EMU Today

YPSILANTI – New technologies are rapidly changing how people select and drive motor vehicles, and have the potential to significantly decrease crashes.

But drivers – including older adults – must understand how to use such technology in order to maximize their potential for greater safety.

Anne Dickerson, professor and director of Research for the Older Adult Driver Initiative (ROADI) at East Carolina University, will discuss such questions during her talk, entitled “Older Adults and Driving: Current Trends and Future Directions,” scheduled for 4 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 11 in the McKenny Hall Ballroom on the campus of Eastern Michigan University.

The talk is part of the annual lecture series by the Aging Studies Program at EMU, which is housed in the College of Health and Human Services.

Dickerson’s presentation will describe current trends of older adults’ use of technologies and potential opportunities and barriers along with how professionals working with that group can promote safety as motor vehicles become more complex.

The event is free and open to the public. A light hors d’oeuvres reception and driving resource fair will follow the lecture.

The EMU Aging Studies program seeks to meet the diverse educational needs of students interested in issues of aging. The interdisciplinary program emphasizes a life course perspective and addresses realities and myths of growing old. The goal is an education that enhances the ability to work with or on behalf of older people effectively and compassionately.

The program offers a 21-credit hour, interdisciplinary undergraduate minor in Gerontology; an 18-credit hour interdisciplinary graduate certificate in Gerontology; and a 13-credit hour graduate certificate in Dementia.

For further information, contact the EMU Aging Studies Program at 734-487-3220 or by emailing program director Andrea Gossett Zakrajsek at  azakrajs@emich.edu.

About Eastern Michigan University

Founded in 1849, Eastern is the second oldest university in Michigan. It currently serves 22,000 students pursuing undergraduate, graduate, specialist, doctoral and certificate degrees in the arts, sciences and professions. In all, more than 300 majors, minors and concentrations are delivered through the University's Colleges of Arts and Sciences; Business; Education; Health and Human Services; Technology, and its graduate school. EMU is regularly recognized by national publications for its excellence, diversity, and commitment to applied education. For more information about Eastern Michigan University, visit the University's website.