Northwestern Graduate Students Host Virtual, Monthly Science Talks With Seniors

On the third Thursday of each month, Northwestern University graduate students meet virtually with seniors from the Levy Center for lectures on science and technology, reports the Chicago Sun-Times . "It's a good, brief overview on how these topics affect their lives as adults and seniors," says Levy Center Program Coordinator Tim Carter. "And it's a good way for the Northwestern students to reach out and share what they have learned about their studies." Northwestern's Suyog Padgaonkar conceived of the lecture series when he discovered that most of the school's outreach programs revolved around kids. "In terms of being able to provide information for people who currently vote, it just felt like that opportunity was a little bit lacking," he explains. "So the simple idea was to reach out to senior citizens because they vote a lot." COVID-19 forced the lectures to go online, according to Carter. He envisions the lectures as a counter to the social isolation seniors face, especially while staying home during the pandemic.