Pitt's "Generations Together" Names New Director

July 2, 2001

PITTSBURGH—James McCrea has been named the new director of Generations Together (GT), a program of intergenerational studies at the University of Pittsburgh that promotes mutually beneficial interaction between the young and old, through education, community outreach, and research.

McCrea, a leading member of the GT staff for nearly 10 years, succeeds Sally Newman, the founder and executive director of GT since 1979, who is going to pursue intergenerational work around the world, and edit an academic journal.

McCrea has managed programs that unite senior citizens with children, teens, and college-age individuals. He has conducted more than 40 local, state, and national workshops on intergenerational service learning—gerontology students applying what they have learned in the classroom in a setting with older adults. He will continue to direct "Building an Intergenerational Service-Learning Infrastructure in Gerontology," a 5-year-old federally funded program that is integrating gerontology courses at 66 colleges and universities with these types of service-learning experiences.

Another of McCrea's major projects is assisting individuals who choose to make intergenerational work their profession. He manages the first-of-its-kind Intergenerational Specialist Certificate Program, a noncredit continuing education program that provides 100 hours of professional development and skill building.

McCrea has written 13 publications, including Talking to Children and Teens About Alzheimer's Disease, and has coauthored the book, Intergenerational Programs : Past, Present, and Future. He has the Bachelor of Arts degree in sociology from Duquesne University, the Master of Public Works Administration degree from Pitt, and is working toward the Doctor of Education degree at Pitt. He has served as a Collegiate Service learning fellow with Pennsylvania Campus Contact, and is president of the Pennsylvania Association for Volunteerism.

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7/2/2001