This article originally was published in the Tulsa World. Click here to read the original article.

With the nation's economy likely to get worse before it gets better, an assistant professor at Oklahoma State University will teach a six-week course to help older people understand how the situation may affect them.

The economy is a familiar topic for Ali Nejadmalayeri, an assistant professor of finance at OSU's Spears School of Business.

Nejadmalayeri - who is known to his students as "Dr. N" - will guide people ages 50 and older through the course, "Understanding Our Economy," on Thursdays from Feb. 5 through March 12.

Nejadmalayeri recently took time to discuss the economy and what he hopes enrollees will take from the class.

He noted that older people have objectives different from those of young college students, whose priority is finding a job after graduation.

Older people are focused on the preservation of their capital, and they want to know what the economic situation might mean for themselves, their families and generations to come, Nejadmalayeri said. Many people born before the baby boom have accumulated wealth by having been conservative and prudent in their money management, he said.

The course will provide broad coverage of the forces behind the ups and downs of the market.

Although some people are obsessed with the stock market, understanding the underpinnings of the economy are more important, Nejadmalayeri said.

Asked how President Barack Obama's administration will affect the economy, he said: "It's hard to say because the problems are so colossal that I don't think a particular political taste can change it that fast. There's a huge overhang from the credit problems that they have to solve."

A fundamental problem comes from housing and the fact that people have lost anywhere from 20 percent to 50 percent in home values in some parts of the country, Nejadmalayeri said.

"A lot of mortgages are upside down, so there is no more equity left that people can borrow against and consume," he said. "That has serious ramifications.

"The good news is that people are saving more, but it's because they are afraid. They realize they need a rainy day fund in case they lose their jobs."

The Obama administration aims to boost jobs by spending on infrastructure, such as bridges and roads.

"That could help, but the problem is it's all backward-looking skills and jobs that have been around a long time," Nejadmalayeri said. "I'm not sure how much jobs it will generate."

Other topics planned as well

The economy course for people 50 and older is sponsored by the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute and oTered through Oklahoma State University.

A variety of other courses are planned for the spring session, including "Legal Reasoning for Non-Lawyers," "Cutting Edge Senior Health Issues," "The Immigrant Experience," and "A Trip Through Tulsa's Art Deco History."

What: "Understanding Our Economy"

Course topics: "Economics and Your Everyday Life," "Consumers and the Stock Market," "Macro-economy and Stock Markets," "Deflation and Economic Prospects," "Outlook for all Markets" and "Macro-Investing."

When : 1-3 p.m. Thursdays Feb. 5 through March 12.

Where: LaFortune Community Center, 5202 S. Hudson Ave.

Annual membership with first OLLI course: $50

Individual course(s) after first one: $25