NRTA Celebrates its 60th Anniversary
NRTA members in Hawaii in 1966.
The 60th anniversary of NRTA: AARP's Educator Community is an important milestone and provides an opportunity to reflect on our rich past and look to our shared future.
It was in 1947 that our founder, Dr. Ethel Percy Andrus, created NRTA as a national organization to address the economic challenges and health insurance needs of educators in retirement. She also brought an element of fun to NRTA as evidenced by her support for membership travel programs and conferences.
Dr. Andrus would be thrilled to know that NRTA is celebrating its 60th anniversary with one of her other "creations" — AARP! Many people aren't aware that in 1958, eleven years after forming NRTA, Dr. Andrus founded AARP so others could have the benefits of an organization working to provide a secure future for older adults.
On Saturday, September 8, 2007, nearly one thousand AARP members and educators participated in the anniversary celebration on the final day of the Life@50+ event. The dynamic opening session included Dr. Robert Ballard, the discoverer of the Titanic, who shared his lifelong quest for learning and adventure. A panel discussion on technology-enabled volunteers, moderated by PBS NewsHour correspondent Jeff Brown and featured Dr. Walter Bender and Dr. Bobbi Kurshan of One Laptop Per Child and Curriki, respectively. The session closed with powerful and inspirational remarks from four-time presidential advisor David Gergen, who is currently the director of Harvard’s Center for Public Leadership. The day ended with a celebratory reception at which Dr. Andrus’ two grand-nieces attended. We have no doubts that Dr. Andrus would be thrilled to know that her two “creations” – NRTA and AARP – are still going strong and helping others after all these years.
