SSU Launches Classes, Programs in Healdsburg

The Osher Lifelong Learning Institute, popularly known as "OLLI" will offer courses at the this year in Healdsburg.

An open house for the fall session is set for Thursday, Sept. 13, from 2 to 4 p.m. at the Villa. Open house attendees can meet the fall lecturers, learn more about OLLI and sign up for courses.

For a flyer, click on the PDF attached to this story. Or see the program website for more information.

OLLI is an adult learning community that an opportunity to experience university-level lecturers with no prerequisites, no tests and no grades. Most lecturers are leaders in their fields and many teach at the university level.

Working closely with the City of Healdsburg, OLLI has arranged to offer courses at the historic with convenient free parking and a comfortable wooded setting.

Healdsburg resident Bob Santos serves on the OLLI advisory board at Sonoma State University, the local OLLI headquarters.

"This is a marvelous thing we're bringing to Healdsburg," says Santos. "These lecturers are really our franchise players, the very best OLLI has to offer."

The first session begins Sept. 25 with a six-week course by Healdsburg resident Chris O'Sullivan, a nationally known scholar on President Franklin Delano Roosevelt. O'Sullivan's course, titled "FDR at War" will offer new perspectives on FDR's presidency and the tremendous impacts World War II made on the American experience.

Two more courses will be offered this fall – "The 21st Century Brain: An Ever Expanding Frontier" by neurologist Dr. Allan Bernstein; and "Muses in Their Own Right" by cultural historian Kayleen Asbo.

The Bernard Osher Foundation, founded by businessman and philanthropist Bernard Osher, helped found a series of OLLI learning communities across the country. While there are more than 100 OLLIs, many are in California, with one based at every UC and every CSU campus. Sonoma State, now in its 11th year with OLLI, hosts the second OLLI in the nation.

The regular fall session consists of three, six-week courses, on Tuesdays (O'Sullivan), Wednesdays (Bernstein), and Thursdays (Asbo) lecturing from 3 to 5 p.m. Each lecturer is a skilled presenter. The lively sessions include video and slide show presentations and the opportunity for audience interaction.

Chris O'Sullivan, PhD, MA teaches at the University of San Francisco and is the author of four books on world affairs. He has lectured at the FDR Presidential Library and at the Library of Congress. His course on FDR will cover FDR's role as Commander-in-Chief and the enduring controversies of the war, including Pearl Harbor, the Holocaust, the origins of the Cold War and international relations.

Allan Bernstein, MD is a board-certified clinical neurologist. He has been on the faculty of UC Davis and UCSF and has lectured extensively here and abroad. His areas of research include stroke, dementia, multiple sclerosis and migraine. He is currently engaged in a clinical trial studying Alzheimer's. His lively course will cover recent developments in memory, pain, genetics and brain function.

Kayleen Asbo, MA is a cultural historian, musician, writer and teacher who is on the faculty at Sonoma State University, Dominican University and the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. Through art, music, lecture and story she will examine the lives and works of eight extraordinary women who not only inspired genius in others, but created important work of their own.

OLLI is an opportunity to meet and engage with other adults who are interested in a high-quality educational experience. Medical research shows that intellectual stimulation and social interaction are essential for a long and fulfilling life.

In the winter and spring, OLLI will offer more courses at the Villa Chanticleer. Topics include Jazz, Lincoln, Immigration, Great Cities and more. Registration for this fall is open now by visiting www.sonoma.edu/exed/olli.

Courses are affordable at $80 for a six-week session, $150 for two courses and $210 for three or more.