HANOVER — Women shouldn’t be intimidated by the stock market and investing, said Osher@Dartmouth instructor Joanie Miller. In fact, they should embrace it and use it to make money.
“Women are afraid of it,” said Miller, who will teach a class called “Beginning Stock Market Investing for Women” during the fall term. “That’s such a mistake.”
Miller has been investing in the stock market for more than 50 years. This is the Quechee resident’s third time teaching the course, which will take place on Thursdays from Sept. 19-Oct. 3 from 11:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. It is open to Osher members and costs $40.
“I wanted to do it because I am not a professional. Never have been. But I’ve always been interested in the stock market and mostly done my own investing,” Miller said, adding that many who take her class are older women or widows. “Women just think it’s a man’s responsibility. It’s not a feminine thing to do perhaps.”
That couldn’t be further from the truth, Miller said. Women, as consumers, have great sway in the market through the stores they frequent and the products they buy.
“Think about the companies here in the valley we can invest in,” Miller said, listing off stores such as TJ Maxx and Kohl’s.
It rarely occurs to women that they can buy stock in those companies and profit from them.
“I hope that women will educate themselves and want to make their money grow,” Miller said. “It’s really changed for women in the last 20 years. Now the internet has changed everything.”
While people used to have to go through a stockbroker to purchase stock and invest money, that is no longer the case. Investing can be done online and doesn’t require a high buy-in.
There’s also plenty of information on the internet about companies and how their stocks are performing.
“Take $20 a month. Make it grow for you,” said Miller, who spends about an hour researching the stock market each day. “You can be very safe and conservative.”
As a girl, Miller said, she would read her father’s copy of the Wall Street Journal and would talk to her father about the stocks he bought.
“I used to think business was fascinating,” said Miller, 86. “Back then, women never went into business.”
Her interest followed her into her married life. She remembers the moment in 1965 when McDonald’s was on the brink of going public.
“I said, ‘Husband, McDonald’s is going public today; do we have any money to invest in a couple of shares?’ ” Miller recalled. “Of course he said no.”
Miller’s then-husband said there was no way people would invest in hamburgers.
“That was the biggest mistake I made,” Miller said, pointing out how McDonald’s stock took off.
In the 1970s, she became involved in an investment club for women. As a group, they decided which stocks to buy and which companies to invest in.
“I just want women to have confidence and educate themselves that they can invest in the stock market,” Miller said. “It empowers you. It makes you feel confident. You say, ‘Hey I can do this. I have my own future.’ ”
This fall Osher@Dartmouth is poised to hold 96 courses.
“This is one of our biggest terms,” said Sarah Chamberlin, marketing and communications coordinator for the adult learning organization. “In fact, it might be our biggest term ever.”
Last fall, 1,315 spots were filled in 92 Osher classes. Some participants take only one course while others take more than one at a time.
This fall, Osher is adding another class location: the recently opened The Village at White River Junction. Three courses will be held at the senior living facility.
“It is a great space,” Chamberlin said.
While political courses have risen in popularity lately, art classes such as painting continue to be favorites year after year.
Here are some additional fall classes that Osher staff are excited about:
■“Women Challenging and Changing Power Around the World,” taught by Valerie Miller.
■“Shaker Lives from Maine to Kentucky,” taught by Kyle Sandler.
■“Everything You Wanted to Know About Stem Cells, But Were Afraid to Ask,” taught by David Pratt.
■“The History of the Tour de France,” taught by Peter Graves.
■“Feeding Africa — GM Foods and American Foreign Policy,” taught by David Henderson.
■“Is a Picture Worth a Thousand Words? Reading the Graphic Novel,” taught by Rosie Greenstein.
■“America’s Reluctant Rise to World Leadership,” taught by Bob Rougvie.
■“The Art of Cooking for One or Two,” taught by Lindsay Smith.
Editor’s note: For more information about Osher@Dartmouth courses or to register, visit osher.dartmouth.edu/ or call 603-646-0154. Liz Sauchelli can be reached at esauchelli@vnews.com or 603-727-3221.
