*Must register in-person at the Olympia Senior Center*

For writers and would-be writers of fiction, memoir and essays. Expect to write at least seven pages a week.

Improve your writing through short craft assignments, weekly “Wild Pages,” in-class exercises, and by critiques of your own work and work of fellow students. You’ll also be encouraged to participate in a public reading at the end of the quarter. Enrollment limited to 10. This class fills quickly! MUST REGISTER IN PERSON AT THE OLYMPIA SENIOR CENTER.

Your Instructor: A local writer and actor, Keith holds an MFA in Creative Writing from Goddard College A former spokesperson for Thurston County and The Evergreen State College, Keith likes to write while listening to baseball on the radio. He’s honored to have had one of his short stories included in the 2017 O. Henry Award Stories. He also won the 2019 Mighty River Short Story Contest, held by Southeast Missouri University.  

                      “I write to discover what I know.”  Flannery O’Connor

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*Must register in-person at the Olympia Senior Center*

For writers and would-be writers of fiction, memoir and essays. Expect to write at least seven pages a week.

This is a continuation of Beautiful Lies/Beautiful Truths 1. The focus of the class is increased involvement in student-to-student critiques, as well as explorations of points of view and metaphors.

Prerequisite: Beautiful Lies/Beautiful Truths I

Your Instructor: A local writer and actor, Keith holds an MFA in Creative Writing from Goddard College A former spokesperson for Thurston County and The Evergreen State College, Keith likes to write while listening to baseball on the radio. He’s honored to have had one of his short stories included in the 2017 O. Henry Award Stories. He also won the 2019 Mighty River Short Story Contest, held by Southeast Missouri University.  

                      “I write to discover what I know.”  Flannery O’Connor

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When in a group, are people more likely to conform when amongst strangers or among friends? What are the optimal conditions in which a minority within a group can win over a majority? Why is it that people sit in the same seats week after week without anybody telling them they have to sit there? Why do people get pushed out of shape when someone who is not visiting them parks outside their house even though it is a public street? Unravel the hilarious mysteries of how people act and react in small groups settings.

Your Instructor: Bruce Lerro has been a night-school college teacher for 27 years. He has taught in alternative college settings, in prisons, in the Air Force and in the Navy.  Bruce has taught in community colleges in the San Francisco Bay Area. Bruce has written eight books, including three on the application of Russian Lev Vygotsky’s work on word history. Bruce is also a pen-and-ink- artist.

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What was the land we now call Italy like during the 1,500-year period from c. 1000 BCE to 500 CE? This six-week class will examine the “mysterious” Etruscans and their cities of the dead. It will look at the colonization of south Italy and Sicily by the cities of mainland Greece. We will then turn to the rise of Rome from a small settlement on the Tibur to the ruler of the ancient world. We will explore archaeological remains, selections from ancient literature and philosophy, and modern scholarship all within the context of social, political, and cultural history. As a class we will try to better understand how these civilizations have influenced our modern world, for better or worse.

Your Instructor: Tony Usibelli is an avid student of the ancient world and has a B.A. in classical archaeology and art history from the Univ. of Missouri and the Intercollegiate Center for Classical Studies in Rome. He is an active member of the Puget Sound chapter of the Archaeological Institute of America, the Puget Sound Ancient Numismatic group and has taught classes at Evergreen and SPSCC. Tony taught an Ancient Italy class in Fall ‘22 and an Ancient Greece class In Spring ’23 through Senior Academy.

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Our ability to adapt to challenges and cohabit with our own fears and judgments is the secret to our fulfillment, but such mental athleticism is far easier said than done! In this course, we’ll learn how to plug in the skills of mindfulness to build a neurobiological support system that gives us the resilience we need to truly thrive. We’ll have weekly opportunities to learn about our brains’ tricks and superpowers, to practice mindfulness in meditation and in daily life and to discuss our experiences. New and returning students welcome!

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Your Instructor: Margo Benedetto is a certified mindfulness instructor and veteran classroom teacher in Washington State. She was a leader in bringing mindfulness education to Centralia School District from 2015-2020 and continues to provide personal and professional development on mindfulness for individuals and groups.She enjoys the variety of classroom setting she finds for her work, including Thurston County Dog 4-H, Olympia Senior Services and North Thurston Public Schools.

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Steven Kant will offer a one-session workshop to introduce students to math puzzles, logic games, and building math models. The workshop is intended as an introduction to the longer class—Math For Everyone—that is offered later in the quarter.

Your Instructor: Steven Kant is a retired math teacher, software developer, and business owner. He has taught math in secondary schools and at the college level. He is currently teaching math as a volunteer in elementary school, middle school, and summer day camp. He also has a website to provide math materials for students to continue their studies.

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This class aims to prepare us for National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo), which is coming right up in November. NaNoWriMo offers a strategy for getting the first draft of a novel done in a month; I’ve used this strategy four times, and it works! (I’ll be using it a fifth time, this year.)

But to be successful in NaNoWriMo, it’s important to have a clear idea of character and some notion of plot before we begin: that’s what this class aims to do. We’ll use writing prompts to help us know our characters, and to deepen them. We’ll also look at structure/plot and point of view. We’ll spend lots of time writing, and some time talking and sharing our writing with other class members (if we wish).

Writing classes tend to be a rich mix of inspiration, learning, community and fun. I expect this class to be all of these!

Your Instructor: Diane Chiddister is a lifelong journalist and the former editor of the Yellow Springs News in Yellow Springs, Ohio where she lives. But she also lives part-time in Olympia, where her daughter and baby granddaughter live. After retiring from the News in 2018, she decided to return to her first love of writing fiction, and to write her first novel. She’s a 1981 MFA graduate of the University of Iowa Writers’ Workshop. That first novel, “One More Day” was published in October, 2021. The book recently was named a finalist in the First Novel category of the Next Generation Indie Book Award, which is the largest award program for small presses, university presses and self-published authors.

Class requirements: writing materials

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This six-week course is for students who participated in Your Life, Your Story, Level I or another memoir writing course. New activities and themes are introduced each week to help you continue writing your autobiography, two-pages at a time.

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Your Instructor: Pam Toal is a published writer, coach, and certified Guided Autobiography facilitator.  Her professional background in non-profits, higher education, and consulting led her to discover the rewards of writing and sharing life stories.

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Class requirements: pen and paper

Prerequisite: Your Life, Your Story, Level I or instructor permission

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Have you ever wanted to write your memoir or leave a legacy for your loved ones? This is your chance.

This introductory six-week course includes activities and resources to help you write, share and preserve your life stories. Each week you’ll receive prompting questions to write two-pages at home on a particular theme of your life history. You’ll bring your writing to class the following week to share in a warm, supportive group environment. No writing experience is necessary, just an openness to appreciate and share the unique life that is yours.

Your Instructor: Pam Toal is a published writer, coach, and certified Guided Autobiography facilitator.  Her professional background in non-profits, higher education, and consulting led her to discover the rewards of writing and sharing life stories.

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One of the major political controversies that has grown out of America’s “culture wars” is over critical race theory, which holds that racism is systemic and that it is perpetrated by structural forces. Critical theory has been applied to other vital issues of contemporary life, including such areas as Gerontology, Feminism, Education, Religion, and Politics. Critical theorists agree that a primary goal of philosophy is to understand and to help overcome the social structures through which people are dominated and oppressed. While this is anathema to defenders of the status quo, in this course, we will look at how, properly understood, critical approaches can lead to finding hope and purpose in life and contribute to human flourishing.

Your Instructor: John is retired from teaching Human Development and Family Studies at Pennsylvania State University. John also worked in a variety of human service roles: early childhood education, community mental health, aging services, and geriatric partial hospitalization programs. John earned a Ph.D. in the Administration and Leadership Studies for Nonprofits program at Indiana University of Pennsylvania in 2010. John “fully” retired and relocated to Olympia in 2019 but continues to be involved in a variety of volunteer activities.

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Join Maia O’Brien as she offers as introduction to the fascinating world of astrology. The basic foundations of astrology will be presented including planets, signs, houses and planetary cycles. We will explore the many ways astrology is reflected in our own lives and the lives of those around us. It can give us a broader perspective on world events as well. Join us for lively and enlightening conversations about the beautiful, ancient, mystical art and science of astrology!

Your Instructor: Maia O’Brien is a physical therapist who uses dance, the creative arts therapies and astrology to help facilitate personal growth to enrich our connections with the world around us.

Class requirements: Please bring a printed copy of your birth chart to the classes, based on the time, date and place of your birth. Use the Whole Sign House system. Look this up on Time Passages or Astro.com apps.

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Class One: Introductions of class members. Stories and pictures of Native American masks of the Pacific Northwest Coast.

Class Two: With a partner, construct a facial mask with plaster of Paris gauze strips.

Class Three: Paint and decorate the mask to express a story from the heart.

Class Four: Using the mask as a guide and prompt, compose the story of the mask. Convene a

Talking Circle and share the mask’s story.

Class Five: Gather to celebrate the masks and their stories.

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Your Instructor: Barbara has facilitated mask-making workshops for twenty-six years. Her illustrious career includes public health and serving as a faculty member at the University of Washington, St. Martin’s, West Seattle, and South Puget Sound Community Colleges. She earned a master’s degree in Community Health Planning at the University of Cincinnati and Nursing Education and Curriculum at the University of Washington.

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Class requirements: All mask-making materials are provided. You are invited to bring extra materials for embellishments. Participants are encouraged to wear paint clothes.

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Welcome to the discussion on Northwest Nations: Arts and Stories with Professor Ron Johnson. Collectively, we will explore the rich heritage of the Northwest Nations through the lens of art and storytelling, examining how these expressive forms shape and reshape a sense of place and cultural foundations.

One of the central themes of Our conversation will be the concept of formlines, the unique artistic style commonly found in the art of the Coast Salish peoples. We will explore how these formlines are not merely artistic designs but also carry significant cultural and spiritual meanings. Through art, the Northwest Nations have passed down their traditions, histories, and beliefs, forming a powerful connection to their ancestors and the natural world.

Similarly, storytelling plays an essential role in the cultural preservation and continuity of the Northwest Nations. Storytelling serves as a guiding force, imparting wisdom, values, and teachings from one generation to the next. As we delve into the stories, we will come to understand how they reflect and reciprocate with the art, reciprocating a harmonious interplay of these two forms of expression.

Our collective examination of artworks and storyworks aims to foster Our contemporary and collective understanding.

Your Instructor: Professor Ron Johnson is an enrolled member of the Makah Nation in Neah Bay.  His mother Julie is an enrolled member of the Lummi Nation. Ron has worked in a variety of natural resource fields, has three beautiful children, and is currently pursuing his Doctorate degree.  Ron Johnson has taught courses at The Evergreen State College and currently teaches at Northwest Indian College.

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Steven Kant will offer a one-session workshop to introduce students to Visual Algebra. You will learn some basic algebra concepts using special math chips rather than memorized formulas. This curriculum, Flip-Chip Algebra, is appropriate for people of all ages and experience. The workshop is intended as an introduction to the longer class—Math For Everyone—that is offered later in the quarter.

Your Instructor: Steven Kant is a retired math teacher, software developer, and business owner. He has taught math in secondary schools and at the college level. He is currently teaching math as a volunteer in elementary school, middle school, and summer day camp. He also has a website to provide math materials for students to continue their studies.

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Classes held: October 18, 25 and November 1

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In our late-life we all want the time we have remaining to be enjoyable for ourselves and others we care about. We want to find meaningful ways to contribute to our community and to continue learning. Becoming aware of the possibilities is the first step. The three sessions are:

1. Ways to enrich our minds and maintain health as we age to meet the challenges of late life.

2. Ways to give, receive, and create a legacy with others during the upcoming holiday seasons.

3. Ways to stay connected to the larger world through involvement in our community.

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Your Instructor: Martha Worcester is a Consultant for Aging with a background in Nursing and in Growth and Development in Late Life.  She serves older adults and agencies assisting them in developing designs for adapting to changes occurring in late life.  She provides key information and tools for finding balance through the sorrows, challenges, and rich joys of late life.

Questions? Contact keysaging@gmail.com or phone 206-915-6335.

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Steven Kant will offer a class that offers a combination of activities including visual algebra, logic games, puzzles, and other hands-on activities. Be prepared to dust off those cobwebs and have fun with math!

Your Instructor: Steven Kant is a retired math teacher, software developer, and business owner. He has taught math in secondary schools and at the college level. He is currently teaching math as a volunteer in elementary school, middle school, and summer day camp. He also has a website to provide math materials for students to continue their studies.

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