American Association of Retired Persons

AARP, Inc.

AARP logo, eff. January 2007
Headquarters in Washington, D.C.
Motto	"Real Possibilities."
Predecessor	National Retired Teachers Association
Formation	1958; 59 years ago (1958)
Founder	Ethel Percy Andrus
Tax ID no.	95-1985500
Headquarters	Washington, D.C., U.S.
Membership	37,000,000+
Chief Executive Officer	Jo Ann Jenkins
Foundation President	Lisa Marsh Ryerson
AARP Services, Inc President	Lawrence Flanagan
Board Chair	Joan R. Ruff
Subsidiaries	AARP Foundation; AARP Institute; Legal Counsel for the Elderly; AARP Experience Corps; AARP Insurance Plan; AARP Financial Services Corporation; AARP Services Inc
Revenue (2014)	$1,486,310,000
Expenses (2014)	$1,468,824,000
Staff	1,986
Volunteers	17,499
Website	www.aarp.org
Formerly called	American Association of Retired Persons

AARP, Inc., formerly the American Association of Retired Persons, is a United States-based interest group with a membership founded in 1958 by Ethel Percy Andrus, Ph.D., a retired educator from California, and Leonard Davis, later the founder of the Colonial Penn Group of insurance companies.

AARP is a 501c4 non-profit organization with a mission to enhance the quality of life for all as they age. The association advocates for positive social change and delivers value to members through information, advocacy and service. With nearly 38 million members, AARP is one of the most powerful lobbying groups in the United States.

AARP has several affiliated organizations:

Because of AARP's vast membership, it is able to generate its own income without being dependent on government grants or private donors, though it does receive both of these for specific programs. According to its 2015 Consolidated Financial Statements, AARP's largest sources of income were:

According to the group's official history, Dr. Ethel Percy Andrus founded AARP in 1958. AARP evolved from the National Retired Teachers Association (NRTA), which Andrus had established in 1947 to promote her philosophy of productive aging, and in response to the need of health insurance for retired teachers. After ten years, Andrus opened the organization to all Americans over 50, creating AARP. Today, the NRTA is a division within AARP. Dr. Andrus founded AARP while living in Ojai, California, where she had established an innovative new retirement home named Grey Gables. Ojai served as national headquarters for AARP from 1958 until the mid-1960s. Honors to Dr. Andrus include National Teacher of the Year in 1954, induction into the Women's Hall of Fame and, more recently, a medallion placed on the Points of Light Institute's "Extra Mile Pathway" in downtown Washington, D.C.