{"id":9752,"date":"2023-06-27T09:20:41","date_gmt":"2023-06-27T14:20:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin-new\/?post_type=campus_story&p=9752"},"modified":"2023-06-27T09:20:41","modified_gmt":"2023-06-27T14:20:41","slug":"walk-with-an-eagle-uwl-rec-therapy-program-benefits-students-and-adults-50-plus","status":"publish","type":"campus_story","link":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/story\/walk-with-an-eagle-uwl-rec-therapy-program-benefits-students-and-adults-50-plus\/","title":{"rendered":"Walk with an Eagle: UWL rec therapy program benefits students and adults 50-plus"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\"Photo<\/a>
The Walk with an Eagle program at UW-La Crosse matches recreational therapy students with older adults, with the goal of sparking social connections through the simple act of walking and talking. Part of UWL’s Community Engaged Learning program, the course is taught by Assistant Professor Jennifer Taylor.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

UW-La Crosse recreational therapy students are gaining soft skills and practical abilities critical to successful careers in health care \u2014 one step at a time.<\/p>\n

Assistant Professor Jennifer Taylor<\/a>\u00a0has partnered with AARP Wisconsin and UWL Community Engagement to launch the Walk with an Eagle program, the first of its kind in the state.<\/p>\n

The program, in its first semester, matches recreational therapy students with older adults, with the goal of sparking social connections through the simple act of walking and talking.<\/p>\n

\u201cThese students are training to become recreational therapy professionals, so it\u2019s important that they\u2019re able to build a rapport with the community, conduct assessments, and implement and evaluate programs,\u201d Taylor explains. \u201cThe focus is less on seeing how much physical activity you can do and more on the social aspect, building that rapport.\u201d<\/p>\n

Once a week, the students and their partners embark on a 45-minute walk around campus.<\/p>\n

The students track their partner\u2019s steps, assess how long and how far they walk each session, and make adjustments to the route as needed.<\/p>\n

But Taylor has been careful to ensure that none of these more clinical tasks detracts from the greater purpose of creating social connections. Students who can build meaningful relationships with clients, particularly older adults, will have a leg up when they enter the field, she says.<\/p>\n

\"Photo<\/a>
Each week, students and their partners embark on a 45-minute walk around campus. Students say they enjoy the chance to connect with older adults, as well as the chance to develop practical skills in recreational therapy.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n
\n

\u201cI\u2019ve heard from some of our walkers that this is the only time each week that they really interact with college students,\u201d Taylor says. \u201cWe want to make that time as special as possible. So it\u2019s amazing to see those interactions with students, all the stories they share with each other.\u201d<\/p>\n

Carter Baures, a junior majoring in recreational therapy, is no stranger to working with older adults. He began working at an assisted living facility in high school and quickly discovered it was his calling.<\/p>\n

\u201cNothing I\u2019ve found has made me feel as passionate as I feel about long-term care and working with older adults,\u201d says Baures, noting how much he has enjoyed the Walk with an Eagle program. As participation in the program has increased, he\u2019s taken on two additional walking partners.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve really enjoyed the hands-on-learning, the clinical experience and working on my communication skills,\u201d he says. \u201cYou talk with someone, and you see them smile, and it stays in your mind forever.\u201d<\/p>\n

Paige Coleman, a senior recreational therapy major, has had a similarly enriching experience.<\/p>\n

\u201cI previously thought I wanted to work with children with special needs, but this class has made me want to work with older adults, too,\u201d she says. \u201cMy partner and I talk about things going on in our lives, things going on in the community, what we did over the weekend. It\u2019s really nice to make that personal connection while helping them reach their goals and live a healthier life.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Photo<\/a>
Jennifer Taylor, assistant professor of recreation management and therapeutic recreation<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

While Taylor jokes that winter in Wisconsin may not sound like the best time and place to start a walking program, attendance has been consistently strong. The number of participants from AARP has grown from 10 to as many as 24, with many participants rarely missing a session.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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And although there\u2019s no escaping Mother Nature entirely, the class has been able to mitigate its effects by utilizing campus buildings in their walking routes \u2013 which has an added benefit.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s nice to see all of the new buildings around campus,\u201d says walker Bev, who earned a business degree from UWL in the mid-1990s. \u201cIt\u2019s fun walking and fun to learn about the students \u2014 where they come from, what they\u2019re interested in and what they plan to do.\u201d<\/p>\n

Liz, another walker, adds: \u201cThe fact that it\u2019s on campus and allows us to connect with students was (a draw for me). And it\u2019s exciting to be part of a pilot program.\u201d<\/p>\n

Darrin Wasniewski, associate state director of community outreach for AARP Wisconsin, says programs that support intergenerational connections are sorely needed.<\/p>\n

\u201cSociety has a way of segregating people based on age,\u201d he says. \u201cFor us, this is the first program in the state like this, and it\u2019s been great to see it come to fruition.\u201d<\/p>\n

While there are a few more walks scheduled this spring, Wasniewski and Taylor are already discussing the possibility of bringing it back in the future.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think we all realize it\u2019s too important of a program to let it go away,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

About the program<\/h3>\n

UWL\u2019s Community Engaged Learning program matches local businesses and organizations with faculty experts seeking real-world experiences and skill applications for their students.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Organizations can submit project ideas through the\u00a0<\/span>UWL Community Idea Exchange<\/span><\/a>.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Faculty\u00a0<\/span>can apply<\/span><\/a>\u00a0to have their course designated for Community Engaged Learning.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Written by UW-La Crosse University Marketing & Communications<\/p>\n

Link to original story: https:\/\/www.uwlax.edu\/news\/posts\/walk-with-an-eagle\/<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

UW-La Crosse recreational therapy students are gaining soft skills and practical abilities critical to successful careers in health care \u2014 one step at a time. Assistant Professor Jennifer Taylor\u00a0has partnered with AARP Wisconsin and UWL Community Engagement to launch the Walk with an Eagle program, the first of its kind in the state. The program, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":9755,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","institution":[104],"story_category":[],"class_list":["post-9752","campus_story","type-campus_story","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","institution-uw-la-crosse"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/campus_story\/9752","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/campus_story"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/campus_story"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9752"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/9755"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9752"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"institution","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/institution?post=9752"},{"taxonomy":"story_category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wisconsin.edu\/all-in-wisconsin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/story_category?post=9752"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}