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Wonderings

A publication of the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI) at MSU

"This is the first OLLI class that I have taken. I was extremely impressed and

hope to attend many talks and more classes in the future.”

-Participant, How To Be a Birder

Leveling the Playing Field on Registration Day


As the popularity of OLLI at MSU programs has grown, so has the crush of registration for popular and enrollment-limited courses.


OLLI members report that they are thrilled with the diverse array of program topics and top-notch instructors. With this comes some growing pains as we navigate the stress imposed on our registration system on opening day. You may have personally experienced this frustration.


We hear you.


After careful consultation with MSU Academic Technology and Outreach and the volunteer OLLI Advisory Council, we are pursuing the next generation of registration software. We hope this, along with some other technology improvements, will help us handle our increased demand and accommodate future growth. A system upgrade will take time because we are committed to getting it right.


In the meantime, OLLI at MSU is implementing a lottery system for extremely popular and limited enrollment programs. Stay tuned for more information about the lottery system in upcoming newsletters.


OLLI at MSU Staff

November Friday Forum: Post Election Analysis


The OLLI at MSU November Friday Forum will host a virtual post-election analysis of election results and predictions about how the results might affect regional, state, and national audiences. Which election results were as expected, and which (if any) were surprises? How will these results affect us here in Montana? If some races remain undecided, what is the process involved in resolving the situation? Friday Forum will be held via Zoom on Friday, November 15, from noon to 1:30 p.m. The event is free and open to the public. 

 

A discussion on "Post Election Analysis" will be hosted by the Osher Livelong Learning Institute at Montana State University. Featured speakers include Jessikay Bennion, an associate teaching professor in MSU's Department of Political Science, and Montana Free Press reporters Mara Silvers and Tom Lutey. Silvers covers the governor's race, Supreme Court races, and CI-128. Lutey covers the Senate, Eastern District House, and attorney general races. 


Please note that the November Friday Forum is on the third Friday, November 15, from noon to 1:30 p.m. online via Zoom. Click or tap here for more information or to register directly through Zoom.

 

Participants must register by 11:00 a.m. on Friday, November 15. Upon registration confirmation, participants will receive an email with the Zoom link and instructions on how to join the Friday Forum. Registration is required to receive the Zoom information.

 

Friday Forum features presentations and community discussions on local and regional timely topics on the second Friday of each month from September through May. OLLI at MSU Friday Forum is free and open to the public.

 

Click or tap here for past Friday Forum recordings on the OLLI at MSU Recordings page.

Featured Courses


Comparative Religion with David Smith. Thursdays, October 31 - November 21, 1:00 - 3:00 p.m. Online via Zoom.


Are world religions a mass of confusion or a world of opportunity? This course will survey and compare the central teachings of some major world religions, addressing similarities and differences. Traditions covered include Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, and a brief discussion of alternative religions and cults.


And All That Jazz with Eric Funk. Tuesdays, November 19 - December 10 1:00 - 3:00 p.m. Face-to-face.


In jazz music, the performers develop the material, and that development is not written down but happens in realtime, extemporaneously, as improvisation. This course will change listeners' listening experience and increase the impact of music through understanding and without ruining the expressive or emotional impact of all music.

Upcoming Speaker Series


Resurrecting the Sweetpea Festival, 1978 with Beverly Mattson, George Mattson, and Eileen Tenney. Monday, October 28, 3:00 - 5:00 p.m. Face-to-face at Hope Lutheran Church. We invite OLLI at MSU members to bring a friend to this iconic Speaker Series presentation.


From Democracy to Autocracy: Political Regimes for Dummies with Susanne Mueller-Redwood. Monday, November 4, 3:00 - 5:00 p.m. Face-to-face at the Museum of the Rockies Hager Auditorium.


The Science of Wildfire Management with Greg Dillon and Corey Lewellen. Monday, November 18, 3:00 - 5:00 p.m. Face-to-face at the Museum of the Rockies Hager Auditorium.


The Fall Semester Speaker Series presentations are sponsored by:

Featured OLLI Extras


Confluence: Nature's Symmetry, Mathematics and Science in Poetry with Michael Smith. Wednesdays, October 30 - November 13, 10:30 a.m. - noon. Face-to-face.


Hidden within poetic forms are underlying mathematical or symmetrical structures found in nature. Examples include sestinas, the Fibonacci sequence, and fractal poems. We will consider several poems grounded in mathematics, science, and nature, gaining an appreciation of the challenge of writing them and their poignant results.


Brawl of the Wild, Today's Collegiate Sports: How NILs are Changing the Game with Sean Dotson and Jean Gee. Wednesday, November 20, 4:00 - 6:00 p.m. Face-to-face.


Join your fellow OLLI at MSU members in person and UM OLLI counterparts virtually for a friendly and cheer-filled educational program celebrating the long-standing Cat-Griz rivalry. Learn more about name, image, and likeness (NIL) and its impact on college sports from Montana State University and the University of Montana representatives. Help your neighbors stock their pantries by bringing nonperishable packaged or canned food to the OLLI office before November 19 or to the Brawl of the Wild program on November 20 to contribute to the MSU "Can the Griz" Food Drive benefitting the Gallatin Valley Food Bank and the Bounty of the Bridgers campus food pantry.

Where I'm From


The OLLI Legacy Letter Writing Group started in April 2022 as a course offered by OLLI instructor and retired MSU faculty member Jill Davis. These members have continued to meet monthly, creating writings inspired by author George Ella Lyon. OLLI class participants' renditions of “Where I am From” will be featured monthly in our newsletter.


"Where I'm From" is a poem that is taught in classrooms throughout the world. Rooted in a study of personal identity, the poem helps zoom into aspects that celebrate our individuality and prompts a personal exploration of background, home, childhood, upbringing, and family culture. The poem's original author, George Ella Lyon, is a poet, writer, musician, storyteller and teacher who was inspired to write this poem when she read a book by Jo Carson titled "Stories I Ain't Told Nobody Yet." Within the text was the quote, "I want to know when you get to be from a place." This inspired her to go on a quest to find out just where she came from.


Here is the original poem by George Ella Lyon (pictured above). 


“Where I’m From”

 

By George Ella Lyon

 

I am from clothespins,

from Clorox and carbon-tetrachloride.

I am from the dirt under the back porch.

(Black, glistening,

it tasted like beets.)

I am from the forsythia bush

the Dutch elm

whose long-gone limbs I remember

as if they were my own.

 

I’m from fudge and eyeglasses,

from Imogene and Alafair.

I’m from the know-it-alls

and the pass-it-ons,

from Perk up! and Pipe down!

I’m from He restoreth my soul

with a cotton ball lamb

and ten verses I can say myself.

I’m from Artemus and Billie’s Branch,

fried corn and strong coffee.

From the finger my grandfather lost

to the auger,

the eye of my father shut to keep his sight.

 

Under my bed was a dress box

spilling old pictures,

a sift of lost faces

to drift beneath my dreams.

I am from those moments —

snapped before I budded —

leaf-fall from the family tree.


Photo source, georgeellalyon.com, taken by Ann W. Olson

Autumn Reads


OLLI at MSU offers three member exclusive book discussion groups. We are sharing the below titles to allow you time to enjoy a good cozy read and join in the discussions! You may join any of the groups below for one, a few, or all of the sessions. Registration is required to participate in the book discussion groups.

OLLI Mystery Book Discussion Group

The Bone Collector

Jefferey Deaver

November 5,

12:00 - 1:00 p.m.

Online via Zoom

OLLI Non-Fiction Book Discussion Group

Atlas of AI: Power, Politics, and the Planetary Costs of Artificial Intelligence

Kate Crawford

November 18,

1:00 - 2:30 p.m.

Online via Zoom

OLLI at MSU Book Discussion Group

The War: A Memoir

Marguerite Duras

November 4,

3:00 - 5:00 p.m.

Face-to-face

Hope Lutheran Church

Learning Opportunities for Everyone: Feed Your Curiosity at a Price That Works for You!


We aim to make participation accessible for everyone aged 50 and older who wants to engage in lifelong learning. Recognizing that program or event fees can be a barrier, OLLI at MSU provides financial assistance for both tuition and membership.

 

We are grateful to the family and friends of our late OLLI at MSU leader and consummate lifelong learner, Doug Young, for establishing the Doug Young Memorial Scholarship Fund. We encourage you to apply for membership or program tuition assistance as needed and encourage your neighbor or friend to do the same. Our application is quick and easy. Click or tap here to view more information or apply for financial assistance. Please complete the application process BEFORE registering for programs.


Online donations are also encouraged to help us sustain and support the OLLI at MSU Doug Young Memorial Scholarship fund and OLLI at MSU general program fund.

Campus Corner

Below are a few upcoming events offered on the Montana State University Bozeman campus that may interest our OLLI at MSU members. Click or tap titles and locations for more information. These events are not sponsored or produced by OLLI at MSU.


Hidden Figures: Breaking Barriers Within STEM with Margo Lee Shetterly. Wednesday, October 30, 6:00 - 8:00 p.m. Strand Union Building, Ballrooms. Best-selling author Margo Lee Shetterly is the author of "Hidden Figures: The American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Women Mathematicians Who Helped Win the Space Race," which was a top book of 2016 for both Time magazine and Publisher's Weekly, a USA Today bestseller and a No. 1 New York Times bestseller. The book recounts the true story of the black female mathematicians at NASA whose calculations helped make possible some of America's most outstanding achievements in space. This presentation is the third and final speaker in MSU's second annual President’s Crossing Boundaries Speaker Series. Free and open to the public.


Honors Presents: Flying Supersonic with Dr. Anthony Demetriades. Thursday, November 7, 4:00 - 5:00 p.m., Chemistry & Biochemistry Building, Byker Auditorium. Frequent OLLI at MSU speaker Dr. Anthony Demetriades will give a presentation on supersonic flight, the sonic boom phenomenon and aerodynamic heating.


Bobcat Career Closet is Seeking Clothing Donations Every weekday, 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. Alan Yarnell Center for Student Success, Student Union Building, Room 177. The Office of Career, Internship and Student Employment Services needs gently used professional attire for MSU students. This office hosts the Spring and Fall Career Fairs, where hundreds of employers come to campus to meet, network, interview and hire MSU students. Many students are far from home and may not have brought career clothing with them to campus. Others may not own the clothing they need to dress for success. The Bobcat Career Closet consists of garments offered to students free of charge so they can all have a professional appearance that bolsters their confidence and polishes their image.

  • Faculty, staff and community members may drop their clothing donations any day of the week from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. all year.
  • If you need assistance with clothing pick-up, please call 406-944-4353.
  • The CISES office will provide you with a donation receipt for tax purposes.
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We hope you enjoy the selection of items we have chosen for this edition. Everything in this email will be archived on the Newsletter Archive page of our website.

Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI) at MSU is a program of MSU Academic Technology and Outreach. OLLI at MSU provides intellectually stimulating and enjoyable programs that foster lifelong learning and community engagement for individuals 50 and greater. There are no tests, no grades and no papers. OLLI at MSU offers opportunities for the pure joy of learning. Become a member, support lifelong learning, consider teaching for OLLI at MSU. Contact the OLLI office by phone at 406-994-6550.