In this Issue:
A Note from the Director | A Note from our Advisory Board Chair | We're Here for You! | Fall Catalog Update | Thank You, March Volunteers | Campus Food Pantry | Like Us on Facebook | First Friday Astronomy Lecture Online
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Dear Osher members,
So much has happened in just a few weeks and we are all facing challenges that we could not have anticipated. We made a difficult decision to cancel programs in an effort to protect everyone, and while we miss seeing you, we are certain that it was the right decision.
My team and I are now working from home and our building is closed, but the work has not stopped. Our fall 2020 semester schedule is confirmed and the catalog production has begun. We’ve also committed time to develop a virtual library (Osher On Demand) with resources to online lectures and courses, TED Talks, curated articles, virtual tours of some incredible places, and some of our own Osher presenter lectures. We are working with presenters from this spring semester to reschedule them into future semesters and to identify those we can record for online delivery. We are finalizing an agreement with The Great Courses that will give members access to hundreds of online programs, and, thanks to our Osher Institute counterparts around the country, we will be adding even more recorded programs which they have vetted and shared.
Keep an eye on your email for more information about how to access these resources
.
Our first virtual social hour will be held on
Wednesday, April 8 from 11 a.m.-noon
. Join me and the entire staff online to participate or just listen in. While we can’t provide home-baked treats for this session, we hope you will get a cup of coffee, tea, or your favorite beverage and join us. We will share what has been happening "in the office" and want to hear how you are faring during the break. An email with the Zoom meeting link and directions on how to join will be sent a few days prior to the meeting. In the meantime, learn more about Zoom using the links below:
- Click here for a 1-minute video about joining Zoom on your computer.
- Click here for an article about joining Zoom from your landline.
Finally, I want to take a moment to say thank you. Many of you generously donated course fees to the Osher Excellence Fund; your support is staggering. To every Osher Institute member, this is YOUR program and we could not do the work without your commitment and love of lifelong learning. Your volunteerism, interest, engagement, attendance, and participation in Osher is invaluable. Thank you for everything you do to keep this Institute operating.
Warmly,
Dana Thorp Patterson, Director
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A Note from our Advisory Board Chair
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We are living in extraordinary times and as mature citizens our life experiences span 60, 70, 80 years or more. With that experience and as dedicated lifelong learners we must also be lifelong adapters. We have adapted to new technologies, wars and conflicts, new societal mores, climate change, and economic calamities. Now we are called on to adapt to a global pandemic. And some say we are facing no less than the moral dilemma of do we save lives or save the economy of a nation. Or can we muster the courage, political will, and ingenuity, to do both?
Osher members, as we look to our individual circumstances, we are asking ourselves how do we cope and manage stress, loneliness and anxiety? How do we stay healthy? One tool is to seek a Lodestar— a person(s) or thing that serves as an inspiration or guide. It may be from our faith-based community or something more specific like the courage and grace demonstrated by a living or past family member or friend. Did your parents or grandparents immigrate from a foreign country and have the fortitude to start new lives in the U.S.? Do you have a special person that was challenged by and survived a life-threatening disease, or a combat veteran of the Vietnam or Middle Eastern wars? Who or whatever serves as your Lodestar, try to honor that legacy with your own actions, behavior and courage as we meet our present crisis!
So finally, my friends and members of Osher, stay intellectually engaged, get regular exercise, give back as best you can to the community and stay social connected with technology. Know that as Osher members we are all part of a broader family and a generous support group.
Ben Simko, Advisory Board Chair
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We understand that some of our members are staying home for extended periods of time and may be alone. If you find yourself in this situation, and especially if you are unable to see friends and family, please know that we are here for you!
Feel free to give us a call at
(208) 426-6554 and leave a message. Since we are working remotely, we are unable to answer phone calls as they come in. However, if you leave a message, we can access your message remotely and will give you a call back as soon as we can.
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While we will be creating contingency plans in the event COVID-19 continues to be an issue as we near the fall semester, we have moved forward with our traditional scheduling. Should circumstances dictate a different approach, we will announce changes as the time approaches.
The new fall catalog will be mailed at the end of June. Some highlights for the upcoming semester include one-time lectures on NPR's 50th anniversary, coastal sea otters, the WWAMI Regional Medical Education Program, and Chinese mining in Idaho. Multi-day short courses will feature topics including American art, China from 1956-1976,
The Godfather, and more!
Registration for the fall semester opens on Tuesday, July 21.
We appreciate the support and hard work from our curriculum committees to provide a robust list of high-quality, stimulating options for the new semester. Thank you to curriculum track chairs
Barbara Olic-Hamilton,
Chuck Folkner,
Virginia Rivers, and
Merilee Marsh for leading our committee meetings and assisting us in finding expert presenters. We also thank you, our members, for your suggestions which help determine the curriculum.
Thank you in advance for renewing your membership and continuing to support the Osher Institute. We can't wait to see you next semester!
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Thank You, March Volunteers
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Our program wouldn't run smoothly without our amazing volunteers! Thank you to the following who served as greeters in early March.
Brent and
Nancy Fricke,
Gary Wyke and
Elizabeth Greene,
Kathy Haze,
Alberta Woodall,
Steve Fields,
Jackie Agenbroad,
Buddy Howell,
Muriel Kronowitz,
Zoe Strite,
Joe Curry,
Chuck Robertson, and
Walt and
Mary Thode. We appreciate you!
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Thank you to everyone who has supported the campus food pantry this year! We delivered our final batch of donations for the semester right before our office closed. Under the given circumstances, we will not be collecting campus food pantry donations at the Yanke building for the rest of the semester.
While the pantry will try to use donated food and hygiene items as safely as possible,
organizers ask interested donors to consider contributing financial donations to the campus food pantry or student emergency fund
. These funds will help the dean’s office offer flexible support to students regardless of the ability to keep the food pantry doors open.
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If you have access to Facebook, please consider liking the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at Boise State University (
@osherboisestate).
We will continue to post engaging articles, news updates about our presenters, and programming updates for the fall semester.
You may even see the Osher staff (and their pets!) making an appearance. Jamie's dog, Wookiee, is proving to be a great coworker while she works from home.
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First Friday Astronomy Lecture Online
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The Department of Physics at Boise State University invites you to join them for the first online, live-stream edition of their First Friday Astronomy Lectures. Professor Devon Burr from the Department of Astronomy and Planetary Sciences at Northern Arizona State University will be online to discuss rivers across the solar system.
This even
t will take place on
Friday, April 3, at 7:30 p.m.
Click this link to join the meeting:
http://www.astrojack.com/ffa-rivers/
. Participants will be able to ask questions via YouTube's chat feature, which will appear on the website once the live-stream begins.
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Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at Boise State University
Phone: (208) 426-OLLI (6554)
Email: osher@boisestate.edu
Website: boisestate.edu/osher
The Osher Institute at Boise State University operates within the Division of Extended Studies. It is a membership-based lifelong learning program offering non-credit, college-level offerings for intellectually curious adults over age 50.
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Osher Institute Advisory Board
Chair: Ben Simko
| Cindy Anson | Ralph Bild | Russ Centanni | Carol Delaney | Bae Emilson
Chuck Folkner | Susan Gibson | Dennis Hall | Merilee Marsh | Mike Merz
Celeste Miller | Sharon Moses | Virginia Rivers | Nancy Roehrkasse
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Osher Institute Staff
Director:
Dana Thorp Patterson |
Program Coordinator:
Jamie Lundergreen
Assistant Program Coordinator:
Holly Goldgrabe |
Administrative Assistant:
Jeremy Trent
Student Office Assistant:
Makayla Muilenburg
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