WMU News

WMU News
Western Michigan University
Kalamazoo MI 49008-5433 USA
(269) 387-8400

Osher Lifelong Learning Institute offering new classes, trips

Photo of an Osher Lifelong Learning class visiting Detroit.
A previous class visits Detroit.

KALAMAZOO, Mich.--Registration is underway for 45 courses and six trips being offered during the winter/spring semester by the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at Western Michigan University.

The short-term, noncredit courses and enlightening day trips are designed for passionate learners age 50 and over. There are no tests or papers to write. Courses run one to six weeks and take place on the WMU campus and at other sites in the local community. Registration opened Jan. 21 for Osher Institute nonmembers. Early-bird course registration for members opened Jan. 7.

The Osher Institute at WMU will celebrate its 5th birthday in February. Since its founding in 2011, it has offered 318 courses, events and trips with enrollments totaling 6,737. Membership has grown to 804 people, and 194 instructors have volunteered to offer a wide variety of learning opportunities.

Winter/spring offerings

The new semester course list includes subject areas encompassing art, drama and film, health and wellness, history, current issues, science and technology, and much more. Most courses meet once a week, with the first ones beginning in early February and the later ones concluding at the end of April.

This semester, participants can enroll in classes that will allow them to discover who Dr. Homer Stryker was, tour and taste products at Arcadia Ales and Bell’s breweries, delve into little known movies of the 1930s and 1940s, learn how to cook healthy, and discuss the Palestine and Arab-Israel conflict.

The trip docket includes excursions to:

  • Grand Rapids Friday, March 4, for a coffee concert and special lunch.
  • The Driehaus Museum in Chicago Tuesday, March 15, for the "Downton Abbey" costume exhibit and visits to historic places.
  • Toledo, Ohio, Thursday, April 14, to see the Toledo Museum of Art and Wildwood Manor and Preserve.
  • Jeff Daniel's Purple Rose Theatre in Chelsea Wednesday, May 25, with WMU emeritus professor of theatre D. Terry Williams serving as host.

For more information or to view the complete winter/spring semester catalog and registration details, visit wmich.edu/olli or call the Extended University Programs office at (269) 387-4200.

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