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WC-ALL Announces Fall Semester Courses

July 21, 2020 by WC-ALL Leave a Comment

The Washington College Academy of Lifelong Learning, a continuing education program for adult learners, has announced an exciting schedule for the fall semester, which runs from August 31st to December 4th, 2020. Ed Minch, WC-ALL’s curriculum chairperson, has put together a team of new and returning instructors and stimulating topics for both six-week sessions. This semester, because of the Covid-19 pandemic and the constraints this brings to Washington College, we have canceled Showcase and will be offering all events online, via Zoom. In these difficult times, Zoom classes offer us distinct advantages. They can accommodate large numbers, are not difficult to negotiate, and allow for relatively easy discussion. Many of us have already used it, but if you feel you need help, please consult our website for clear and simple instructions.

Otherwise, we are operating as usual. Students may register for as many classes as they wish for one inclusive membership fee. Courses are taught by community members with interesting life experiences and expertise in a wide variety of fields. There are no educational requirements for membership and no papers or exams.

This fall we are offering a wide range of courses which address both important and popular topics. Three courses continue for both Sessions. Maria Wood continues to unpack the magic of Hamilton, now even more widely enjoyed thanks to television; Raymond Vergne looks at the many faces of Fascism; and Kevin Brien leads an exploration of the Confucian Way. Sign up for both sessions, or enjoy just one course.

Other courses in Session One, which begin on August 31st, include some timely topics: “Dangerous Infections and How they get the Upper Hand” (taught by Wendy Cronin); “Gun Control and the Second Amendment” (taught by Jim Astrachan); and financial advice for retirees, offered by Michael Durstein in “Passport to Retirement: Estate/Financial Planning for Retirees.” Movie buffs will be happy to know that Charles Leary is examining “1974: American Film,” and some much-needed nostalgia is sure to be found in “The Golden Age of Ocean Liners,” taught by Jack Shaum. Last, but certainly not least, Larry Lagattuta’s “History and Making of Bread” is bound to attract a crowd as the popularity of home-baking increases with our ongoing lockdown.

Highlights in Session Two include perennial favorite “Supreme Court,” in which John Christie leads two separate discussions of key cases heard during the 2019 term. Art and literature are also recommended, as Beverley Hall Smith discusses “Artists of the 19th Century, Up Close and Personal,” and Jean Austin looks at “Short Stories Everyone Should Know.” Financial tips continue with “Doc” Smith’s class on “Money and the Art of Contrary Thinking.” And finally our environment, near, far and virtual, is not forgotten. Dick Lance helps us understand our Apple technology (“Some Tips to Ease Everyday Use of Your Apple ‘Toys’”); Dennis Herrmann introduces us to “Backyard Astronomy;” and Larry Vetter helps us consider “Practical Environmental Field Response.”

In addition to sponsoring fall and spring classes, WC-ALL continues to host a series of Learn at Lunch lectures. These will also be offered via Zoom and are free to all our members, though members will have to provide their own lunch. The first lecture will be on September 15th. Alexandra Kirtley, Curator of Decorative Arts at the Philadelphia Museum, will be discussing early Eastern Shore history. On October 19th Mike Roberts will talk about Amelia Earhart, and on November 18th Melissa Deckman of Washington College’s Political Science department will offer comments on the national election.

To learn more about all these activities, visit WC-ALL’s table at the Chestertown Farmers’ Market on August 8th and 15th. The full course catalog and registration information are available at www.washcoll.edu/people_departments/offices/wc-all/index.php or email wc_all@washcoll.edu.

Registration for both fall sessions, by web or mail-in, runs from July 20th to August 21st. Please note that classes are filled as reservations are received; we recommend online registration. All mailed registrations and check payments should be sent to S. Calloway, POBox 7885, Newark, DE 19714. PLEASE NOTE: the WC-ALL campus office is closed and WC-ALL is not responsible for registrations sent to the campus at this time.

WC Academy of Lifelong Learning Inviting Course Proposals for Fall Session

April 16, 2020 by WC-ALL Leave a Comment

Washington College’s Academy of Lifelong Learning is moving forward on preparing its course lineup for the Fall 2020 semester and is soliciting course proposals. The Academy, over its 25 years of service, has offered courses in a wide range of subjects, ranging from great literature, Chestertown history, Buddhism, the Constitution, the opera and much more. Classes meet once a week typically for six weeks for 75 minutes each. Course proposals for the Fall classes, offered in two blocks beginning August 30 and October 18 respectively, are due by May 15. According to Ed Minch, WC-ALL’s Curriculum Chair, “There are so many people in our area with interesting backgrounds, experiences, and talents, we are always excited by what we can offer.” Copies of the proposal form and general information about teaching a course are available at https://www.washcoll.edu/offices/wc-all/propose-a-course.php. To test out an idea or for any other questions, contact Ed Minch at edminch3@gmail.com or Sue Calloway, WC-ALL’s Office Administrator, at wc_all@washcoll.edu.

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WC-ALL: Join us at Baltimore’s Walters Art Museum April 1

March 4, 2020 by WC-ALL Leave a Comment

Spend a day immersed in the Walters Art Museum’s collections of American, European, and Asian art, acquired over several decades in the 1800s and 1900s. Two generations of the Walters family made fortunes in the whisky and railroad businesses and began an extensive art collection in the mid-19^th century. The entire collection, together with the family home on Charles Street, was given to the city of Baltimore, as well as an endowment to preserve its availability to the public. We will have a docent-guided tour of the collection, including the extensive rare book collection and featuring a recently restored St Francis Missal. Afterwards, enjoy free time to revisit parts of the museum, eat in the Museum cafeteria (or one of the nearby eateries), browse in the attractive gift shop, and visit other local attractions such as the Johns Hopkins Peabody library across the street.

The bus will leave the Washington College parking lot on APRIL 1st at 8:30 AM (please arrive at 8:15 am for boarding) and depart BALTIMORE at 2:30 PM. The bus is equipped with a restroom and is handicapped accessible. Comfortable walking shoes are recommended. The cost of the trip is $45 for WC-ALL members and $55 for non-members, which includes the bus ride, driver tips and admission cost for guided tour. (Lunch is on your own). Reservations are due by Wednesday, March 18th, by sending a check payable to WC-ALL at WC-ALL, 300 Washington Av, Chestertown, MD 21620. Please include names, phone #s and email addresses for all who plan to attend. Questions should be directed to WC-ALL at 410-778-7221.Email or telephone reservations are not accepted.

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WC-ALL Hosts John Gillespie at February Learn at Lunch

February 3, 2020 by WC-ALL Leave a Comment

On Tuesday, February 18, retired UC-Davis Professor John Gillespie will speak about the aural tradition in Ireland that has given the world of music the jigs, reels, hornpipes, etc. that are part and parcel of the Irish music so many love today.

Professor Gillespie will not only speak about the music, he will also accompany his talk by playing pieces on the tin whistle and concertina. The performance will provide insight to the central role that Irish dance and music has in the development of Irish culture and how music migrated along with the Irish out of Ireland during the potato famine of the 19th century and returned to Ireland in the early 20th century. The Church, the Gaelic League and the Folk Revival of the 60s also shaped contemporary practices.

Professor Gillespie learned to play Irish music on the concertina in the traditional, aural way from Gearoid O hAllmhurain, an ethnomusicologist and holder of five All-Ireland music titles. Gillespie was a founding member of the Talbot County Irish band “The Boys of Bay Hundred” and, with Paul McDonald, Chestertown’s own “Jigs and Reels.” In the late 60s and into the 70s, Gillespie played early music with various university groups. He has taught courses on Celtic Music for adult learning programs at the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum and at Washington College.

So, if you love Irish music, or even if you can’t tell a jig from a reel, you’ll want to join others at the February Learn at Lunch at noon in Hodgson Hall on the Washington College campus.

A buffett lunch will begin at noon. For event parking, a shuttle service will run from the north student parking lot, which can be accessed from State Route #291 (Speer Road). The last shuttle leaves the lot at 11:55AM.

There is a small charge of $20 per person for WC-ALL members and $25 for non-members. Checks should be sent to WC-ALL, 300 Washington Ave., Chestertown, MD 21620. Please remember to include your name, phone number and email address. Be sure to sign up by Thursday, February 13 or before, as seats will go fast. Phone or electronic reservations cannot be accepted.

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WC-ALL Hosts Dr George Spilich at January Learn at Lunch

January 14, 2020 by WC-ALL Leave a Comment

George Spilich

Recently-retired psychology professor George Spilich is the speaker at Washington College Academy of Lifelong Learning’s first “Learn at Lunch” presentation for 2020. This will take place on Wednesday, January 22, 2020, and the intriguing title of his talk is “Beauty, Lies and Prejudice: Living in a Space Age World with a Stone Age Brain.”

Dr. Spilich is a cognitive neuroscientist who spent 38 years on the faculty of Washington College as the first John Toll Professor. His research has focused on neurological disorders such as concussion and Alzheimer’s disease and has been cited in scientific and medical literature over 2,500 times. In 1988-89 he was the successor to two-time Nobel Prize winner Linus Pauling at the University of Zagreb Hospital’s neurological and nuclear medicine departments. He confesses, however, that meeting the talented students at Washington College was the highlight of his career.

In his presentation, Dr. Spilich will address how neuroscience attempts to explain much of how our brains work, while the new discipline of social neuroscience asks how our brains manage social interactions. How do we decide who is attractive and who is not? Do we know when we are being lied to? Can we accurately interpret the facial expressions of people from other cultures? Join us on January 22^ndto find out more about this fascinating research on the human brain.

The buffet lunch will begin at noon in Hynson Lounge, located in Hodson Hall on the campus of Washington College. For event parking, a shuttle service will run from the north student parking lot, which can be accessed from Rte 291 (Speer Road). The last shuttle leaves the lot at 11:55 am.

To attend Dr. Spilich’s talk, reservations and payment are required by Thursday, January 16^th. There will be no refunds after this date. The cost is $20 for WC-ALL members and $25 for others. Make checks payable to WC-ALL, 300 Washington Ave, Chestertown, MD 21620, with name, phone # and email address for those attending. No phone or electronic reservations can be accepted.

For more information, contact the WC-ALL office at 410-778-7221.

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WC-ALL Announces Spring Schedule of Courses

December 18, 2019 by WC-ALL Leave a Comment

Forget about winter blues and sign up for a course with The Washington College Academy of Lifelong Learning! The continuing education program for adult learners has announced its schedule of courses for the spring semester: two six-week sessions which run from January 26^th to April 25^th2020, with an exciting array of topics, old and new. You can register for as many classes as you wish, for one inclusive membership fee. Courses are taught by community members with interesting life experiences and expertise in a wide variety of fields. There are no educational requirements for membership and no papers or exams. Why not join us?

With a few exceptions, noted below, classes begin at 4:15pm and are held on the Washington College campus. Several new classes are available in both sessions. Highlights in Session One, beginning on January 26^th, include perennial favorites like Sunday at the Movies, with Nancy Hartman. Check out her new topic for the Spring! Maria Wood is back with more about Hamilton – and the music lovers amongst us can also choose New Orleans Jazz, taught by newcomer (and jazz musician) Dave Robinson. Come and learn more about Alice Munro from Jean Austin, about Buddhism (taught by Jeff Coomer), Chestertown History (from Bayly Janson-LaPalme), and photography (from Stephen Walker and Maire McArdle). Politics are well represented, with a 2-part course on the constitutional amendments (taught by Conway Gregory) as well as another look at Great Decisions (with Mark Kamon). And for those ready to be challenged, Dick Lance is revisiting The Joy of X, while Doc Smith offers new ways to think about our money!

Highlights in Session Two, beginning March 15^th, also include old and new, and experiments with alternative venues (a class in Rock Hall) and times (A Saturday class). Music and entertainment are well represented. Sunday at the Movies continues, and Hamilton lovers can keep unpacking that tremendous musical. Opera aficionados can learn about Tosca with Hanson Robbins and Sandy Durfee, through lecture and streaming, while more popular music lovers are invited down to the Mainstay in Rock Hall to hear about the Home of Musical Magic (team taught, with Sue Kenyon).Equally intriguing, the two Johns (Ames and Christie) invite you to join them as they look at Big News from the Early Days of Television. Beverly Hall Smith returns with another favorite, Artists of the 19^th Century, and Bob Miller offers a more advanced class on Digital SLR Photos. Politics are far from neglected, with a continuation of Conway Gregory’s class on the US Amendments, as well as The Many Faces of Fascism (with Raymond Vergne). For those of us looking for something different, how about exploring The Golden Age of Ocean Liners (with Jack Shaum), Your Brain (with psychology professor George Spilich) or Dangerous Infections (with Wendy Cronin)?Finally worth emphasizing is Jim Astrachan’s course Gun Control & the Second Amendment, offered on SATURDAYS.

In addition to sponsoring fall and spring classes, WC-ALL hosts a series of Learn at Lunch lectures, open to the community, as well as special event trips. Details of these will be released in the New Year.

To learn more about all these activities, plan on attending Fall Showcase. This will be held on Tuesday, January 7^th 2020 at 3:00pm in Hynson Lounge on the Washington College Campus (and please note the new time and place). Come and learn about all the courses for the Fall and meet the instructors. Registration may also be done then.

The full course catalog and registration information are available at www.washcoll.edu/offices/wc-all/what-were-studying.php/ or call 410.778.7221.

Registration for both spring sessions, by web or mail-in, runs from December 16th to January 14^th. Please note that classes are filled as reservations are received.

WC-ALL is always seeking community members who have a special interest to share and would like to explore teaching a class in future sessions.Please contact us at the above addresses if you would like to know more.

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WC-ALL to Host Washington College CES’s Kate Livie at October Learn at Lunch

October 3, 2019 by WC-ALL Leave a Comment

Kate Livie

On Wednesday, October 23, 2019, Washington College Academy of Lifelong learning hosts Professor Kate Livie, for a Learn at Lunch presentation entitled: “Growing Up Chesapeake: a Native Eastern Shore Writer Reflects on the Bay’s Seasonal History, Culture, and Traditions.”

Kate Livie is a professional Chesapeake educator, writer, and historian. She has written extensively about regional travel, history, and foodways for publications from Wooden Boat to Baltimore Magazine to Edible Delmarva. Her 2015 book, Chesapeake Oysters: The Bay’s Foundation and Future, won the Maryland Historical Society’s Marion Brewington prize for Maritime History.

Kate is the former director of education and associate curator at the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum. She lives in her hometown of Chestertown with her husband and counts herself lucky to live, work and play in the most wonderful place in the world—the Chesapeake Bay.

Kate Livie currently serves as adjunct faculty at Washington College, where she teaches courses about the Bay’s environment, economy, and culture for the Center for Environment and Society. An Eastern Shore native, Livie is passionate about the Chesapeake Bay’s people and places. Her informative presentation will use her experiences and images from growing up on the Eastern Shore, close to the environment, as a way of exploring the history surrounding the region’s rich seasonal traditions and culture.

To attend Ms. Livie’s Oct. 23^rd talk, reservations and payment are required by Thursday, October 17; there will be no refunds after this date. The cost is $20 for WC-ALL members and $25 for others. Make checks payable to WC-ALL, 300 Washington Ave, Chestertown, MD 21620, with name, phone number, and email for those attending. No phone or electronic reservations can be accepted.

For more information, contact the WC-ALL office at 410-778-7221.

Washington College Academy of Lifelong Learning to Hold Open House Thursday, August 15

August 14, 2019 by WC-ALL

Come learn about the courses being offered during the fall semester at Washington College Academy of Lifelong Learning (WC-ALL) at the Showcase on Thursday, August 15 at 4 p.m. in Hotchkiss Recital Hall on the second floor of the Gibson Center for the Arts on the college campus. You’ll also hear about the upcoming Learn at Lunch lectures and other special events. Enjoy refreshments while meeting instructors and talking with fellow learners. Free and open to the public. No RSVP required.

The Academy of Lifelong Learning at Washington College is designed for those who believe learning is wonderful at any age! WC-ALL is a peer-led, self-supported autonomous department of the College that was created for adults who seek intellectual stimulation without the requirements for academic credit – learning for the joy of learning.

Each College semester the Academy offers two six-week sessions with 12-15 courses each session. Approximately 400 Eastern Shore residents become members and register for as many courses as they wish, for one all-inclusive membership fee. For an individual for one semester, as many courses as wanted, the current fee is $95. For a couple, the semester fee is $135. There is a discount for both individuals and couples who take an annual membership covering both semesters. See complete fee structure here on the WC-ALL website

WC-ALL FALL SHOWCASE of COURSES

Thursday, August 15^th, 2019. 4 pm

Location: Hotchkiss Recital Hall in Gibson Center for the Arts, Washington College.

Contact: Washington College Academy of Lifelong Learning.

Phone: 410-778-7221 Email: wc_all@washcoll.edu WC-ALL website

WC-ALL Announces Fall Semester Courses

July 31, 2019 by WC-ALL

The Washington College Academy of Lifelong Learning, a continuing education program for adult learners, has announced its schedule of courses for the fall semester, which runs from September 3^rd to December 6^th, 2019.

Each semester, approximately 400 people join WC-ALL and register for as many classes as they wish for one inclusive membership fee. Courses are taught by community members with interesting life experiences and expertise in a wide variety of fields. There are no educational requirements for membership and no papers or exams.

Ed Minch, WC-ALL’s curriculum chairperson, has put together a team of new and returning instructors and stimulating topics for both six-week sessions. With a few exceptions, classes begin at 4:15 pm and are held on the Washington College campus.

Courses in Session One, which begins on September 3rd, range from the “History of the Digital Computer” (taught by Chris Gordon) to “Dragonflies of the Delmarva Peninsula” (taught by John Gillespie) to popular short-story writer, “Alice Munro” (taught by Jean Austen). Movie buffs will be happy to know that, in both session, “Sunday at the Movies” continues with Nancy Hartman, Maria Wood returns with more insight into “Hamilton,” and Raymond Vergne presents “Don Quijote de La Mancha.”

Highlights in Session two also include the perennial favorite, “Supreme Court,” in which John Christies leads the discussion of several key cases heard during the 2018 term; Lucia Rather looks at “Political Cartoons;” and Beverley Hall Smith discusses “Art NOW”. There is also “Observations on the Vietnam War” (taught by Bill Valentino), “Digital SLR Basics” (with Bob Miller), and an introduction to “Smartphone Photography” (with Dick Lance).

In addition to sponsoring fall and spring classes, WC-ALL hosts a series of Learn at Lunch lectures, open to the community, as well as special event trips.

To learn more about all these activities, visit WC-ALL’s table at the Chestertown Farmers’ Market on August 3^rd and 10th, or at Legacy Day on August 17th. Also, look out for us at First Friday on August 2nd, and plan on attending Fall Showcase. This will be held on Thursday, August 15 at 4:00 pm at the Hotchkiss Recital Hall on the Washington College Campus. Come and learn about all the courses for the Fall and meet the instructors. Registration may also be done then.

The full course catalog and registration information are available at www.washcoll.edu/offices/wc-all/what-were-studying.php/ or call 410.778.7221.

Registration for both fall sessions, by web or mail-in, runs from July 30 to August 20. Please note that classes are filled as reservations are received.

WC-ALL is always seeking community members who have a special interest to share and would like to explore teaching a class in future sessions. Proposals for Spring 2020 can be submitted between September 1^st and October 15.

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