August 2021
In This Issue: A Message From the Director | Fall Semester Q & A | August Programs | Meet Your Advisory Board | Casual Coffee Hours | Osher-Sponsored Events | Campus Food Pantry Donations | Fall Office Hours
A Message From the Director
Dear Osher Members,

August is the beginning of another new learning experience for the Osher Institute, for members and staff alike! Our building is once again open to the public, so feel free to stop in and say hello! Member packets may be picked up beginning August 16, or feel free to get yours when arriving for a class. We can’t wait to see you!

My heartfelt thanks to our departing Advisory Board members, Susan Gibson, Bae Emilson, Ben Simko, and Russ Centanni for your committed service to the Osher Institute. Your unique personalities and shared love of learning made for wonderful, productive, and inspiring meetings and outcomes.

If you have not yet renewed your Osher membership, feel free to do so now.
Your annual membership includes these features:

  • Access to more than 100 quality lectures and short courses facilitated by unique presenters, hosted in a comfortable lecture hall and livestreamed for easy access.
  • Registered members automatically receive the link to recorded presentations.
  • Access to archived, recorded Osher presentations for a full academic year.
  • One Guest Pass each semester to invite a guest to attend a livestream or recorded session.
  • Special Osher member rates for a subscription to The Great Courses Plus/Wondrium.
  • Parking permit for the Yanke building and bus pass for regional public transportation.
  • Opportunities to meet other Osher members and the Institute team during monthly Casual Coffee sessions, as well as Osher special events.

I can’t wait to see each of you, and I leave you with another favorite quote of mine:

"August of another summer, and once again, I am drinking the sun, and the lilies again are spread across the water." – Mary Oliver

Dana

Dana Thorp Patterson, Director
Fall Semester Q & A
Q: Will there be seated programs for the Fall 2021 semester?

A: Yes! We will be offering both in-person and livestreamed programs for the fall semester. On the Browse Curriculum page, you will find the notation "(Livestream/Recorded Only)" listed next to the titles of the programs that will only be offered online. Seated programs will also be livestreamed and recorded (with one noted exception in the schedule).
Q: How will I know if I have a seat in a program?

A: Programs with registration lower than the room capacity will provide seating for all. If registration exceeds the room capacity, a lottery system will be utilized. One week prior to the program, members will receive a confirmation email indicating whether or not a seat is available.
Q: What health and safety measures will you take to protect returning members?

A: While you are visiting the Osher office or attending Osher programs, we ask that you follow the health guidelines and protocols as outlined by Boise State University. These may be subject to change throughout the semester.

All members of the campus community—regardless of vaccination status—are strongly advised to wear a facial covering when indoors on campus. Although ongoing research confirms the COVID-19 vaccines are safe and effective, it is possible for fully vaccinated individuals to unknowingly spread the virus to unvaccinated individuals. For more information on university protocols, click here.

In addition, hand sanitizer stations will be available near the classroom entrances, and surfaces will be wiped down after all sessions.
August Programs
We are excited to offer the following programs during the month of August:

Valedictory: Absence and Desire in Literature
(Livestream/Recorded Only)
Presenter: Dr. Cheryl Hindrichs, Associate Professor of English, Boise State University
Date and time: Tue., Aug. 17, 1:30-3:30 p.m.
Cost: Included with membership

An Osher Special Event: Great Lakes Storms and the Edmund Fitzgerald (Livestream/Recorded Only)
Presenter: Ric Mixter, author and PBS producer
Date and time: Thu., Aug. 19, 10 a.m.-noon
Cost: $20

Treaty Rights and Tribal Science in the Columbia River Basin
(Livestream/Recorded Only)
Presenter: Dr. Zach Penney, Fishery Science Department Manager, Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission
Date and time: Thu., Aug. 19, 1:30-3:30 p.m.
Cost: Included with membership

An Osher Special Event: The Fire of Frederick Douglass
(Livestream/Recorded Only)
Presenter: Dr. Richard Bell, Professor of History, University of Maryland
Date and time: Fri., Aug. 20, 10 a.m.-noon
Cost: $20

The Lives and Stories of Arts Teachers in the U.S.
Presenter: Dr. Lori Gray, Associate Professor and Director of Music Education, Boise State University
Date and time: Mon., Aug. 23, 10 a.m.-noon
Cost: Included with membership

Polly Bemis: The Life and Times of a Chinese American Pioneer
(Livestream/Recorded Only)
Presenter: Dr. Priscilla Wegars, historian and founder, University of Idaho's Asian American Comparative Collection
Date and time: Mon., Aug. 23, 1:30-3:30 p.m.
Cost: Included with membership

Why the Constitution is Personal
(Livestream/Recorded Only)
Presenter: Dr. David Adler, President, Alturas Institute
Dates and times: Tu., Wed., Thu., and Fri., Aug.24, 25, 26, and 27, 10 a.m.-noon
Cost: $45

Gray Wolf Management in the Northern Rocky Mountain Region
Presenter: Carter Niemeyer, former district supervisor, USDA Wildlife Services
Date and time: Tue., Aug. 24, 1:30-3:30 p.m.
Cost: Included with membership

Estate Planning Essentials: Key Documents to Have in Place
Presenter: Shaila Buckley, JD, estate planning attorney
Date and time: Wed., Aug. 25, 1:30-3:30 p.m.
Cost: Included with membership

Cybersecurity Posture and Open Source Virtualization
Presenter: Dr. Sin Ming Loo, Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Boise State University
Date and time: Thu., Aug. 26, 1:30-3:30 p.m.
Cost: Included with membership

Exploration of Submarine Volcanoes
Presenter: Dr. Dorsey Wanless, Associate Professor of Geosciences, Boise State University
Date and time: Mon., Aug. 30, 10 a.m.-noon
Cost: Included with membership

A Look Inside the World of Allergies
(Livestream/Recorded Only)
Presenters: Jeremy Waldram, MD, and Charles Webb, MD, board-certified allergists
Date and time: Mon., Aug. 30, 1:30-3:30 p.m.
Cost: Included with membership

Planning for the Next Pandemic: Lessons From COVID-19
Presenter: David Pate, MD, JD, and past president and CEO, St. Luke's Health System
Date and time: Tue., Aug. 31, 10 a.m.-noon
Cost: Included with membership

For more information on these programs, visit the Browse Curriculum page.

If you would like to supplement your learning, discounted one-year memberships to The Great Courses Plus/Wondrium are available for $45. To sign up, log on to the Osher registration page.
Meet Your Advisory Board
The expertise and input of the Osher Advisory Board is integral to the success of our Institute. We would like you to meet the Board members for the 2021-2022 season:
Merilee Marsh
Advisory Board Chair; Chair, Marketing Committee; Board Development Committee
Cindy Anson
Ad Hoc Bylaws Committee, Board Development Committee
Ralph Bild
Curriculum Committee Track Four
Michael Bixby
Curriculum Committee Track Four
Chuck Folkner
Curriculum Committee Track Two
Dennis Hall
Co-Chair, Curriculum Committee Track Four; Chair, Board Development Committee; Finance Committee
Rod McLean
Curriculum Committee Track Four; Marketing Committee
Celeste Miller
Co-Chair, Curriculum Committee Track Four
Sharon Moses
Curriculum Committee Track Four; Finance Committee
Rainey Pieters
Curriculum Committee Track One; Marketing Committee
Virginia Rivers
Curriculum Committee Track Three
Chuck Robertson
Chair, Curriculum Committee Track Five
To find out more about these Board members, visit the Advisory Board information page.
Casual Coffee Hours
Our Osher Social Hours will now be in person! Join Director Dana Thorp Patterson in Room 510 at the Yanke building from noon to
1 p.m. at our Casual Coffee Hours on the following Wednesdays:

August 11 (NEW DATE)
September 15
October 13
November 17

Good conversation is always supplied—we just need you to join us! If you are a new member, these Casual Coffee Hours are a great place to meet fellow members and discover activities that will enhance your membership experience. A reminder email for each date will be sent the day before and will be posted on the Osher Facebook page.
Osher-Sponsored Events
First Friday Astronomy Lecture
Galaxy Clusters: The Giants in the Universe
Dr. Heidi Wu, Professor of Physics, Boise State University
Fri., Aug. 6, at 7:30 p.m.
To join the online lecture: http://boi.st/astrobroncoslive
City Club of Boise River Week Tours: 
Foote Park Interpretive Center
Sat., Aug. 21, at 9 a.m.-10 a.m.
Tour guides: Janet Worthington, hydrologist, and Mary Ann Arnold, historian
For more information and to register, click here.

Shoshone-Bannock Fish Station at Pettit Lake
Sat., Aug. 28 at 11 a.m.-7 p.m.
Tour guides: Shoshone-Bannock Tribes members
For more information and to register, click here.
Campus Food Pantry Donations
The Osher Institute will be resuming its donations to the Boise State University Campus Food Pantry for the Fall 2021 semester.

Currently, the Food Pantry is running low on toiletry and personal hygiene items. You can drop off your non-perishable donations in the barrel outside the Osher office or at the Food Pantry's location at Campus School, Room 103, on Tue., Wed., or Thu. between 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m.

For more information, visit the Campus Food Pantry website.
Fall Office Hours
For the Fall 2021 semester, the Osher office will be open on
Monday through Thursday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Friday, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Feel free to stop in and visit between classes—we'd love to see you!
Our thanks for the continued support from our Community Sponsors and Partners:
Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at Boise State University
Phone: (208) 426-OLLI (6554)
Email: osher@boisestate.edu
Website: boisestate.edu/osher

The Osher Lifelong Learning 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 programs for intellectually curious adults age 50 and over.

Osher Institute Advisory Board
Chair: Merilee Marsh | Cindy Anson | Ralph Bild | Michael Bixby
Chuck Folkner | Dennis Hall | Rod McLean | Celeste Miller
Sharon Moses | Rainey Pieters | Virginia Rivers | Chuck Robertson
Osher Institute Staff
Director: Dana Thorp Patterson | Program Coordinator: Laura Mehlhaff
Communications Specialist: Jill Chmelko | Administrative Assistant: Jeremy Trent
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