THE CENTER ON AGING

The Center on Aging is a unit in the Department of Health Services Administration in the University of Maryland College Park School of Public Health.  The primary purpose of the Center on Aging (COA) is to advance knowledge and promote the health and well being of persons aged 50 and over through basic and applied research, model development and demonstrations, public policy analysis, lifelong learning and education, and public and professional service. 

The COA was established in 1974 as an all-university center intended to foster multi-disciplinary research, education, and service activity within and across disciplines at the University of Maryland College Park.  The COA has achieved both national and international recognition as evidenced by strong success in external funding, effective participation in multidisciplinary activities nationally and globally, and demonstrated impact on public policy from work conducted.

Gerontology, the study of the processes associated with aging, is multidisciplinary in nature.  There is an ongoing need to educate practitioners, researchers, educators and the public on the rapidly growing body of knowledge concerning an aging population. 

The increase in the number of older Americans continues to outpace the increase in the population as a whole.  In the year 2000, there were about 35 million older persons, representing more than one in eight Americans and 77 million baby boomers.  By the year 2025, a staggering 62 million Americans will be 65 and over.   Rapid advances in technology and medicine have increased longevity and the potential for active lifestyles while simultaneously creating new challenges in the availability of opportunities for achieving meaningful and sustained engagement by baby boomers and older adults.