Lifelong Learning

The Changing Nature of Warfare II: Ukraine and Sudan

(In-Person Option full as of Jan. 29. Online option only.)

Mondays, February 24, March 3, 10 & 24 | 1-3p

This course examines two wars of the Twenty-first Century and what they teach us about the changing nature of warfare: Ukraine and Sudan. The war in Ukraine began in 2022 when Russia invaded the sovereign nation that is one of 14 independent countries formerly part of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. In northeast Africa, the war in Sudan revived in 2023. The war in Ukraine has killed 57,500 as of October 2024. The war in Sudan has killed more than 15,000 and created "the world’s worst hunger crisis" according to the UN, with five million people starving and nine million people displaced.

Instructor: Dr. Gretchen Eick, Lecturer, Department of History

Politics and Culture of Latin America

Tuesdays, February 25, March 4, 11 & 25 | 1-3p

This course will focus on relevant aspects of politics and culture in the Latin American region. Latin America is comprised of the Spanish-speaking countries and Portuguese-speaking countries in the Western Hemisphere. The course examines the different political regimes that exist in that region of the world and the economic, social and political challenges that those countries face. It also looks at certain relevant cultural aspects. The course will emphasize current issues, but will also look at historical issues.

Instructor: Dr. Dinorah Azpuru, Lecturer, Department of Political Science

Global Public Health

Wednesdays, February 26, March 5, 12 & 26 | 1-3p

As the recent (and still ongoing) Covid-19 pandemic has reinforced, public health is a matter of great concern from the local to the global level. This course will provide an overview of the history of public health from its earliest days to the present. We will examine the conditions that prompted protective approaches and the tactics, methods, and organizations that have been developed to safeguard health, with a particular emphasis on the organizations that have been created at the community, national and global level. This historical discussion will trace the evolution of protective efforts, assay the current status and provide a brief summary of the challenges for organizations and people in the present moment and for the foreseeable future. 

Instructor: Dr. George Dehner, Lecturer, Department of History

How Do They Do That? The Magic of Technical Theatre

Mondays, April 7, 14, 21 & 28 | 1-3p

When we attend a theatre production, we often go for the story but leave with a strong visual impression of how the story was told. We may have an idea of how actors do their job but may not realize the complexity of bringing a story to life visually. If we enjoy the performance, we applaud the actors for their hard work but don’t often acknowledge all the work that was done to create and enhance the visual world of the story. This class will dig into how the magic of theatre happens and gain a better appreciation of technical theatre.
We will look at how designers create a believable world where the story comes to life.

Instructor: Linda Starkey, Retired Faculty, Lecturer, School of Performing Arts

1856: A Nation Divided   

(In-Person Option full as of Jan. 21. Online option only.)

Tuesdays, April 8, 15, 22 & 29 | 1-3p 

This course examines the story of the issues that drove the nation toward sectionalism and eventually conflict over the issue of slavery first on the Kansas-Missouri border and then the nation. 

Instructor: Ken Spurgeon, Lecturer, Department of History

The Geology of Water Within and On the Earth

(In-Person Option full as of Jan. 28. Online option only.)

Wednesdays, April 9, 16, 23 & 30 | 1-3p

The Earth is approximately 71% water. It exists both on the surface and within the earth, moving through the water cycle in liquid, solid and gaseous states. Although many people would not naturally associate water with rocks, water drives many of the key processes of the rock cycle, especially erosion, weathering and transportation of materials. Without water, not only would life not exist, but the rock cycle would come to a halt. It shapes many of our landforms, deposits minerals, alters rocks and affects volcanism. Join us as we learn about streams, lakes, drainage basins, groundwater, caves, glaciers, oceans, water contamination and remediation. Plus, in the final week, we’ll look at how water has shaped Kansas, what is impacting our water supply and how we can protect our water resources.

Instructor: Heather Merchant, Lecturer, Department of Geology

NEW THIS SEMESTER!

First People of Kansas with Beccy Tanner

(In-Person Option full as of Jan. 21. Online option only.)

Local historian and Kansas Newspaper Hall of Famer, Beccy Tanner, will return to teaching this spring with her First People of Kansas project. Over a period of 18 months, Beccy worked in collaboration with videographer Auriel Hathaway and photographer Bo Rader to document and honor the tribes that have called Kansas home.
Funded largely through a $10,000 Humanities Kansas grant, the project includes 12 videos, one documentary and 15 portraits that used wet-plate photography – the kind of photography that was used during the 19th century. Some of the tribes represented include Kiowa, Kanza, Apache, Chickasaw, Yuchi, Cherokee/Delaware, Kechi, Comanche/Pawnee, Southern Cheyenne/Osage, Yaqui/Ojibwe and Ponca. The work melds the history of Kansas’s First People with their present experiences. Those interviewed include a chief, fashion designer, advocate, filmmaker, elders and holy men.

This 6-week class will meet in-person at Larksfield Place Auditorium and will also be available for online viewing at your convenience. Class will be held on Fridays, March 7, 14, 21, 28, April 4 & 11 from 1-3 pm.
Larksfield Place | 7373 East 29th St N, Wichita, KS 67226