What happens when you bring senior citizens and college students together?

You get paper. At least, that’s what happened in an art studio at Cedar Crest College this past April.

Gen Z college students coached baby boomers through every step of a process that yielded completely original cards, posters and journals.

The class was one of 23 offerings of the Institute for Learning in Retirement (ILR) offered in March and April on the Cedar Crest College campus.

Other course offerings ranged from astronomy to vaccines, including classes on Shakespeare, film, AI, and Qijong, just to name a few.

The papermaking class was a new offering.

“I loved it,” said Sheila Grove who is taking six classes this spring. “To be able to be creative and work with young people is great.”

Janet Seggern could not have agreed more.

“I had more fun than I could have imagined,” she said. “Interacting with students is really nice and I learned to make paper.”

The college students also enjoyed the experience.

It brought back memories for sophomore Kayla Morales.

“When I was little, I used to go to an assisted living home with my grandma, so I loved it,” the nursing student said.

Jordan Zeigler was surprised at how rewarding teaching others could be.

Though she never considered teaching youngsters, she found working with adults enjoyable.

“It was very fun and engaging,” she said, at the end of the three-week class.

Ziegler, an art major, has been constructing books since she was a youngster.

Both Morales and Ziegler were well acquainted with the process of papermaking and the resources available in the studio.

Papermaking can be traced to the imperial court of China nearly 2000 years ago when mulberry and other fibers were mixed with old rags and hemp waste.

In 793 the Islamic culture introduced papermaking to Europe.

The class was offered by Professor Jill Odegaard, who chairs the art department at Cedar Crest College.

“I really believe in community engagement,” Odegaard said.

“I wanted to bring community engagement into the studios and papermaking was the perfect studio.”

“Intergenerational [collaborations] are so powerful,” she continued. “Everyone develops a newfound respect for the other group.”

Odegaard has worked with a number of organizations including the Autism Society of the Lehigh Valley.

Their final projects were on display in the lobby at Alumnae Hall in celebration of Autism Awareness Month and Earth Day.