St. Louis-based OASIS Institute receives American Society on Aging Award for Excellence in Training and Education

The American Society on Aging (ASA) has announced three national leadership awards recognizing significant contributions to the field of aging. The 2013 winner of the ASA Gloria Cavanaugh Award for Excellence in Training and Education is The OASIS Institute of Clayton, MO

Since 1982, OASIS has pioneered a three-fold approach to successful aging through lifelong learning, healthy lifestyles and community involvement. Providing educational programs in the arts, humanities, technology, wellness and volunteer opportunities, OASIS creates opportunities for adults ages 50-plus in more than 43 cities to pursue healthy, productive and meaningful lives. OASIS is recognized by the Social Impact Exchange’s S&I 100 index as a top-performing nonprofit that delivers results.

“We are thrilled by this opportunity to recognize OASIS centers and partners for the high-quality programs they offer adults over 50 across the country,” said Marciz Kerz, president of The OASIS Institute. “We believe there are key elements of educational excellence for our audience, including experiential learning, social engagement and evaluation of results. By partnering with community organizations we are able to bring these opportunities to a broad and diverse audience.”

OASIS will be honored on Tuesday, March 12, 2013, during the 2013 Aging in America Conference, held March 12−16 in Chicago, Illinois (www.asaging.org/aia).

OASIS joins two other winners of national ASA leadership awards – psychologist and gerontologist Ken Dychtwald, and researcher Jessica Taha, PhD. Dychtwald, president and CEO of Age Wave, is receiving the ASA Award for outstanding national contributions to service, research and advocacy in the aging field. Taha, winner of the Graduate Student Research Award, is a senior research associate at the Center on Aging at the University of Miami’s Miller School of Medicine.  

About OASIS: OASIS is a national non-profit organization that promotes successful aging through lifelong learning, health programs and volunteer engagement. The OASIS vision is to see that adults age 50-plus across the country have opportunities to pursue vibrant, healthy, productive and meaningful lives. Founded in 1982, OASIS has a national membership of more than 360,000 adults and serves 59,000 people annually through partnerships in 43 cities. The OASIS Institute in St. Louis is the national headquarters.