This quarterly registration fee provides access to the "Add to Cart" buttons for class registrations. Once you have purchased this item, you may register multiple times during the quarter for classes (based on their availability and individual class fees). The quarterly registration fee actively sustains the Creative Retirement Institute whose mission is to provide affordable, quality life-long learning opportunities for adults in a supportive environment. We offer stimulating classes in the arts, sciences, current issues, history, and other areas. Instructors are usually current or retired professors (many with PhD degrees) or experts in a specific field.

From the boundaryless provinces within the Ottoman Empire to the oft ill-conceived frontiers imposed by the British, the French and sometimes even the international oil companies, the Middle East reflects a puzzling jigsaw of nations, states and borders.  We shall highlight the fate of the Kurds and the creation of the modern Gulf sheikhdoms as examples of vastly different outcomes in the formation of nations across the region.  In addition, background readings will inform our discussion of the critical decisions made by the “major powers” after WWI. F

Engaging Our Aging will explore normal growth involved in aging. To set the stage for large and small group discussions, the facilitator will present typical age-related changes in the elder years with examples of practical adjustment. The sharing and listening in discussions help personalize aging as well as profit from the experience and wisdom of other seniors. Participants will be given brief in-session activities as well as takeaway internet and written resources. The goal of the sessions is for participants to come away with a refreshed outlook on aging and specific ideas on how to enrich their journey in growing older.

Wagner loomed large in the musical lives of Richard Strauss and Claude Debussy. They are forever linked through their connections to the German operatic giant, but they also tried to distance themselves from him. Erica compares and contrasts the great German master’s influence on these all-important post-Romantic composers, with musical excerpts and videos.

We are bombarded daily with headlines, research reports, advertisements and social media chatter making claims about medical science. Politics, profiteering and paranoia can overwhelm science and professional judgement. How can we navigate competing claims and contradictory recommendations? We will use an evidence-based, outcome-oriented and patient-centered approach to evaluating medical claims to inform our own health care decisions. Topics may include preventive medicine, nutritional supplements, new tests and treatments, vaccines and alternative healing practices.

As the U.S. enters a new Presidential term, this course will examine the prospective direction and priorities for U.S. foreign policy, the status of U.S. alliances and general relations in the world, and prospective priorities and potential key appointments for the next four years. Contextual factors will also be discussed including the status and conditions of U.S. foreign policy institutions, potential Congressional priorities and its oversight role, and the general standing of the U.S. in the world following four tumultuous years.