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Constitutional Conversations: Should We Change the Founding Document? NEW!
Instructor: Margaret Heubeck
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Day of the Week: Tu
Times: 10:00 AM - 11:30 AM
Dates: 9/9/2025 - 10/7/2025
Number of class sessions in this course: 5
Fee: $50.00
Course Location: R.R. Smith Center for History and Art - Upstairs Lecture Room
Location Address: 22 South New St Staunton, VA 24401
Limit: 25
Course Description:
We will look at the Constitutional Convention and the issues facing the Founders in drafting the document and the extent to which discussion, debate and consensus were used to complete the document. We will follow the Constitution through history and discuss the amendments, the amendment process, and the possibility of holding another Constitutional Convention as Jefferson suggested. We will analyze current Constitutional challenges and look for possible solutions.
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Kind Kin: Gandhi’s Gift NEW!
Instructor: Shelley Bryant
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Day of the Week: Tu
Times: 10:00 AM - 11:30 AM
Dates: 11/4/2025 - 12/9/2025
Number of class sessions in this course: 5
Fee: $50.00
Course Location: R.R. Smith Center for History and Art - Upstairs Lecture Room
Location Address: 22 South New St Staunton, VA 24401
Limit: 25
Course Description:
Before the term “influencer” applied to social media stars, Howard Gardner coined the term “Influencer” to describe a person who has accomplished positive and significant change by affecting the “thoughts, feelings, or behaviors of others.” To do this, Gardner says, the Influencers possess extraordinary skill as communicators who employ the concept of “Story” as their principal vehicle of influence. The most successful twentieth century Influencer, of course, is Gandhi who in turn inspired many others who have also peacefully fought against and prevailed over tyranny and injustice. This class will examine three of these Influencers–Cesar Chavez, Vaclav Havel, and Alexi Navalny–to show how they also used Story to achieve profound societal change.
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Making Medical Decisions: Can Ethics Help? NEW!
Instructor: Kenneth Beals
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Day of the Week: Th
Times: 12:30 PM - 2:00 PM
Dates: 11/6/2025 - 12/18/2025
Number of class sessions in this course: 6
Fee: $60.00
Course Location: R.R. Smith Center for History and Art - Upstairs Lecture Room
Location Address: 22 South New St Staunton, VA 24401
Limit: 25
Course Description:
Advances in health care have added decades to our average lifespan in recent years. But those advances have raised troubling questions: Just when does human life begin and end? How do we decide when “pulling the plug” is the right thing to do? Who should be allowed to make that decision for someone unable to speak for themselves? You probably have questions of your own to add. Moral philosophers and religious leaders have struggled with these issues for centuries. This course will examine several approaches to making ethical medical decisions, including Utilitarianism, Virtue Ethics, and various religious approaches. No one approach will be preferred, and students will have ample opportunity to support and clarify their own views.
NOTE: If you do not see the "Add to Cart" button, there are four possible reasons. 1) Registration may not be open 2) You have not added a membership to your cart or renewed your membership (Click HERE to purchase your membership) 3) You are not logged in (Click “Sign In” on the blue bar above) 4) You may need to refresh your screen.
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Terror in the Soul: A Cultural History of the Soviet Union NEW!
Instructor: John Mason
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Day of the Week: W
Times: 10:00 AM - 11:30 AM
Dates: 9/10/2025 - 9/10/2025
Number of class sessions in this course: 1
Fee: $60.00
Course Location: R.R. Smith Center for History and Art - Upstairs Lecture Room
Location Address: 22 South New St Staunton, VA 24401
Limit: 25
Course Description:
The Bolshevik Revolution of 1917 was rooted in a ‘scientific’ Marxist- Leninist doctrine but also infused with a religious pathos. The Communist Party under Lenin and Stalin went on to produce one of the most devastating utopian experiments in the history of mankind. Under Stalin alone more than 20 million innocent people were murdered in forced famines and the Gulag labor camps. The cornerstone of this Soviet Civilization was the attempt to create a ‘new man’. In this course we shall focus on the personal testimonies of both the victims and true believers of this Soviet ideology.
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The Emerging European Balance of Power NEW!
Instructor: James Sofka
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Day of the Week: Th
Times: 2:00 PM - 3:30 PM
Dates: 10/30/2025 - 11/20/2025
Number of class sessions in this course: 4
Fee: $40.00
Course Location: R.R. Smith Center for History and Art - Upstairs Lecture Room
Location Address: 22 South New St Staunton, VA 24401
Limit: 35
Course Description:
Recent domestic and international political developments in both the US and Europe have challenged 30 years
of assumptions regarding European security and the transatlantic relationship. While the end of the Cold War was once hailed as the “end of history,” history has returned with a vengeance across the continent. Collectively, the Russo- Ukraine war, the rise of nationalist parties, and economic uncertainties have shaken the foundations of post-Cold War Europe as well as its institutional guardians, the European Union and NATO. The thawing of the Cold War has surfaced older patterns of European international relations and clouded the rosy promises of European integration. This course will assess key actors in the new European balance of power, the theory and political reality of European security since the end of the Cold War, and potential trajectories of continental and transatlantic power dynamics in a rapidly changing
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The Magic of Switzerland
Instructor: Donald Clymer
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Day of the Week: W
Times: 1:00 PM - 2:30 PM
Dates: 9/10/2025 - 10/8/2025
Number of class sessions in this course: 5
Fee: $50.00
Course Location: R.R. Smith Center for History and Art - Upstairs Lecture Room
Location Address: 22 South New St Staunton, VA 24401
Limit: 25
Course Description:
Switzerland dazzles the eyes with its beautiful alpine landscapes and pristine lakes. It is one of the most desired places to visit for people from around the world. Who are the people who live in this paradise and what makes them tick? This class will go beyond the stereotypes of tidiness, neutrality, cheese and chocolate, wristwatches and trains running on time, to examine the unique language, the special dishes, the mindset and peculiar customs of this tiny yet influential country in the middle of Europe. Switzerland is indeed magical!
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The Poetry of Emily Dickinson
Instructor: Stephen Kennamer
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Day of the Week: W
Times: 11:00 AM - 12:30 PM
Dates: 10/29/2025 - 12/10/2025
Number of class sessions in this course: 6
Fee: $60.00
Course Location: R.R. Smith Center for History and Art - Upstairs Lecture Room
Location Address: 22 South New St Staunton, VA 24401
Limit: 40
Course Description:
Emily Dickinson, known as “The Myth” even while still living in Amherst, Massachusetts, left at her death a cache of nearly 1800 poems, half of them never seen by anyone other than herself. They included hundreds of love poems, both ecstatic and anguished, addressed to or referencing a still-unidentified “Master.” The history of their publication – only ten were published during her life – is a rich subject in itself. Among many enigmas, one stands out: that her poetry is unequaled in its technical virtuosity and profound emotion. The course will cover both her remarkable oeuvre and her quietly extraordinary life.
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There’s No Fool Like an Old Fool: Three Old Men in Shakespeare NEW!
Instructor: Shelley Bryant
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Day of the Week: Tu
Times: 12:00 AM - 12:00 AM
Dates: 9/16/2025 - 10/21/2025
Number of class sessions in this course: 6
Fee: $72.00
Course Location: OLLI at UVA -
Location Address: 1 Morton Drive, Terrace Level Charlottesville, VA 22903
Limit: 35
Course Description:
As a citizen of the Renaissance Shakespeare copies Aristotle in the belief that humans fulfill their potential only within a civilized society. With this, human error often results from an excess in either eros—the sensual appetites—or thumos, the noble anger that manifests as arrogance. Within this worldview, Shakespeare likes to remind us that age and wisdom are often not the best of friends. We will examine this idea with three older characters: Sir John Falstaff (from Henry IV Parts One and Two), King Lear, and Prospero (from The Tempest). Though reading the plays will enhance understanding and discussion, it is not required, as the instructor will provide thorough background and many excerpts during class time.
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