The Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at Florida State University has greatly expanded its offerings and options for its new season of programs. Much of this is due to the impact of the pandemic.
The Institute, known informally as "OLLI," is headed by Director Debra Herman.
"Pre-pandemic, we pretty much just had classes in person. And we used to get ready for perhaps someday having hybrid or online classes. And then the pandemic said, 'Do it now!'"
The result, said Herman, is a hybrid learning environment that better fits the needs of all students, namely adults over the age of 50.
"This is the first semester that we have as many in-person classes as we do. They're not only on the FSU campus, but also at Red Hills Active Living Center and Westminster Oaks. And then we have Zoom classes, which have been wonderful for people who still don't want to come to classes in person."
OLLI President Jack Napstone has been with the program since the beginning. He's impressed with how students are embracing the change.
"I'm pleasantly surprised actually that there's a great deal of our members who have adapted very easily to whatever is there. There is a certain group of folks who want to have those history classes. They want to have all those different variations that we offer."
Those variations cover a vast range of subjects, from composers to current events, religion to Roman art, maps to myths and much more. All taught by either current or retired faculty from FSU, FAMU and TCC. Beyond the myriad of classes, Director Herman said there are also field trips and travel much farther afield.
"This summer we did a lot of travel. We were catching up from 2020 and 2021. We've been to Greece and Turkey and the Netherlands and Belgium and Alaska and on it goes. We'll be doing a lot more travel next year."
The fellowship and comradarie that OLLI inspires is also a powerful point. And outside of the formal programs, there's an informal get-together every Wednesday of both members and non-members who'd like to learn more.
"It's a ball! It really is. It's a lot of fun, the conversation is always good. Food, drink, yeah!" exclaimed Napstone.
Herman said there are still openings for the next 6-week semester of OLLI classes.
"So people can still register by going onto our website. They can make an account, which doesn't cost anything. And then if you decide to join, you can do so. And if you need help doing that, give me a call and I'll be more than happy to help them register."
There are multiple links to the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute pages from Florida State University's web presence, as well as the Claude Pepper Institute on Aging and Public Policy site, with which the OLLI program is associated.
