The Indiana University Center on Aging and Aged, in collaboration with the University of Florida, received a grant through the US Department of Education from the Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education (FIPSE) to provide ongoing gerontology and therapeutic education through a project called GET LINKS.

GET LINKS: Gerontology Education Through Linking into Networked Knowledge Systems is a project whose strategy is to provide basic and ongoing education in gerontology and therapeutic practice to professionals and staff members who work with older adults by coupling basic curriculum with distance education within a model that creates a network of active, ongoing learning communities.

GET LINKS will develop and implement distance education modules for students and professionals involved in the care and service of the rapidly growing older adult population. These web-based modules will be designed to improve and assess competency through integrating interactive learning activities with a thorough assessment of learner needs and outcomes. Students can earn professional certification through credentialing organizations, and/or earn a Minor or Certificate in Gerontology appended to a graduate or undergraduate degree from either Indiana University or the University of Florida.

While GET LINKS addresses the full range of issues associated with aging, the focus will be on applied therapeutic techniques. The distance education curriculum will center on educating and training staff to provide the best possible care and service to an increasingly diverse and dynamic older adult population. Modules will be inquiry based in their design, that is they will be problem-, project-, and case-based learning; modules will present students with real world dilemmas and tasks.