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View
previous questions and voting results
| IMPORTANT NOTE.
The results of these Web polls are strictly advisory to the
Board, Executive Director and committee chairs. For questions about
OLLI and its programs, your feedback is
important to them in determining the best way to improve our program
and resolve operational issues, but there is no guarantee of action in
response to the preferences expressed by voting members. HOW TO VOTE AND VIEW RESULTS
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Previous questions of the week
Feb 22, 2008
question was: "What type of Internet service do you have"
Results:
146 members voted, more than 21 percent of members with email
addresses. Of voting members, almost all those with some form of access
to the Internet now have a high-speed ("broadband") connection.
- Broadband via cable
--58%.
- Broadband via Verizon FIOS -- 24%.
- DSL (Digital Subscriber Line) broadband
-- 14%.
- Broadband via satellite -- 1%.
- Dial-up modem -- 3%. Back
to questions
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Feb 23, 2007
question was: "If OLLI supplied
an attractively packaged gift certificate that would pay all or part of
your yearly dues, which of the following would you likely do?"
Results:
Forty members voted, or about five percent of the total membership.
- Most -- 70 percent -- said they would do
nothing;
they were not interested in the gift-certificate idea.
- One quarter said they would pass on an
OLLI gift
certificate to significant others as a gift idea.
- A few -- five percent -- said they would
send the
office the names and addresses of possible givers so OLLI could propose
the gift-certificate idea without direct involvement of the member. Back to questions
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Dec 1, 2006 question was:
"How thoroughly did you review the packet of information [about the
bylaws revision] mailed to you prior to the vote?" Results:
- Thirty two members voted (about four
percent of the
total membership).
- Two-thirds of those who responded voted
after reading
the packet thoroughly;
- 19 percent voted after only glancing at
the packet;
- 12 percent didn't vote
after looking at
the packet;
and
- Three percent said, "What packet?" Back to questions
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| June 9, 2006 question
was: "When would you
prefer
Board candidates to
give their speeches?" |
| Results: Thirty-two
members voted, about five percent of the online membership. Most (62
percent) voted to have candidates give their speeches at the start of
voting but also to post videos of their speeches on the Web; 22 percent
voted to provide candidates' biographies and photos but forget the
speeches; and nine percent were fine with choices 1 (Like
2006 [one month after ballots sent
out]), 2
(At start of
voting process) or 3
(Same as
2 but post videos on Web). Three percent voted
for choice 1 and
another three percent for choice 2. Back
to questions. |
| June 2, 2006 question
was: "When
did you vote
and did the candidates' speeches at the Annual Membership Meeting
("AMM") influence your vote?" |
| Results:
Sixty
members voted in this Web poll, roughly 10 percent of members with
email. Fifty-two percent voted for Board candidates before the
meeting and another 15 percent voted afterwards but didn't attend the
meeting, so a total of 68 percent -- or two-thirds -- voted for Board
candidates without hearing them speak. Thirteen percent couldn't or
didn't vote. Only 18 percent said that the
candidates' speeches influenced their vote
(they voted after attending the
annual meeting). Back to questions. |
| Mar 17, 2006 question
was, "What would you like to see MORE of in OLLI E-News?" |
| Results: About 20 persons
voted. One third wanted to see more newsflashes, alerts and
reminders about upcoming OLLI events. One quarter wanted to see more
editorials and op-ed articles, and 20 percent wanted to see more
feature articles. Ten percent wanted to see more profiles of
individuals. Back to questions. |
| Mar 10, 2006 question
was, "What email system do you use to receive OLLI E-News?" |
Results: 79 members voted, about 11
percent of the membership. Not surprisingly, about a quarter (24
percent) of
voting members use AOL, which is probably the most widely-used Internet
Service Provider by OLLI members. Sixteen percent used Web-based
email, which works from any computer, anywhere (although we hope that
no one is
still using GMU Webmail to read our newsletter -- see our warning at
the bottom of the newsletter). Fifty-two percent used a desktop email
system, with more than half of these -- 28 percent of all voters --
using the popular Windows Outlook Express. Finally, eight percent use a
Mac email system, which implies that a higher percentage of OLLI
members use Macs than in the general population. Back
to questions.
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| Mar 3, 2006 question
was, "Which of the following choices best describes your exercise
habits most days?" |
Results: 69 members voted, about 10
percent of the membership. More than one third (36
percent) say they typically exercise moderately to intensely for 30
minutes or more. Twenty-five percent say they exercise intensely for 45
minutes or more, and another 25 percent say they exercise moderately
for 20 minutes or more. Nine percent say they exercise lightly to
moderately for 10 minutes or more. Three percent say they exercise
lightly to moderately for less than 10 minutes, and another three
percent say they are physically unable to exercise. Back
to questions.
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| Feb 3, 2006 question
was, "Which of
the following options would you prefer to improve the OLLI classroom
experience?" |
Results:
133 members voted, almost 20 percent of the membership. Forty-one
percent voted for no
change, and 29 percent voted for a 1-2 minute stretch break halfway
through the class period. Two choices each received nine percent: a
5-10 minute restroom break and new, better-padded chairs. Stadium
cushions received seven percent, and reducing the class length to 75
minutes received six percent. Back to questions.
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| Jan 20, 2006 question
was, "Which one of the following
choices best describes you, based on the majority of your work
background??" |
Results:
A total of 92 members voted, more than 13 percent of the membership.
Many were Retired gov't./non-profit org. employee (42 percent), with
the next highest categories, Retired teacher/academic (24 percent) and
Retired corp./business/firm employee (18 percent). Eleven percent were
Retired military. Back to
questions.
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| Dec 16, 2005 question
was, "What class size do you prefer
-- mega;
large; medium; small; or very small?" |
Results:
A total of 69 members voted. Most chose medium-sized classes of 30-59
attendees (49 percent) and small classes of 11-29 attendees (39
percent). Twelve percent didn't care or had no opinion. Note: We recognize that it was difficult to
answer this question because the ideal class size depends on the type
of class, and there was no way with our multiple-choice format to
accommodate this. Back to questions.
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| Dec 9, 2005 question
was, "Board meetings are open to all
OLLI
members. What is the primary reason that you do not attend Board
meetings?" |
Results:
There was a low voter turnout, with only 24 members voting. The most
popular
choices were "Not worth the trip to Tallwood," with 36 percent, and "No
need, the Board
represents us," with 32
percent. Sixteen percent said "I have attended Board meetings," and 12
percent said "I plan to attend Dec 16 (budget review)." A small number
(four percent) said they were "Not interested." Back
to questions.
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| Dec 2, 2005 question
was, "Which one of the following
categories of
courses would you MOST like to see more of in future OLLI catalogs?" |
Results:
A total of 66 members voted, almost 10 percent of the
membership. The most popular choice by far (41 percent) was "History
& Current Events." Four other choices had significant but much
lower popularity: "Art, Music, Drama" with 18 percent; "Literature,
Languages" with 15 percent; "Philosophy, Ethics, Religion" with 12
percent and
"Science, Health & Technology" with 11 percent. Only three
percent voted for "Economics and Finance." Back to
questions.
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| Nov 18, 2005 question
was, "What is your
preference on the length of time between the three classes?" |
Results:
A total of 112 members voted, approximately 16 percent of the
membership. Half of voting members voted to keep the schedule the way
it is now (9:30-11:00, 11:30-1:00, 2:00-3:30), with no change. A third
voted for only 30 minutes between all classes (i.e, the third class
would
run from 1:30-3:00 rather than 2:00-3:30). Sixteen percent voted for 45
minutes between each
of the three classes. (i.e., 9:30-11:00, 11:45-1:15, 2:00-3:30). Back to questions.
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| Nov 11, 2005 question
was, "What type of
Internet service do you use?" |
Results:
More than 80 members voted, or 12 percent of the membership. A large
majority, more than three-fourths of voting members, use
high-speed Internet service
("broadband"), most via cable modem and the remainder via DSL (Digital
Subscriber Line) service. Slightly under one quarter of voting members
use the much-slower
dialup modem service for Internet access. Back to
questions.
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| Nov 4, 2005 question
was, "Do you want to
keep using an offsite location like the church for large classes, or do
you prefer to hold all classes at OLLI even if class size must be
capped at 80?" |
Results:
Interest in this question was exceptionally high, with
a new record of 136 members voting -- almost 20 percent of the
membership. A majority, 57 percent, voted to keep using an
offsite
location, including three percent who want a closer site than
Christ Lutheran Church. A large minority, 42 percent, voted to hold all
classes at
Tallwood, including 12 percent who voted to build a big modular
classroom at Tallwood. Back to questions.
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Oct 28, 2005 question
was, "How often do
you visit the OLLI Website?"
Results: Seventy-two percent of voters
visit our Website at least weekly. Nine percent visit monthly, and
another 14 percent visit quarterly. Five percent never visit the
Website except to vote on the Question of the Week. Back
to questions. |
Oct 21, 2005 question
was, "Should OLLI
News/E-News continue publishing letters to the editor and to Ms. Ollie
Ettakit?"
Results: A
record high number of members participated (108). Members
overwhelmingly said "Yes" (85 percent of voters). Thirteen percent
voted to drop Ms. Ettakit, two percent to drop both. Back to questions.
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Oct 14, 2005 question
was, "Should
registration procedures be changed from
"first-come, first-served" to a lottery system?"
Results:
Voters
overwhelmingly said "No" (78 percent of voters). Only 16 percent
voted "Yes." Back to questions. |
Oct 7, 2005 question
was, "If you were to join
other
OLLI members on a European
travel/learning experience, which of the following destinations would
you prefer?"
Results: A
record high number of members voted, 94. Ireland led the voting with 22
percent, and close behind were Italy and "Any of the above"
destinations, with 20 percent each, followed by Spain with 15 percent,
Greece with 12 percent, and Turkey with 11 percent. Back
to questions.
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Sep 30, 2005 question
was, "HOW DID YOU LEARN ABOUT OLLI?"
Results: By
far the biggest response
was, "From a spouse or friend," with almost 75 percent of the votes.
The "Other" choice received 11 percent, and the remaining choices each
received less than 10 percent. Think about the implications of these
results on how we could increase our membership! Back
to questions.
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Sep 23, 2005 question
was, "Might
you be interested in joining other OLLI members in an international
travel/learning experience?"
Results:
Only 13 percent voted "No." By far the biggest response was
"Yes--Europe," with more than 40 percent of the votes. A distant second
was "Yes--Asia," with 17 percent of the votes. Back
to questions.
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How to vote and view
results. To vote, select one answer and click Vote. To view the
results, you must have voted, and you need to have cookies fully
enabled (instructions are highlighted in red below). If you are
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Now
you should be able to vote and view results.
Copyright © 2008 Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at
George Mason University. Materials in this publication subject to
OLLI-Mason copyright may be reproduced for noncommercial educational
purposes as long as credit is given to OLLI-Mason.
Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at George
Mason University, 4210 Roberts Rd., Fairfax, VA 22032-1028
Phone: (703) 503-3384; Email: olli@gmu.edu;
Fax: (703) 503-2832
Original site design and construction by OLLI-Mason member Rod Zumbro. |
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