The Opening Ceremony of the Refreshment University, organized under the 60+ Refreshment University Project in collaboration between Kırşehir Ahi Evran University and the Ministry of Family and Social Services' General Directorate of Services for the Disabled and Elderly, was held. The event took place on October 16, 2024, at the 15 July National Will Hall of the Ahi Evran Congress and Culture Center, attended by Kırşehir Governor Murat Sefa Demiryürek, Rector of KAEU Prof. Dr. Mustafa Kasım Karahocagil, Kırşehir Family and Social Services Provincial Director Murat Konan, Vice Rector Prof. Dr. Musa Özata, Secretary-General Dr. Hüseyin İlter, deans, directors, academic and administrative staff, and students.

The ceremony began with opening speeches from two Refreshment University students, Fati Kıraç and Muzaffer Ülger, who expressed their gratitude for the opportunity to pursue university education and to develop a positive mental attitude. 

Following them, Kırşehir Family and Social Services Provincial Director Murat Konan delivered a speech. He highlighted the ministry’s commitment to integrating elderly individuals into social life through such projects and emphasized the significance of the collaboration with Kırşehir Ahi Evran University.

After Kırşehir Provincial Director of Family and Social Services Murat Konan, Rector of KAEU Prof. Dr. Mustafa Kasım Karahocagil took the floor. In his speech, Rector Karahocagil said that with the increase in the average life expectancy in the world and in Turkiye, the elderly population has also increased, and in this context, he noted that our university voluntarily opened its doors to the Refreshment University program within the framework of our university's understanding of social responsibility and that the faculty members who gave lectures were also working on a voluntary basis. Prof. Dr. Mustafa Kasım Karahocagil stated that the Refreshment University project was carried out within the scope of lifelong learning activities and gave detailed information about the Refreshment University project. Rector of KAEU Prof. Dr. Mustafa Kasım Karahocagil expressed his great pleasure to bring together older students and young students at our university within the scope of the project, and he said, “We want our young students to benefit from the experience and experience of the older students of the Refreshment University.” Rector Karahocagil said that Kid's University and Refresher University projects were social contribution activities and added that they would ensure that such activities and events would take place more at our university. Prof. Dr. Mustafa Kasım Karahocagil stated that they were very pleased to host such a project as Kırşehir Ahi Evran University and noted that the Refreshment University project also contributed to the integration of city and university.

Following the speech of Rector of KAEU  Prof. Dr. Mustafa Kasım Karahocagil, Governor of Kırşehir Murat Sefa Demiryürek also delivered a speech. In his speech, Demiryürek stated that aging begins when the habit of learning ends and learning ceases to be a necessity. Governor Demiryürek noted that the Refreshment University project opposes the mindset of aging and stated that such organizations were an effective activity for advanced age groups. Emphasizing that these projects were very important and valuable for the integration of the university and the city, Kırşehir Governor Murat Sefa Demiryürek stated that they would  always support such projects.

After the opening speeches, Refreshment University Coordinator Assoc. Prof. Hilal Seki Öz made a presentation titled "It's Time to Refresh".