Washington man retires, goes back to college

CEDAR FALLS — Aug. 22 was a big day for countless students across the country, as a wave of schools, public, private and collegiate, returned to classes.

Dan Henderson, attending the University of Northern Iowa for the master’s program in public history, was an outlier among those students. For one thing, he already had a master’s degree, albeit in education, not history. For another, he had retired three days prior.

“It was a pretty fast transition, but I had planned it that way,” Henderson said. “I just don’t want to have nothing to do. I’m not good with vacations and downtime, so the busier I stay, it seems like the more content I am … I have no intentions at all of retiring and playing golf and watching TV. As long as I have my health and my mind — the marbles — as long as I feel sharp, I’ll continue doing this.”

Henderson spent a 15-year career as a teaching consultant, training teachers and administrators at a wide variety of school districts. While the work was fulfilling, his true passion has always been history.

“As I approached retirement this year, I started planning this,” he said. “It actually coincides with a lot of what I want to do, in terms of Washington for Justice, which has a lot of historical components to it; publishing some books, personal family histories, that sort of thing. Down the road, I’m thinking about maybe starting a history travel tour company.”

A master’s degree is arguably overkill to accomplish some of those goals. Still, Henderson said he felt it would be enlightening.

“I have a lot of experiences and have learned a lot of things, but all it’s taught me is there’s a lot I don’t know yet,” he said. “The minute you reach a point where you feel like, ‘Well, there’s nothing left for me to learn here,’ I think you’re doomed … You’ve got to maintain that curiosity and the humility.”

The public history program, specifically, called to him. Focused on the role of history outside the classroom environment, UNI was among the first schools to offer the program, according to the University’s website.

“(It’s) the public-facing nature of history, how we do history for the public that isn’t necessarily trained in historical methods,” he said. “To do it in a way that’s accurate, that’s authentic, and true to the subject … in a way that’s respectful of the historical process.”

Henderson said his age offered perspective he lacked when first pursuing his degrees almost 40 years ago.

“I think in some ways, my age is a real benefit more than it is a challenge, knowing what I don’t know,” he said. “Also, in terms of the discipline it might take to read 10 books in the next three, four months, write the papers and actually engage in that sort of academic discussion … it’s not like I’m walking into college for the first time.”

That doesn’t mean it’s not an elephant in the room. At least one of his professors calls him “Mr. Henderson,” a habit not applied to other students.

While many students live off-campus, the distance from Washington County to Cedar Falls is greater than most commutes. Henderson spends Monday nights at low-cost Airbnbs closer to school. Without Wednesday or Friday classes, he can sleep at home every other night of the week.

While that may sound like a hindrance to college social life, Henderson said he’d made plenty of acquaintances through his internship, and wasn’t especially bothered by it.

“When I was an undergrad, and even for my first grad program, that socialization was there and it was important, so I spent probably too much time socializing … now, I’m here to learn,” he said. “At the history building there was a meet-and-greet, both undergraduate and graduate. I was invited, but I wanted to go see my grandson’s football game in Des Moines, so I skipped. Most students don’t have grandkids, so my priority is very different.”

Henderson expects the coursework to be more demanding than his time in the workforce. With deadlines and structured days to think about, he said things were faster paced.

“That’s OK with me, I’m OK with that,” he said. “But it is different from the work environment I was used to.”

A lot has changed about college life in the decades since Henderson got his first graduate degree. He said the improved accessibility stood out to him.

“I sit next to a handicapped student in one of my classes, he comes in on a wheelchair … or hard of hearing, there’s several people, myself included,” he said. “I don’t sense any ageism. The only thing I worry about is, because of my background and experience, you wonder sometimes if students think you’re trying to just show off in the questions you ask, in the comments you make.”

Technology, especially the internet, represents another major change since the early ‘80s. Henderson has some catching up to do in that department.

“The first night, the professor said, ‘The syllabus is on Blackboard,’ and I’d never used Blackboard before,” he said. “The other students knew where it was, so I simply had to say, ‘Doctor, where do I find that?’”

In general, however, the 66-year-old said technology improved the college experience.

“I doubt I’ll spend much time in the library physically anymore because all of the special collections, all of the databases, are online,” he said. “All in all it’s a positive change … just registering for classes, you used to stand in line for hours to do that, back in the old days. Now I just go online and pick a class and buy my books, all of that.”

Thus far, Henderson said his return to campus life was going well. People have been helpful, classes have been engaging and Henderson said the college experience was “almost like riding a bike,” as he fell back into nearly 40-year-old academic habits.

On top of all that, Henderson said it was rewarding.

“Seniors need to not limit themselves, particularly as we live longer,” he said. “It’s never too late to go back, and the good part of it is, colleges and universities really like having older students … not only for the funds, but I think it adds something to their environment that they don’t have from kids coming right out of high school … I would encourage people, if they’re ever thinking about it, they ought to give it a try.”

Comments: Kalen.McCain@southeastiowaunion.com