AARP will add social networking to AARP.org as part of an overall redesign expected to be completed early next year. Networking will be “a key component” of the overhaul, confirms Dave Irwin, spokesman for AARP Illinois. “Our members are tech-savvy and they’re looking for ways to network with one another,” he said. Social networking features were previewed for attendees of AARP’s big Life@50 event last month in Boston.

It’s no surprise AARP is getting on the Web 2.0 bandwagon. The association is watching social networking challengers like Eons emerge as serious online competition. Eons traffic was running close to AARP’s for several months, although AARP has pulled ahead again in August and September. Data from Compete shows Eons unique visitors at 788,605 in September, compared with 1,759,000 at AARP. Social networking is a great way to expand content on a site and attract viral buzz.

Would AARP members socialize on the association’s site? Maybe. AARP does get huge turnout at events like Life@50; interlacing real-world events with virtual networking can be powerful.

Civic Ventures and the Metlife Foundation announced a program of grants to community colleges to help foster training programs for Boomers interested in moving into health care and social services. Ten community colleges will each receive $25,000 grants. This is interesting because the huge network of community colleges across the U.S. could play a big role in training older adults for new careers. Civic Ventures also published a white paper outlining the opportunity, called “Encore Colleges.” The study notes a looming talent shortage in the public interest sector as boomers retire–but also points to data that “half of Americans in their 50s and 60s are interested in jobs that improve their communities–but [don’t] believe that finding such employment would be easy.”

The non-profit sector is bracing for a big wave of volunteer help in the years ahead as Boomers age and re-mix their career priorities. That’s the good news–and the bad– according to the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS), which released a report on trends in volunteerism March 7th at the at the Joint Conference of the American Society on Aging and the National Council on Aging. Seems Boomers are volunteering at higher rates than earlier generations–but retaining and keeping them engaged is proving tougher than expected for non-profits.

Key findings:

• The surge of aging Baby Boomers will increase volunteering by older adults by 50 percent by the year 2020 – and double the number of older adult volunteers by the year 2036.

• Boomers in their late 40s to mid-50s are volunteering at higher rates than did members of previous generations.

• The volunteer activities that hold most appeal for Boomers are management functions, music or performance, and tutoring, mentoring and coaching.

• The more often Boomers volunteer, the more likely they are to volunteer again.

• Boomer volunteers who engage in general labor or supply transportation regularly drop out of volunteering.

• Remaining in the workforce increases the likelihood that a Boomer will continue to volunteer.

Speaking at the conference, David Eisner—CEO of CNCS—worried about other stats in the study underscoring the need for non-profits to re-tool their approach to Boomer volunteers.

“They like challenging and substantial opportunities,” he said. “And they vote with their feet. We are looking at attrition rates among Boomer volunteers of 30 percent ever year. The non-profit sector is doing a poor job providing opportunities and the type of management of these volunteers it takes to keep them fulfilled.”

“Boomers are more discerning about the basics. If they feel their time is being wasted, they’ll drop out. So, the basics of volunteer management are important.”

CNCS administers the federal Senior Corps, AmeriCorps, and Learn and Serve America programs. The study, “Volunteering among older Americans” is based on data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and the U.S. Census Bureau.