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- A Citizen's Guide to Fire Behavior and Weather
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Item Number: W24NAT300A
Dates: 1/10/2024 - 2/7/2024
Times: 3:30 PM - 4:30 PM
Days: W
Sessions: 5
Maximum Enrollment: 75
Building: Campbell Center
Room:Room E
Instructor: Mary Kwart
Max Seating Capacity: 75
Seats Available: 70
Ever heard of a “foehn” wind? It played an important role spreading the Almeda Fire on September 8, 2020, which destroyed thousands of homes in the Rogue Valley. Have you done any vegetation modification around your house to stop wildfires from igniting your house or wondered how to gauge prioritization? Most homes are burned in wildfires from ember showers from the advancing fire. Why are clearing combustible material next to your home or limbing up trees important? Have you given thought to your evacuation route? How can you access ongoing wildfire information and interpret wildfire briefings and news reports? This course will introduce everyday citizens to basic fire behavior and weather information taught to firefighters that can help inform evacuation decisions during fire season, as well as prioritize home and property hardening activities. There are no required texts, costs, physical requirements, or knowledge level. A recommended reading list will be provided.
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- An Appreciation of Jazz: the Vocalists
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Item Number: W24ARTS301
Dates: 1/10/2024 - 2/7/2024
Times: 9:00 AM - 10:30 AM
Days: W
Sessions: 5
Maximum Enrollment: 299
Building: n/a: online course
Room:Online (Zoom)
Instructor: David Stone
Max Seating Capacity: 299
Seats Available: 255
Jazz has many flavors, including traditional, big band, bebop, modern. Another flavor that adds variety to the genre is jazz vocals. Often ignored in favor of the instrumentalists (Davis, Getz, Brubeck, et al.), there is something uniquely captivating about hearing the human voice without the filter of an instrument. Some jazz singers emulate instruments (scat singing), others focus on interpretation of melody and lyrics. Vocalists often use the music of the Great American Songbook (Gershwin, Porter, Berlin) to impress the jazz flavor on the music. We will see and hear classic performances of iconic singers such as Louis Armstrong, Ella Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughn, Tony Bennet, Mel Torme, Billie Holiday, Diana Krall, and even songs by artists not normally thought of as jazz singers (Johnny Mathis, Aretha Franklin, Ray Charles). The instructor will provide anecdotes revealing the human angle and personalities of the artists and the influences that shaped their lives and music.
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- Ancient Greek Art: Geometric and Archaic Periods
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Item Number: W24ARTS302A
Dates: 2/14/2024 - 3/13/2024
Times: 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM
Days: W
Sessions: 5
Maximum Enrollment: 75
Building: Campbell Center
Room:Room E
Instructor: Allison Renwick
Max Seating Capacity: 75
Seats Available: 21
Our on-going romp through western art history will look at Greek art from the collapse of the Mycenaeans c.1000 BCE to the Persian Invasions in 490 and 480 BCE. The ancient Greeks owed a great debt to the earlier civilizations of Egypt and the Near East, borrowing motifs and conventions from these older cultures. The first Greeks had to reinvent literacy and stone working after a Dark Age which ended in the 8th century BCE. To the art historian, perhaps the most important development was the return of the human figure, often nude, to art. Here begins a long evolution of form in space, with “man as the measure of all things” (Protagoras), that will evolve toward increasing naturalism and refinement. The stone temple was the singular architectural expression of the period. Pottery, with its new painting techniques, became a major art form. This is a lecture course, lavishly illustrated with PowerPoint images. Questions are welcome, but it is not a discussion class. NOTE: While this course is part of an ongoing series, it’s not necessary to have taken previous courses.
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- Bach to the Future: Great Works for the Orchestra
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Item Number: W24ARTS303
Dates: 1/10/2024 - 3/6/2024
Times: 9:00 AM - 10:30 AM
Days: W
Sessions: 9
Maximum Enrollment: 299
Building: n/a: online course
Room:Online (Zoom)
Instructor: Cynthia Hutton
Max Seating Capacity: 299
Seats Available: 286
This lecture course traces the evolution of the modern orchestra from its beginning stage to the present time. Instruction focuses on works from the canon of classical music, beginning with the Baroque period and continuing into the modern era. Students should expect to listen to a YouTube recording of the work, to hear some background on its history and the composer, and to hear some comments on performance practice and text. A PowerPoint presentation will be the backbone of each session. No prior knowledge is required and there is no homework. Time will be allowed for discussion and questions at the conclusion of each section and will be encouraged.
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- Brazilian Spiritual Healing and Mediumship
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Item Number: W24PERS300A
Dates: 1/10/2024 - 2/21/2024
Times: 1:00 PM - 2:00 PM
Days: W
Sessions: 7
Maximum Enrollment: 18
Building: Campbell Center
Room:Room B
Instructor: Helene Valania
Max Seating Capacity: 18
Seats Available: 2
Mediumship is part of the history, lifestyle, and health care in Brazil. What if we all are mediums, and it is the degree of sensitivity and development that determines how mediumship unfolds in one’s life? We will be discussing what mediumship is and learning how effective Brazilian spiritual healing practices are and what part mediumship plays in some healings. We will cover a multitude of ways that Brazilians use and benefit from their spiritual practices on an everyday basis and how these can improve life, from African orixas to spiritist seances and healing experiences. The instructor will show the diversity of ways mediumship is used in Brazil. This course will include lectures, personal experiences, discussion, and some energy work demonstrations. It is open to all.
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- Broadway Musicals: Let Us Entertain You
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Item Number: W24ARTS304A
Dates: 1/10/2024 - 2/7/2024
Times: 11:30 AM - 1:00 PM
Days: W
Sessions: 5
Maximum Enrollment: 75
Building: Campbell Center
Room:Room E
Instructor: Jerry Rubin, David Lane
Max Seating Capacity: 75
Seats Available: 57
This course is designed to inform and entertain you! There will be videos of scenes from the most popular Broadway musicals by decade from the 1890s to 2015. There will be reviews and short discussions of the leading writers of the lyrics and music such as Rodgers and Hammerstein, Mercer, Cole Porter, George and Ira Gershwin, up through Lin Manuel Miranda. The leading choreographers, producers, book writers, and show doctors will also be discussed, along with behind-the-scenes stories regarding the making of the musicals. There will be opportunities for class discussion and questions. Join us for class sing-a-longs. Let us entertain you!
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- Enjoy German
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Item Number: W24LANG100A
Dates: 1/10/2024 - 3/13/2024
Times: 11:00 AM - 12:30 PM
Days: W
Sessions: 10
Maximum Enrollment: 15
Building: Campbell Center
Room:Room B
Instructor: Udo Gorsch-Nies
Max Seating Capacity: 15
Seats Available: 9
This course aims at broadening a student’s vocabulary and understanding of the day-to-day German spoken today. The etymology of certain words will be discussed, and the rules of grammar will be explained on request. This term we will read the author’s diary describing his travels in six European countries in 2005, reading and discussing a short section at a time. The German text is emailed to students before the term starts.
NOTE: Students should have a basic knowledge of German. Because there is no clear definition of “basic knowledge,” the instructor invites students to attend the first class to find out if their knowledge is sufficient to profit from the course.
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- Examining "Wokeness"
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Item Number: W24SOC300A
Dates: 2/21/2024 - 3/13/2024
Times: 9:00 AM - 10:30 AM
Days: W
Sessions: 4
Maximum Enrollment: 32
Building: Campbell Center
Room:Room A
Instructor: Urban Kohler
Max Seating Capacity: 32
Seats Available: 23
In this course we will examine the idea of “wokeness,” what it means and how it is being used in today’s political and corporate climate. We will use the book “Woke, Inc.” by current Republican presidential candidate, Vivek Ramaswamy, as our starting point. We will read selected passages from the book and use them as the starting point for spirited class discussion about our culture, values, and the relationships among corporations and trading partners around the world. Students can expect to have their assumptions about political, social, and humanitarian values challenged by Ramaswamy’s analyses, by the facilitator, and by other students. All views are welcome. Appropriate video material will also be used to stimulate class discussion. It is not required that students read the book, but those who have read the book will be an important source of discussion topics.
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- Front Porch Music
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Item Number: W24ARTS307A
Dates: 1/17/2024 - 3/6/2024
Times: 9:00 AM - 10:00 AM
Days: W
Sessions: 8
Maximum Enrollment: 12
Building: Campbell Center
Room: Room D
Instructor: Norman Hale
We won’t actually be playing on our front porches, but we WILL be playing the kind of music that’s fun to share at parties, or informal gatherings with like-minded musicians. The first class session will discuss chord progressions and the practice of introducing and presenting a song. Each week, the instructor will present a song to start the class and students will be invited to bring a song to teach to the group, which everybody will play through. The experience of playing and singing with others, and leading songs in a comfortable, safe setting will allow students to build confidence. Songs should be easily accessible, easy to learn, and fun to play! Instruments would typically be guitars, banjos, mandolins, harmonicas, basses, and fiddles. Students are expected to be able to play chords in the basic keys of C, G, and D and have a tuner for their instrument. Minimal instruction might be given on chord progressions, styling, or music theory. No music reading ability is required.
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- Gardening for Beauty and Biodiversity
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Item Number: W24NAT102
Dates: 1/17/2024 - 2/14/2024
Times: 11:00 AM - 12:30 PM
Days: W
Sessions: 5
Maximum Enrollment: 40
Building: n/a: online course
Room:Online (Zoom)
Instructor: Robin McKenzie
Max Seating Capacity: 40
Seats Available: 19
This online lecture course is presented from an artistic and amateur scientific point of view, profusely illustrated, and designed to appeal to all levels of nature, butterfly, and gardening enthusiasts. Topics include: what it takes to create a pollinator-friendly landscape, basics of habitat, soils, basic design, growing from seed, and best plants for sustained bloom. Other topics of interest such as lawn reduction, removal or replacement, as well as irrigation and plant selection for water conservation, are emphasized. This presentation is fast-paced and packed with images, many from the instructor’s wildlife photography portfolio. No textbook is required. The basic principles discussed can be used in small spaces such as balconies, pocket gardens, raised beds, community spaces, or other planting alternatives. Extensive “insider” resources, tips, tricks, notes, and web links are provided to students to further enhance your own gardening experience. Outside activities are optional.
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- iPhoneography: It's Not Just Luck
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Item Number: W24ARTS313A
Dates: 1/10/2024 - 2/7/2024
Times: 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM
Days: W
Sessions: 5
Maximum Enrollment: 18
Building: Campbell Center
Room: Room A
Instructor: Meri Walker
Your expensive iPhone is good for a lot more than just snapshots, text and talking. Do you know you can use it to create high-resolution art, starting with your own iPhone photographs? Explore new image-making possibilities by using simple tools to shoot, edit and make mobile photos and artwork. The instructor will guide you through the use of two free image editors—Snapseed and Union—and offer hands-on introduction to the features of the powerful app, Camera+ 2 Camera and Editor. These tools will help turn your iPhone into a virtual DSLR camera. Students will have out-of-class shooting and editing assignments they will debrief each week with a learning partner. Class time will offer demonstrations, review of student images, and Q and A. Enjoy hands-on instruction; build a local learning community; and make images you’re proud to display, publish, or sell. This class assumes students know the basics of using the iPhone camera and how to obtain and download apps from the Apple App Store. NOTE: (1) Students will need to purchase Camera+Pro Camera and Editor from the App store for $3.99/month. The other two apps are free. (2) The social learning aspects of the rapid-instructional model used for this class require that all participants attend all five sessions. Please bear this in mind when registering.
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- Let's Write One Short Story...Together!
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Item Number: W24ARTS310A
Dates: 1/10/2024 - 3/13/2024
Times: 11:00 AM - 12:30 PM
Days: W
Sessions: 10
Maximum Enrollment: 10
Building: Campbell Center
Room:Room A
Instructor: Timothy Kelly (he/him/his)
Max Seating Capacity: 10
Seats Available: 4
There have been some??great short story writers down through the years: William Faulkner, Dorothy Parker,??Alice Munro, and George Saunders just to name a few.??How about? you, me and nine other brave souls try to join that list. Let’s all pitch in, and together we will organize our thoughts, construct an outline, and write the best damn short story the world has ever read. Together we??will partake in the forming and writing of a single short story. Just to be clear, the students will NOT??each be writing their own story. This will be a collaboration project.??Eleven writers, one single story.??Sounds like a gas, right? This should be a very enjoyable undertaking.??All that is required is a pencil, paper, patience, and a willingness to compromise. Let’s do it, and when we’re all done, we will produce a public presentation of our masterpiece, maybe at an OLLI event!
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- Painting Lively Modern Folk Art
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Item Number: W24ARTS250A
Dates: 1/29/2024 - 2/9/2024
Times: 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM
Days: M W F
Sessions: 6
Maximum Enrollment: 12
Building: Campbell Center
Room: Room C
Instructor: Lisia Farley
Ready to take a deep dive into creating your own folk masterpiece? Surprise yourself with imagery created through simple drawing, collage, and painting exercises. Then follow along as you learn to distill and simplify imagery to shapes. Finally, use a step-by-step process to paint a colorful, vibrant painting glowing with light. Each session will start with samples, a demonstration, and time to create and share. The course meets three times a week for two weeks. No art experience is required. Instruction for each class builds on the previous session. Former students are encouraged to repeat this class. A supplies list will be emailed to registered students.
NOTE: Materials can cost between $100 and $150. Students may already have suitable materials.
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- Retirement and Your Money: What You Should Know
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Item Number: W24LIFE121A
Dates: 2/14/2024 - 2/28/2024
Times: 1:00 PM - 2:30 PM
Days: W
Sessions: 3
Maximum Enrollment: 25
Building: Campbell Center
Room:Room A
Instructor: Kenji Bleicker
Max Seating Capacity: 25
Seats Available: 9
Have you ever thought to yourself “I’m worried about running out of money”; “I need to get my finances organized”; or “I want to make sure I’m making good financial decisions”? If you’ve made any of these statements, this course may help you feel more secure with your finances. We will cover the basics in each of six main areas of financial planning: financial position (preparing a net worth statement); insurance (including long-term care); taxes (how to minimize them); retirement planning (Social Security, taking withdrawals, how to know how long your money will last); investments (basics of asset allocation); and estate planning (wills, trusts, and so on). The course will be taught primarily in lecture format with some optional home assignments.
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- Ten Classic Comedy Films: Part 1
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Item Number: W24ARTS218A
Dates: 1/10/2024 - 3/13/2024
Times: 1:00 PM - 4:00 PM
Days: W
Sessions: 10
Maximum Enrollment: 50
Building: Campbell Center
Room:Room D
Instructor: Roy Sutton
Max Seating Capacity: 50
Seats Available: 22
This course will feature 10 classic comedy films, starting with “The Kid” (1921) starring Charlie Chaplin and ending with “Ferris Buehler’s Day Off” (1988) with Matthew Broderick. The other eight are “Trouble in Paradise,” “Mr. Deeds Goes to Town,” “The Shop around the Corner,” “To Be or Not to Be,” “It Should Happen to You,” “The Fortune Cookie,” “What’s Up, Doc,” and “Being There.” A handout for each film will be provided at the preceding session; for the first meeting, a handout will be available that day. Before each film, the instructor will point out anything of particular note and will entertain questions and comments. A guided discussion will follow the end of the film. Students need bring nothing more than a desire to see these special comedy films that are true classics and still enjoyable, however many times one views them.
NOTE: This begins the four-year (12-term) series of classic comedy films first introduced five years ago.
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- The Constitution in Everyday Life
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Item Number: W24SOC102-2
Dates: 1/10/2024 - 1/31/2024
Times: 9:00 AM - 10:00 AM
Days: W
Sessions: 4
Maximum Enrollment: 30
Building: n/a: online course
Room:Online (Zoom)
Instructor: Betsy Massie
Max Seating Capacity: 30
Seats Available: 20
Many believe that we are experiencing challenges to our democracy that we have not had since the Civil War. These challenges, though, are coupled with the fact that many of us can no longer identify the constitutional issues that are being threatened. They are often not directly addressed by media outlets. The purpose of this class is to identify current events that are a direct challenge to our democracy and why. For example, the Supreme Court justices have a constitutional mandate to have “good behavior” while in office, yet to date that court has not developed a code of ethics which applies to them. We will identify and learn how this issue and many others apply to our democracy.
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- The Constitution in Everyday Life
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Item Number: W24SOC102
Dates: 1/10/2024 - 1/31/2024
Times: 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM
Days: W
Sessions: 4
Maximum Enrollment: 30
Building: n/a: online course
Room: Online (Zoom)
Instructor: Betsy Massie
Many believe that we are experiencing challenges to our democracy that we have not had since the Civil War. These challenges, though, are coupled with the fact that many of us can no longer identify the constitutional issues that are being threatened. They are often not directly addressed by media outlets. The purpose of this class is to identify current events that are a direct challenge to our democracy and why. For example, the Supreme Court justices have a constitutional mandate to have “good behavior” while in office, yet to date that court has not developed a code of ethics which applies to them. We will identify and learn how this issue and many others apply to our democracy.
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- Wines of the World
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Item Number: W24LANG159A
Dates: 1/10/2024 - 3/13/2024
Times: 3:30 PM - 5:30 PM
Days: W
Sessions: 6
Maximum Enrollment: 22
Building: Campbell Center
Room: Room A
Instructor: Dan Dawson
In Wines of the World, we will learn about six wine regions of the world, visiting areas not covered in Dawson’s Winter 2023 course. The instructor will lecture, using PowerPoint and multimedia, about the geography, climate, soils, history, varietals, labeling, and regulatory structure of the region. We will taste four quality wines from the region and discuss our perceptions. No special background knowledge is required, but a passion for wine is recommended.
NOTE: A class fee of up to $100 per student will be charged to cover the costs of the quality wines. The exact fee will depend on the cost of the wines. Students will be required to pay the full fee, even if they expect to miss some classes. Please note that the six classes are not continuous. There are four classes in January and two classes in March. This course will meet in January and March. There will be no class meetings in February.
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- Winter Walking on Ashland's Trails
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Item Number: W24MOV302A
Dates: 1/10/2024 - 2/14/2024
Times: 12:00 PM - 2:00 PM
Days: W
Sessions: 6
Maximum Enrollment: 10
Building: Field Trip
Room: Field Trip
Instructor: Diane DeMerritt
Winter is a wonderful time to walk the trails of Ashland. The air is crisp and the weather can be unpredictable. Each walk will be about two hours, covering three-four miles. The trails will be mostly dirt paths with some elevation gain. While the walks are not intended to be of an aerobic nature, it is important that participants are reasonably fit and have good balance. The Travel Ashland’s Map Guide will be used as a reference. Directions on where to meet and details to consider will be emailed each week. Trails that may be included: North Mountain Park/Riverwalk Loop, Road 2060 above Lithia Park, Emigrant Lake, Bear Creek Greenway, TID ditch trail, Lithia Park hillside trails, Hald-Strawberry park trails, and Oredson Todd Woods. We will walk rain or shine, although if walking conditions are too hazardous (icy) on any given week, class will be cancelled. A liability waiver must be signed prior to participation in the first class. NOTE: Humans only on these walks. Dogs will need to stay at home.
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- Women at War
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Item Number: W24LIT301A
Dates: 2/14/2024 - 2/28/2024
Times: 11:00 AM - 12:30 PM
Days: W
Sessions: 3
Maximum Enrollment: 32
Building: Campbell Center
Room:Room C
Instructor: Jane Ballback
Max Seating Capacity: 32
Seats Available: 16
While women often stayed home during wartime, striving to keep family and household together, thousands of women were engaged in war activities as spies and rescuers of those who needed their help.?During a six-week period, the class will read three books by New York Times bestselling author, Martha Hall Kelly. Each story is set in a different war. Students will learn what a young runaway slave, a Russian aristocrat, and two women in the French resistance have in common. The women are completely underestimated, and all find courage and resilience they didn’t know they possessed. The class will be a mix of lecture and discussion. Students should read the first book “Lost Roses” before the first class in mid-February. Then they will have two weeks to read the second book “Sunflower Sisters.” “The Golden Doves” will be discussed two weeks later at the final class session in mid-March.
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