As They Bow Out of One Job, Some Retirees Prepare for an Encore

Retiring, but Not Shy: Aided by money from the MetLife Foundation, a think tank is launching a nationwide initiative that aims to help baby boomers prepare for “encore careers” in education, health care and social services. San Francisco-basedCivic Ventures says it will give $25,000 grants to 10 community colleges across the country to help them develop learning curricula that “match boomers’ experience, skills and interests” to post-retirement careers. MetLife Foundation, which has been around since 1976, is part of Metropolitan Life Insurance Co. Civic Ventures was founded about 10 years ago and runs several programs aimed at providing training and professional development to retirees and those preparing to leave the workforce. Its research found that two-thirds of Americans between 50 and 54 are interested in learning new jobs to improve the quality of their communities.