Spring 2026   

Let’s get together for a two-hour in-person DISCUSSION about the current state of AI. The focus will be on your questions, concerns, and experiences with it… both successes and frustrations! This is not a lecture class, and it will be helpful, though not essential, for participants to have some familiarity with basic AI concepts. To facilitate discussion, class size will be limited to 30, and the class will be offered twice during the quarter to accommodate different schedules.
 

4/27/26 UPDATE: Class times have changed from the afternoon to the morning. This page reflects the updated schedule. Please contact us if you have any questions.

Tiny in stature yet mighty in presence, Berthe Weill proved to be the guiding force behind many of the great artists we revere today. In an arena of academy and salon-sanctioned art, she championed the new, the modern, the extreme: the avant-garde. The Paris of the Third Republic was not a genteel society. The Prussian War and the Dreyfus Affair had a deep impact on artists, art, and its marketplace. Through it all, Weill embraced the change and welcomed Matisse, Modigliani, Rivera, and Picasso. This course will examine the numerous artist relationships that Weill nurtured, supported, and the long-term impact that this woman had on the art world under disastrous conditions of a world at war.

CLASS CANCELLED

Please contact us with any questions.

In 2021, Saul Griffith presented what we will learn is one of the simplest roadmaps to stop global warming: replacing all fossil-fuel-burning machines with electric devices and switching all electricity generation to renewable sources, primarily solar, wind, and hydro. In this course, we will examine current global and national energy use; the amount of electricity required to perform the same work; progress and trends in renewable electricity generation; and realistic timelines for future progress. We will learn what solar energy is; how wind farms and agrivoltaics work; the electrify-everything strategy; the roles of hydroelectric power and batteries; whether new technologies are necessary; the level of investment required to transition to renewable electricity; the advantages and disadvantages of nuclear energy; the challenge of intermittency; and the importance of maintaining adequate energy supply throughout the transition to fully clean energy.

We will dive into the free Google Drive services found in your Google account, which will simplify your life and make you more productive. We will show you how cloud-based apps work within the Google universe. We will cover the advantages of using Google’s office productivity apps — and the pitfalls. Touching on security and privacy, we will show how Google’s products can work with — and sometimes better than — the business software you might be familiar with. This class is for desktop/laptop computer users and will include information for mobile devices. The Chrome web browser is recommended. This class will use recorded and live demonstrations as well as written material.

In this introduction to Google Docs, we will show you how to create documents and share work “in the cloud.” We will also discuss how Google Docs can fit into and simplify workflow across devices and operating systems. This class is intended for desktop/laptop computer users but will include information for mobile device users. The Chrome web browser is recommended. This class will use recorded and live demonstrations as well as written materials.

Google Sheets allows you to organize, edit, and analyze different types of information using spreadsheets. In this introductory class, we will explore ways to use Google Sheets and navigate the Sheets interface. We will show you the basics of entering your information and basic formatting, including trying out some basic charts. If you are a dedicated Microsoft Office user, Sheets and Microsoft Excel can work together, and we’ll show you how to move between them. This class is intended for desktop/laptop computer users who are familiar with spreadsheets, and will include information for mobile device users. The Chrome web browser is recommended. This class will use recorded and live demonstrations as well as written materials.

We will introduce you to the app and suggest ideas for using it for organizing yourself and others. Since an important feature of Google Keep is synchronization across devices, we'll show you how to accomplish basic tasks in both the desktop and mobile versions. We will explore what Keep is (designed to, similar to, dissimilar in) across devices and accounts, what the key Keep features are, some examples of use, and things to watch for. This class is intended for desktop and laptop computer users, but will also include information for mobile device users. The Chrome web browser is recommended. This class will use recorded and live demonstrations as well as written materials.
 

Stay on schedule and never miss a moment with our Google Calendar and Tasks class. We will demonstrate how to navigate the Calendar app, create and manage multiple calendars, and organize your days with events and reminders. We will show you how to share events with others, integrate Tasks to keep track of to-dos, and sync everything across your devices for seamless planning. This class is intended for desktop and laptop computer users, but will also include information for mobile device users. The Chrome web browser is recommended. This class will use recorded and live demonstrations as well as written materials.
 

Before Kandinsky, Malevich, and Mondrian, there was an artist who sensed and sought spiritual depth through the art of abstraction. Her purpose was not to render techniques and styles but to create and examine more closely the possible realms of visions and spirits within human consciousness. That person was Hilma af Klint, the creator of abstraction. In a series of two lectures, we examine the impact of 19th-century scientific discoveries and the cultural developments that affected the foundations of society and shifted awareness. We will address her cryptic, challenging symbolism and her mystic belief in representing the invisible through her abstractions. Realizing that the world was not yet ready for the message of spiritual abstraction, Hilma stated that her work was to be hidden for decades after her death. And it was… until now.

Politics is serious business, especially for the American Presidency. The stakes are high, as are the potential consequences for the nation, citizens’ lives, and the world at large. Yet humor plays a central role in this political space as a strategy for communication and persuasion, for those in power (or seeking to be), and for those in opposition to the powerful. The current Presidency and the process that led to it are a fascinating case in point. In this course, we will explore the interplay of humor in recent years as competing forces strive to achieve their goals or frustrate each other’s agendas. With the assistance of political cartoonists, satirists, late-night comedians, movies, and street theater artists—and with the central players themselves—we will explore what humor does and can accomplish, both for the powerful and the powerless. Bring your questions, your skepticism, and your sense of humor, as we figure out together whether and how political humor is serious business. 
 

Explore marine life on Puget Sound tidal pools and beaches. You will find out what divers see in the Edmonds Underwater Park, what is living out in the Sound, and what can I see at low tide. We’ll be focusing on the Kingston and Edmonds beaches with their abundance of mollusks, sea stars, geoducks, moon snails, jellies, sea anemones, sand dollars, and more. We’ll also talk about the marine mammals and birds of prey, including the orca, sea lion, harbor seal, octopus, river otter, eagle osprey, great blue heron, and more.

The moon is our nearest celestial neighbor, the source of Earth’s tides and eclipses, and the constantly changing illuminator of the night skies. It likely formed by a giant asteroid impact in the early eons of the solar system and is said to be geologically "dead", but it may be a source of outer-space resources and may become the first human outpost in space. Along with the Apollo missions, all these and more are features of our moon and will be the topics to study as we look out at our solar system and join our closest companion in the grand celestial dance.
 

Celebrated internationally, Astrid Lindgren (1907-2002) and Tove Jansson (1914-2001) are two Nordic authors and artists who have crafted some of the most beloved children’s books of the twentieth century. Even if you have yet to read one of Lindgren’s Pippi Långstrump adventures or Jansson’s Moomin stories, you would likely recognize these iconic literary characters by sight if not name. In this course we will read some of these women’s most notable works contextualized by a close examination of the authors’ lives and craftmanship. During a period of global upheaval, Lindgren and Jansson were creative contemporaries living in Sweden and Finland, respectively. By juxtaposing their unique works, these talented women infused their children’s novels with profound reflections on the human condition that remain relevant today.

3/12/26 UPDATE: The class mode changed from in-person to online. Please let us know if you have any questions.

Which comes first in a composer’s mind: the opera or the overture? Which is played before the opera begins? Why are overtures such an important part of the operatic experience? In this rare glimpse inside the complex brains of opera composers, former Metropolitan Opera violinist Erica Miner explores the history of opera overtures, the most compelling reasons for their existence, and the composers’ processes in creating them.

Public sculpture adds visual interest and allows pedestrians, in particular, to develop a relationship with it. Throughout the world, outdoor sculpture is often the centerpiece of public squares and piazzas. It gives the space personality and creates a sense of place. In this course, you'll learn a brief history of Western figurative sculpture in public spaces, followed by the instructor's own experiences in various locales in the Pacific Northwest, including in the City of Edmonds, where his public art is well represented. He will discuss the benefits to the community as well as the challenges of creating commissions that satisfy the decision-makers' requirements without sacrificing the artist's creativity and originality. He will bring an example of his work to class for discussion.

The 19th century was a time of great change across Europe, as the basis of the economy was shifting from agrarian to industrial, a development that led to urban growth and the rise of the middle class. It was a time when philosophers and scientists questioned deeply held beliefs and when kingdoms ruled by monarchs were challenged by demands for democratic states governed by laws. It is against this background we shall consider Henrik Ibsen, the playwright who revolutionized modern drama by bringing the public sphere, politics and economics, into the intimate sphere of the drawing room. Our focus will be on two plays, “Pillars of Society” (1877) and “Rosmersholm” (1886), which class participants are encouraged to read. We will learn about Ibsen and his times in lecture. The real learning will come from the ideas and observations we share while discussing the plays in class!
 

This class is full. Please click the Add to Waitlist button below.

This class focuses on spies who distinguished themselves from other spies, including the most dangerous spy; the most feared; the most beautiful; the most famous; the most damaging; the world’s greatest spy; the spy who saved the world; and the spy who was never caught. We will examine their biographical profiles, motivation, and the impact of their spying, as well as take a brief look at the techniques of their espionage tradecraft. 

The general perception about the survival of Titanic passengers is that women and children survived at a higher rate than men and that passengers in the upper classes survived at a higher rate than those in the lower classes. Recent research shows that this perception is not true in general. New sophisticated statistical methods are applied to the Titanic passenger data, and the results show that the aforementioned comparisons are an oversimplification of the truth. Note that no prior statistical knowledge is necessary for following this talk. While some statistical terminology and principles that are appropriate for a lay audience will be presented, the talk will focus on the social atmosphere of the time and the end results of the statistical analyses, not on the actual statistical analysis of the data.
 

We will cover the period from Washington’s election as President in 1789 through the end of Monroe’s Presidency in 1825 and the five administrations of the Founding Fathers: Washington, Adams, Jefferson, Madison, and Monroe. We will discuss Washington’s first cabinet, the first acts of the U.S. Congress, and the first key decisions of the U.S. Supreme Court. We will examine the first endeavors in foreign policy and the tension between constitutional protections and national security issues, as well as major land acquisitions. We will see the effect of the Industrial Revolution on the growing urban population and the economic division between the North and South. We will discuss the changing relationship between Native Americans, European Americans, and African Americans. We will survey the political and military evolution of the United States from a fledgling state on the Atlantic Seaboard in the late 18th century to a recognized power in the Western Hemisphere by the end of the first quarter of the 19th century.

It is not logistically possible to have a field trip, so I’m bringing the beach to you. This class features pictures of what you would see if you were walking with me at low tide from Apple Tree Cove Point, Kingston, down to Saltair Beach next to the ferry landing. We’ll talk about the marine life we see along the way and learn about the dynamics of the environment.

This class is full. Please click the Add to Waitlist button below.

In addition to being a peace activist, a professor, and a husband and father, Northwest poet William Stafford (1914-1993) famously wrote a poem every day throughout much of his life. He said it was a matter of being alert, of paying attention to "the now-ness of things," and he urged students, readers, and his children to make attention their practice, too. He is truly a poet that we need in these times of distraction and disconnection. In this class we will take a look at a few of Stafford’s short essays about poem-making, and read and discuss poems from his posthumous collection, “Ask Me: 100 Essential Poems.”

Class begins in less than 2 business days or is already in session... Please call 425.640.1830 or email cri@edmonds.edu to register.

Class begins in less than 2 business days or is already in session... Please call 425.640.1830 or email cri@edmonds.edu to register.

Class begins in less than 2 business days or is already in session... Please call 425.640.1830 or email cri@edmonds.edu to register.

Class begins in less than 2 business days or is already in session... Please call 425.640.1830 or email cri@edmonds.edu to register.

Class begins in less than 2 business days or is already in session... Please call 425.640.1830 or email cri@edmonds.edu to register.

Class begins in less than 2 business days or is already in session... Please call 425.640.1830 or email cri@edmonds.edu to register.

Class begins in less than 2 business days or is already in session... Please call 425.640.1830 or email cri@edmonds.edu to register.

Class begins in less than 2 business days or is already in session... Please call 425.640.1830 or email cri@edmonds.edu to register.

Class begins in less than 2 business days or is already in session... Please call 425.640.1830 or email cri@edmonds.edu to register.