judith McMahon said she’s been so impressed with the intelligence and ambition of the students in her classes. “You often hear older people say that college students today have it easy. I don’t agree with that,” she said. “Today’s students are truly dedicated and work very hard for their degrees. Much harder, I think, than we did in the 1960s.”
Ambassadors for the College
Beyond the academic-related aspects, the program also helps bond the senior citizens to the College, Harmon said. Even students who had no previous connection to the College before entering the program become loyal supporters and ambassadors for the university. They attend athletic events, support the College through philanthropic giving and serve on academic advisory boards and other groups.
While demand for the senior citizen program is strong, Harmon stressed that degree-seeking students always receive priority in registering for classes. For that reason, the registration period for the senior citizen program begins the day after classes begin each fall and spring semester.
Program participants must be 60 years or older, residents of South Carolina for tuition purposes and not employed full-time with benefits. While tuition is waived, students in the program pay a $25 enrollment fee and are responsible for book and lab costs.
For more information about the senior citizen program, contact Dorinda Harmon at harmond@cofc.edu or 843.953.5934.
