Friday   

Fridays
Mid January-May

Recordings will be posted in the Members-only Video Library, which is accessible to all current Senior College members.

Stay informed and engaged with Simply Civics: The Week in Review, a weekly conversation that breaks down the major political, governmental, and national events shaping our world. Each Friday, instructor Dr. Michael Kryzanek offers a clear, accessible, and nonpartisan overview of the week’s most significant news from policy decisions and political developments to major national issues.

This bonus course is designed especially for Senior College members who want to better understand current events and their impact. Zoom recordings will be posted on the members only video library. Questions and suggestions are welcomed via email throughout the week.

Through PowerPoint and class discussion, we’ll study the physics of forces and how they affect the way things move. Using the knowledge gained from that study we’ll move on to examine plate tectonics, earthquakes, and vulcanism. As a group we’ll look at YouTube videos that illustrate the phenomena. Questions and comments from class participants will be encouraged.

Calling all music lovers—this is not your typical lecture series. This course is a fist-pumping, head-nodding, lyric-deconstructing journey through the music of protest, rebellion, and revolution—past and present. Each week, we’ll explore powerful themes like racial injustice, anti-capitalism, mental health stigma, women’s empowerment, and youth-led uprisings through the lens of music that demands to be heard. From icons you know—Bruce Springsteen, Bob Dylan, and Aretha Franklin—to modern firebrands like Kendrick Lamar, Taylor Swift, Macklemore, and Logic, we’ll pair legendary anthems with contemporary tracks to see how music fights back across generations.   Each session includes two main songs (usually one rock/pop and one rap/hip-hop), lyric analysis, music videos, and live performances.

"Certain I am that unless Congress speaks in a more decisive tone, unless they are vested with powers by the several states competent to the great purposes of War…that our cause is lost…I see one head gradually changing into thirteen."—George Washington May 31,1780

Many believe that our Constitution is the heart and soul of the American political system. But how did we get from thirteen colonies coalescing to win a revolution to thirteen states ratifying a Constitution? This course will examine the debates of strong opinions, beliefs and fears, political philosophies, theories and realities as well as trial and error (the fun part). There will be slides, emailed handouts, and time for discussion and questions from the class.

In this course, we will discuss the struggles that often accompany growing older, and how to cope effectively with them. We will consider the physical and cognitive changes that can develop, the various losses that are common with aging, and the effects of society’s attitudes toward older people. We will also emphasize the importance of maintaining autonomy and reimagining one’s purpose in later life. Each session will include a presentation and class discussion.

This course will show the origins of flight and elaborate on how modern-day aircraft fly. Planes stay aloft by the use of turbine engines and wing design.  The science behind this will be discussed by showing examples and explaining the principles of flight.  The class will also include the beginnings of rocket development, explaining the NASA space programs and their achievements. A full review of the Challenger Disaster, what really happened and why it was allowed to happen will be discussed.  We will review the principles of buoyancy, (how do large ships keep from sinking), along with other scientific principles and other theories using physics. All math will be done by the instructor with a full explanation of the problem being shown. Join us in this course and learn about the science we use every day.

This course will focus on the reading and discussing of Shakespeare's greatest comedies. Each week, students will be invited to engage in a wide-ranging discussion about a given play.