Do you believe in MAGIC?

Kyrié Carpenter, a member of aging expert Dr. Bill Thomas' team, will be teaching the HP490 MAGIC course again during the Spring 2019 semester. This course is an introduction to the MAGIC pilot project between Dr. Bill Thomas and USI. MAGIC stands for "Multi-Ability, multi-Generational Inclusive Communities." The MAGIC course is open to USI students, community members and USI employees, which will result in a class roster that is intergenerational.

During the course, participants will explore the dynamic complexity of building inclusive communities for people of different ages, abilities and backgrounds. With the help of Kavan Peterson, also with Thomas' team, students will learn to use a repertoire of facilitated activities called Liberating Structures to continue this work in their community.

This one-credit hour course will be offered twice as a two-day intensive during the Spring 2019 semester:

• Bi-Term I - HP 490.901
  Friday, January 11, 3 to 8:30 p.m. and Saturday, January 12, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
  
  
• Bi-Term II - HP 490.902
  Friday, March 29, 3 to 8:30 p.m. and Saturday, March 30, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Carpenter is a radically pro-aging and dementia positive coach and thinker. Her passion for story led her to a career in film, studies in depth psychology, and ultimately her work with aging.

For the past two semesters, Carpenter has taught the MAGIC class at USI, and said her students are "really internalizing the ideas and experimenting in their lives." She shared this comment from one of the students: "After the last class, I really tried to get rid of the age line that I have drawn in my head. I was able to look at people the same and tried my hardest to treat everyone the same without judging them by their age. One challenge that I faced was that some people around me did not have the same mindset."

Over the past year, Thomas and his team led the MAGIC Project at USI, a collaboration among students, faculty and community members. This fall, a universally-designed Minka house was constructed on the USI campus, which will be the model home for MAGIC communities and a tangible representation of MAGIC on campus. Minka blends centuries-old Japanese construction techniques with robot-driven manufacturing tools and innovative technology to create housing that meets the needs of the people who live in them.

USI students may register for the HP490 course through the regular registration process, and community members can sign up through Outreach and Engagement.

Follow MAGIC updates at USI.edu/magic.