The courses listed below start in October
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History of Great Britain During Prehistoric/Celtic, Roman, Anglo-Saxon, and Viking Periods | $50 - Ken Johnson
October 1-22, 2025 | Wednesdays | 10:00-11:30am
Explore the fascinating history of Great Britain, from before human settlement until the Battle of Hastings in 1066. The four sessions will deal with: 1) Prehistoric Britain–the Great Ice Age and prehistoric remains, such as early hominids, Stonehenge, Avebury, and Skara Brae, and later occupation by Celtic tribes from continental Europe; 2) Roman Britain–Roman invasion, conquest of native Britons, construction of Hadrian’s Wall, Roman baths, and other major activities, early Christianity, and ongoing conflict with the Celts; 3) Anglo-Saxon Britain–invasion/settlement by the Angles and Saxons after the Roman Legions leave in 410 AD, King Arthur and other notables, “Sutton Hoo” archaeological site, Christianity flourishes, and the beginnings of British culture; 4) Viking Britain–Viking raids (such as the “Holy Island” of Lindisfarne) and settlements (such as “Jorvik,” the Viking-age York), partition of the island and separation of “The Danelaw” from the rest of Britain, and subsequent re-conquest by the Anglo-Saxons. The story ends with the invasion of Britain by William the Conqueror in 1066.
Celebrating Jane Austen at 250 | $50 - Lisa Seale
October 2-November 13, 2025 | Thursdays | 1:30-3:00pm
Only 20 years before Jane Austen’s birth in 1775, the great lexicographer Samuel Johnson defined the (then-new) novel as “A small tale, generally of love.” Isn’t it pretty to think so? Jane Austen’s work explodes with this definition—and in this course, we can have a ball pointing out together the many ways her explosive charges detonate. We’ll read PRIDE AND PREJUDICE in full, as well as look at selected celebratory passages in her other novels—balls, teas, impromptu dances, dinner parties, nature walks, and even her lovers’ tête-a-têtes—to explore why her ironic, funny, and moving critiques of ideas and expectations about love, marriage, and happiness for both men and women still ring true 250 years after her birth.
*Class will not meet on Thursday, 10/16.
Greek Mythology | $50 - Ralph Doty
October 2-23, 2025 | Thursdays | 10:00-11:30am
Classical Greece has faded away, but it left its stories behind. We read them in our schools, watch them in films and television shows, and sometimes even play games featuring their characters. What did these stories mean to the Greeks? What do they mean to us, and why are they still vital to our imaginations after nearly three thousand years? Take this class and find out! Our text will be Edith Hamilton’s Mythology.
Gentlemen and Their Muses at the Turn of the XXth Century | $50 - Dane McDowell
October 6-November 10, 2025 | Mondays | 10:30am-12:00pm
What do Victor Hugo, King Edward VII, Edouard Manet, Turgenev, and Oscar Wilde have in common? A passion for life, for the arts, but an admiration, sometimes an obsession, for a woman who exerted a significant impact on their lives. Though women could not vote in France until 1944, they played a very active role in social, political, and artistic activities during the Parisian Belle Époque. This six-week course concentrates on the top” influencers” of the period from 1880 to the early part of the 20th century. Who are these muses? The iconic theatre actress Sarah Bernhardt, the beautiful impressionist painter Berthe Morisot, the scandalous novelist Colette, the legendary Opera Diva Pauline Viardot, the tormented sculptor Camille Claudel, and the outrageous Spanish dancer Caroline Otero. Of course, there were many others, but these six amazing women shared the same dedication to their profession and enjoyed a worldwide glowing, sometimes blazing, reputation. Victims? Conquerors? Diabolical? One thing is sure: they were all rebellious at heart. Which one will be your favorite?
Art and Music of the Middle Ages | $50 - Eugene Enrico and Susan Caldwell
October 10-November 21, 2025 | Fridays | 1:00-3:00pm
Each week’s reading description and schedule are as follows:
October 10: Charlemagne (This class will explain how Charlemagne the Great influenced the history of both art and music in his quest to bring unity and cultural enlightenment to Europe.)
October 17: France in the 12th Century (This class will study the monuments of Art and Architecture as well as the artistic advances of music in France during the 12th century.)
October 14: Hildegard von Bingen (This class will explore the art and philosophy of the mystic and prophetic Hildegard as well as her achievements as a visionary songwriter of sacred music.)
October 31: Santiago de Compostela (This class will study the art and music of pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela, along with the importance of pilgrimage in the late Middle Ages to the history of Europe.
November 7: Cantigas de Santa Maria (This class will examine the illustrated stories of the Cantigas de Santa Maria, along with their musical settings, as commissioned by the King of Spain, Alfonso the Wise.”
November 14: France in the 13th & 14th centuries (This class will compare the monumental art and architecture of Gothic cathedrals with the elaborate works of music written to be sung in these spaces.
November 21: Tuscany in the 14th century (This class will explain how the first budding of humanism in Sienna and Florence foreshadowed the flowering of the Italian Renaissance in both art and music.)
Cryptocurrency and How Does It Work? | $5 - Mary Carter
October 14, 2025 | Tuesday | 9:30-11:00am
This class will examine: 1) What was behind the initial concept for the creation of cryptocurrency, 2) Who is pushing its use, 3) Who stands to benefit, 4) How cryptocurrency is currently being used in the marketplace, 5) How blockchain works and is used to create more currency, 6) The problems created because of the method of generating the currency, 7) The future of blockchain, 8) What is a Crypto Reserve and how would it work. Finally, is Cryptocurrency a PONZI scheme?
Exploring the Lives of 20th Century Statesmen (and Women!) | $50 - Christopher M. Sartorius
October 21-November 18, 2025 | Tuesdays | 1:30-3:30pm
This course explores how statesmen (and women) employ the tools of statecraft to formulate grand strategies to achieve national and international goals. We will concentrate our study on 20th-century international leaders who used their knowledge of the past, combined with their sense of the values and aspirations of their fellow countrymen, to devise national and international strategies. We will study key leadership traits and values that these leaders embodied, combined with the problems these leaders confronted, to better understand the foreign policy options and constraints each faced when making critical decisions. With this knowledge, we will take a case study approach to evaluate the problems, policy options, successes, and failures of these key, modern, 20th-century leaders. The overall course goal is to get a better sense of the problems, perils, and achievements of these leaders to learn the importance of quality leadership in dealing with the many challenging issues facing the global community in our contemporary world.
*Class will not meet on Tuesday, 11/11*
Financial Investing for Senior Citizens | $50 - Duane Stock
October 28-November 25, 2025 | Tuesdays | 2:00-4:00pm
How should senior citizens invest? Among other topics, this course involves a description of stock market indices, different types of market orders for purchase and sale, mutual funds, investing in fixed income, measures of return and risk, and how to diversify a portfolio.
*Class will not meet on Tuesday, 11/11*
The Arts of China | $50 - Paul Bell
October 29-December 10, 2025 | Wednesdays | 9:30-11:30am
I bought my first Chinese art object, a carved red lacquer bowl, and saw my first Chinese landscape paintings at a museum when I was 14. These events marked the beginning of a lifelong fascination with all things Chinese, especially Chinese artistic expression. I found that there was much that was enigmatic in Chinese art because I did not understand the cultural and aesthetic values of the people who created the art. This is because China is an ancient culture that developed over 5000 years ago, largely free of Western influence. Their unique cultural heritage confers distinctive ways of perceiving themselves, their relationships with others, and their relationship with the world around them. This gives the Chinese a sense of aesthetics that is very different from Western aesthetics. In this six-week-long course, I will attempt to share my journey to bridge the gap between appreciating the beauty of Chinese art and understanding the aesthetic values of the people who produced it. The course will discuss Chinese aesthetic values and the cultural values from which they are derived. We will explore different forms of artistic expression associated with Chinese culture and discuss how they reflect Chinese aesthetic perspectives. These include calligraphy, painting, ceramics, architecture, poetry, music, and drama. Participants will have both an enhanced appreciation of the beauty of Chinese artistic expression and a deeper understanding of how the Chinese think about their art forms.
*Class will not meet on Wednesday, 11/26*
Broadway - A history of American Musical Theatre IV - The Post Golden Age| $50 - Marvin Beck
October 30, 2025-December 11, 2025| Thursdays | 10:00am-12:00pm
The journey continues, exploring the story, history, and productions of Broadway musicals of the post-Golden Age, highlighting many of its greatest achievements.
*Class will not meet on Thursday, 11/27*
