Fall 2025 Term

The Fall 2025 term of the Lifelong Learning Institute of OWU kicks off October 6! Featuring 10 courses on a variety of topics, including a film noir movie series, AI and the future of work, Delaware County history, the man who saved the planet, the history of the book, classic tales of the supernatural, tech talks, and much more! 

Courses are taught by volunteers, including professors, practitioners, and others in a non-competitive environment, with each class meeting for approximately two hours. Join the community of lifelong learners 55 and older for the exciting classes presented below.

The term begins October 6 and ends November 14. Registration for the Fall term has closed. Please note: due to high interest, as well as construction on the Ohio Wesleyan campus, several class locations have changed. The class locations for the Tuesday LLI Potpourri class sessions except for the October 7^th class and the Wednesday LLI Potpourri class sessions have changed.  The Tuesday, October 7^th LLI Potpourri class remains in OWU Merrick Hall 3^rd floor meeting room.

Please review the class locations listed below for up-to-date information, as well as the email participants received the week of September 29th.

Lifelong Learning Institute gift certificates are available and make a great gift for a birthday, anniversary, or other celebration. (See tab to the right for more information).

Be sure to join our email list to be kept up-to-date on LLI happenings.

We look forward to seeing you this fall!

Class Location: All class sessions will be held in the first-floor Benes Rooms of the Ohio Wesleyan Hamilton-Williams Campus Center, except where noted in the individual class descriptions below. The address for Hamilton-Williams Campus Center is 40 Rowland Ave., Delaware, and for Merrick Hall is 65 S. Sandusky St., Delaware. 

As the Benes Rooms are heavily utilized by many groups on campus, please note that a few of the class sessions will be held in Merrick Hall's third-floor classroom as noted below. Merrick Hall sits behind (east of) University Hall. The campus map can be found here.  

Additionally, two classes (LLI Potpourri - Tuesday and LLI Potpourri - Wednesday) will be held at the Willow Brook campuses. More information can be found with the class descriptions below.

Parking: Parking for classes at OWU is available in campus parking lots highlighted here. Parking on campus requires the LLI parking pass, which will be distributed during the first week of classes. As such, cars will not be ticketed during the first week of classes.

As the OWU Main Library renovations get underway this fall, some parking spaces near Hamilton-Williams Campus Center will be unavailable. We recommend leaving extra time to find parking and navigate to on-campus classes. The Lifelong Learning Institute will provide updates on available parking areas as available. 

Be sure to join our email list to be kept up-to-date on LLI happenings.

Film Noir - Volume 2

Tracey Peyton, Managing Director, Strand Theatre

Mondays, 9 a.m.- noon (October 6, 13, 20, 27; November 3, 10)

Class Location: This class will be held each week at The Strand Theatre, 28 E. Winter St., Delaware.

This class will examine six true film noirs during the classic period and their stylized techniques. Film noir, French for dark film, is categorized to describe stylish Hollywood crime dramas that contain elements such as cynical heroes, stark lighting effects, frequent use of flashbacks, intricate plots, and an underlying existentialist philosophy.

• Mildred Pierce (1945) Director: Michael Curtiz
  Starring: Joan Crawford, Jack Carson, and Zachary Scott
  In her heart of hearts, she knew it would happen this way! A mother's love leads to murder.
  October 6
• The Lady from Shanghai (1947) Director: Orson Welles
  Starring: Rita Hayworth, Orson Welles
  One who keeps his nature keeps his original nature in the end. This is the story of a reckless woman!
  October 13
• Criss Cross (1949) Director: Robert Siodmak
  Starring: Burt Lancaster, Yvonne DeCarlo, and Dan Duryea
  When you Double-Cross a Double-Crosser...IT'S A CRISS-CROSS!
  October 20
• White Heat (1949) Director: Raoul Walsh
  Starring: James Cagney, Virginia Mayo, and Edmund O'Brien
  Searing the screen like the death-blast of a sub-machine gun! CAGNEY'S GOING TO GIVE YOU THE BUSINESS!
  October 27
• In a Lonely Place (1950) Director: Nicholas Ray
  Starring: Humphrey Bogart, Gloria Grahame, and Frank Lovejoy
  Look deep into these eyes! Is it love, hate, or murder? They're the eyes of Humphrey Bogart in a lonely place.
  November 3
• Strangers on a Train (1951) Director: Alfred Hitchcock
  Starring: Farley Granger, Robert Walker, and Ruth Roman
  A girl in love with young America's idol--and a good-looking stranger in search of sensation! It starts with the shriek of a train whistle...and ends with shrieking excitement!
  November 10

History is All Around Us: Delaware County Stories in Pictures and Prose

Mondays, 2 pm - 4 pm (October 6, 13, 20, 27; November 3, 10)

Class Location: This class will be held each week in the OWU Hamilton-Williams Campus Center first-floor Benes Rooms.

This class seeks to engage participants in our remarkable local history (and beyond) by focusing on visuals (postcards; photography; museum collections); biographies; heartfelt letters; and author interviews.  We will "cover the bases" of interests and knowledge with something for everyone to learn. 

• Discovering Delaware County History Through Postcards with Becky Cornett, Ph.D., community volunteer leader
  October 6
• Famous Historical Photographs with Van Young, President of Griswold History Study Group, Worthington
  October 13
• Life Advice: Letters from Famous People to Brent Carson's Nephews with Brent Carson, President Emeritus of the Delaware County Historical Society
  October 20
• Remnants of Delaware County History through Photography and Illustrations with Sherry Carmichael, Powell-Liberty Historical Society andBecky Cornett, Ph.D., community volunteer leader
  October 27
• Remarkable Histories of Women of Delaware County with Becky Cornett, Ph.D., community volunteer leader, and special guests
  November 3
• Authors Kay Conklin (Kay's Life) and Brent Carson (Carried Treasures, Stories of Delaware County + a forthcoming children's book about "Rud") (first hour); Judge David Hejmanowski on his weekly Delaware Gazette columns on law and history since 2005 (second hour)
  November 10
  Interviewed by Becky Cornett, Ph.D., community volunteer leader

LLI Potpourri - Tuesdays

Tuesdays, 10 am - Noon (October 7, 14, 21, 28; November 4)

*Please note location change* Class Location: The October 7th class will be held in Merrick Hall, 3rd floor classroom, with all other classes to be held each week at Willow Brook at Delaware Run, 100 Delaware Crossing W., Delaware in the 3rd floor Summit Room. Parking is available around the Main building. Enter the Main entrance and take the elevator to the 3rd floor Summit Room.

• A Conversation about the way forward, 2.0 - A continuing discussion with three Delaware personalities, with Pam Foster, Chair SourcePoint Board of Trustees: Jim Mendenhall, former Director of Development and Community Engagement, United Way; Jon Powers, University Chaplain Emeritus, Ohio Wesleyan University; Larry Harris, retired CEO of Willow Brook Christian Communities and class moderator 
  October 7
  They're back! Listen to a conversation begun in a Lifelong Learning session last spring among Delaware luminaries Pam Foster, Jim Mendenhall, and Rev. Jon Powers. Drawing on their life experiences and formal studies, they will discuss a broad range of topics, including race relations, class distinctions, "code switching", Medicaid cuts, social trends, and much, much more. They will follow no outline or agenda. Rather, their conversation will find its own course. Larry Harris, founding CEO of Willow Brook Christian Communities, will moderate the discussion. There will be ample time for your questions and comments. Panelists include:
  
  • Pamela Foster is a Delaware County resident with a strong commitment to community involvement. She serves as a Zoning Commissioner for Orange Township and is chair of the SourcePoint board of trustees. She is also a member of the Delaware County Master Gardener Association
  • Jim Mendenhall is a "Delaware kid" who grew up on Park Avenue and attended Delaware City Schools and Ohio Wesleyan University, where he earned a BA in Botany/Bacteriology. He had a 35-year career in the pharmaceutical/biotechnology field, and he served OWU as a Major Gift Officer and Associate Director of Alumni Relations, as well as being involved in the Career Connection Program.
  • Jon Powers is the University Chaplain Emeritus of Ohio Wesleyan. He has served as a United Methodist Chaplain in higher education for 52 years. He has lived in Delaware since 1988.
  • Moderator: Larry Harris served 48 years as CEO of Willow Brook Christian Communities.
• Reflections on My Career as Delaware City Manager - 1999 - 2024  with Tom Homan, Retired Delaware City Manager
  October 14
  Retired City Manager Tom Homan will reflect on his career as Delaware's longest-serving City Manager and offer insights into the current state of local government. 
• Prelude to Independence: April 1775 - January 1776, with Barbara Terzian, Cornelia Cole Fairbanks Associate Professor in the Department of History, Ohio Wesleyan University 
  October 21
  From the "Shot Heard Round the World" to "Common Sense," Professor Terzian picks up the 250-year-old story of the 13 British Colonies, on their path to declaring independence.
• Beautiful Birds Around the World with Richard Vail, Bird Lover 
  October 28
  This program takes a trip around the world to see 60 truly spectacular birds. Beautiful birds will appear on the big screen, accompanied by information provided by the presenter. The program will showcase birds from Africa, India, South America, Australia, and several other locations. The birds' colorful feathers will simply amaze anyone who is not an established avian expert. The program is intended for the audience to enjoy and appreciate the incredible avian variety that surrounds us.
• So You've Committed Treason...What's Next? with Scott Wolf, Partner, Firestone, Brehm, Wolf and Whitney LLP
  November 4
  Learn about the Declaration of Independence and what happened to the men who signed it after the fact. A "whatever happened to..." about our Founding Fathers...the good, the bad, the ugly, and the just plain weird.

Life on the American Plains - Living in Pioneer America

Van Young, Historian, President of Griswold History Study Group, Worthington

Tuesdays, 2 pm - 4 pm (October 14, 28; November 4, 11)

Class Location: This class will be held each week in the OWU Hamilton-Williams Campus Center, first-floor Benes Rooms.

• Life and Death on the Oregon Trail - Part 1 
  October 14
  An old saying goes, "Hard times, build strong humans," and that is exactly what many citizens and immigrants faced when they took the Oregon Trail west to build a better life. Unimaginable hardship, with danger and demise along every mile. Preparation is everything, and we learn in this segment the critical decisions pioneers had to make prior to undertaking this journey. Take too little or not enough, and failure awaits. You will learn the life and death decisions as your supplies dictated your survival. A limited amount of wagon space, and weight, was the bitter enemy. Help outfit a pioneer wagon.
• Life and Death on the Oregon Trail - Part 2
  October 28
  After leaving Independence, Missouri, wagon trains faced unimaginable hardships, with danger and demise along every mile. Disease, starvation, and bad weather accompanied these travelers along the way. Yet, if they had not made this incredible journey, the country would not be what it is today. Learn how weight became a bitter enemy of our ancestors, and yet starting a new life in the West was a considerable incentive to "risk it all." A remarkable story about the American spirit, yet as we know, it was to the demise of the Native Americans. Could you have endured these unbearable conditions?
• Pioneer Living in the West: Setting up the Homestead - Part 1
  November 4
  Once settlers arrived in Oregon to stake their claim, it was time to build a cabin and start a new beginning. Yet, where did they live those first few months? How did they survive those terrible winters and build a cabin in the middle of nowhere? Sod vs wood? Crops versus cattle? What was it like day in and day out to survive on the prairie with little to no help. Thousands succeeded, yet thousands failed.
• Pioneer Living in the West: Daily Life on the Farm - Part 2
  November 11
  What was involved in eking out an existence in the American West? What were the roles of men, women, and children? What were the challenges of farming and caring for animals? Were the children educated? How did technology finally make life easier for families? How did these settlers impact the growth of America?

LLI Potpourri - Wednesdays

Wednesdays, 10 am - Noon (October 15, 22, 29; November 5, 12)

*Please note location change* Class Location: There is no class on October 8th. The 5 week class will be held at Willow Brook Christian Village, 100 Willow Brook Way S., Delaware in the 3rd floor Terrace Room. Parking is available around the Main building. Enter the Main entrance and take the elevator to the 3rd floor Terrace Room.

• NO CLASS
  October 8
• AI and the Future of Work with Dr. Bob Gitter, Professor Emeritus of Economics, Ohio Wesleyan University
  October 15
  There is currently a great deal of talk about artificial intelligence and how it might enhance worker productivity or, perhaps, replace workers. In this class ,we will explore what artificial intelligence actually is with some audience participation examples and see what AI can do as well as its limits. Using this basic understanding, we will then examine its expected impact on various jobs and industries.  (Note: this description was not written using AI but maybe could have been.)
• The Man Who Saved the Planet. The Real Story of Sherwood Rowland, Delaware native, OWU Class of 1948, with Dr. Irvin Drew, retired Dean, El Camino College, OWU Class of 1966
  October 22
  Much is known about the life and work of F. Sherwood Rowland. However, the story remains incomplete and largely unknown. In 1973, he made the "Discovery of a Lifetime." He found that if one molecule of a "forever" chemical, Freon gas, commonly used in air conditioners and hair spray bottles, reaches the upper stratosphere, it can destroy 100,000 protective (Ozone, O3) molecules. Ozone absorbs harmful UV-B radiation from the Sun, which can be deadly if it reaches the Earth.
  
  This discovery marked the start of a new field of science, Atmospheric Sciences, and earned a Nobel prize for both Sherwood Rowland and his assistant (1995). Additionally, and extremely rare for a scientist, Sherwood Rowland was determined to ban the manufacture of this harmful gas, stating, "If you discover a problem, then you should do something about it." He went to work, traveling the globe promoting his plan.
  
  Just 14 years later, in 1987, a treaty signed by all United Nations member countries - the Montreal Protocol - prohibited the worldwide production of Freon gas. This is the most successful environmental treaty in history, and Sherwood Rowland played an enormous role on both sides, discovering the problem and finding a solution.
• The Polio Story with Vickie Sheets, JD, BSN, BA/OWU Class of 1972
  October 29
  Polio is a disease with ancient origins, and there is no cure. This presentation will describe the history of the illness and when it became epidemic in the United States. FDR contracted polio in 1921, momentously impacting his life and career, and his experience affected how the disease was studied and researched. Polio researchers who contributed to the decades-long search for an effective vaccine, as well as famous people who experienced polio, will be discussed.  It will also provide a picture of polio today and implications for the future.
• How to Delay Cognitive Decline with Brain Health Exercise with Dave Lewis, Corrective Exercise Specialist/Certified Brain Health Trainer
  November 5
  Twenty percent of those under age 80 are battling cognitive impairment, and a staggering 50 percent over 80 are affected with cognitive impairment. Come learn simple and FUN at-home exercises that are proven to improve your brain health!
• What's Happening with Ohio Wesleyan's Main Library? with Brian Rellinger, Chief Information Officer, and Dee Peterson, Director of Libraries, Ohio Wesleyan University
  November 12
  You've seen the bright red banner on the outside of Ohio Wesleyan University's Main Library announcing the site of a new library. Come learn about the exciting future of the site, the timeline, and architectural plans for this vital campus building.

Raise Your Spirits

Wednesdays, 4:30 - 6:30 pm (October 8, 15, 22)

Tour and learn about the unique operations of a brewery, winery, and meadery as well as sample their offerings. Each class will be held at a different location, which will be announced soon.

Enrollment is limited to 35 participants.

• October 8 - Bridge's End Brewing Co., 9320 Dublin Rd, Shawnee Hills

• October 15 - Clo Wine Gallery & Lounge, 27 N Sandusky St, Delaware (back by popular demand!)

• October 22 - Zen Bee Meadery, 480 E Wilson Bridge Rd F, Worthington

Tech Talks

Wednesdays, 2 pm - 4 pm (October 29; November 5, 12)

David Soliday, Instructional Technologist, Ohio Wesleyan University

Class Location: This class will be held each week in the OWU Hamilton-Williams Campus Center, first-floor Benes Rooms.

This class will focus on a range of technology topics that touch our lives, as listed below: 

• iPhone Basics: organizing and managing apps, understanding status icons using the Control Center, and navigating Settings

• Photos and Camera app: tips for taking great pictures, managing them on your device, and sharing them with others

• Help to Stay Healthy: apps and wifi wearables to aid in monitoring and managing your body and your health, including mental health

In each of the classes, a presentation will be given about the topic, and then the presenter and Ohio Wesleyan students will assist attendees as they practice new skills as time allows. All are welcome regardless of skill level. Participants are encouraged to bring their own smartphones and health-related wearables, such as an Apple watch.

The History of the Book: From Tablets and Scrolls to Manuscripts and Printed Books

Carol Neuman de Vegvar, Professor Emerita, Fine Arts, Ohio Wesleyan University

Thursdays, 10 am - Noon (October 9, 16, 23, 30; November 6, 13)

Class Location: This class will be held each week in the OWU Hamilton-Williams Campus Center, first-floor Benes Rooms.

"Outside of a dog, a book is man's best friend. Inside of a dog, it's too dark to read." -attributed to Groucho Marx.*

This course will look at the book and its antecedents, from the ancient to the early modern world. We'll look at the evolution of information storage and transmission, the evolving technologies and contexts of book production, storage, and access, the uses of art (illumination) in books from late antiquity to the medieval and Islamicate contexts, and the groundbreaking introduction of books printed on paper. The course will include two "field trips" on campus: one to the Book Arts classroom in Edgar Hall, and the other to Special Collections in Hobson Library. If you love to read, and/or have far too many books in your home, we hope you'll join us for this adventure across time and space to meet the books that have enchanted our fellow readers through history.

• Before the book: tablets and scrolls, styli and reed pens
  October 9
• Inventing the book: a whodunit AND Speaking of manuscripts: the language of codicology
  Following the class, a noon field trip to the Book Arts classroom in Edgar Hall, hosted by Professor Jeff Nilan, Department of Fine Arts, Ohio Wesleyan University
  October 16
• Art in the book 1: Late Antique and Early Medieval Illumination
  October 23
• Art in the book 2: Romanesque and Gothic illumination
  October 30
• The book in the Islamicate world: Qur'ans, medical manuals, epics and romances, AND Printed on paper! The early modern information revolution
  November 6
• Field trip to Special Collections in OWU Hobson Library, hosted by Special Collections Librarian Stacy Chaney-Blankenship
  November 13
  
  *Quote possibly previously from jockey Ted Atkinson in the Nashville Banner (1947)

Spooky Stories: Classic American Tales of the Supernatural

Dr. Stephanie Tingley, Professor Emeritus of English, Youngstown State University

Thursdays, 2 pm - 4 pm (October 9, 16, 23, 30; November 6, 13)

Class Location: The October 16th class will be held in Merrick Hall, 3rd floor classroom, with all other classes to be held in the OWU Hamilton-Williams Campus Center, first-floor Benes Rooms.

Lifelong Learning Institute's Fall 2025 term seems a perfect time to explore the long and rich tradition of Gothic and supernatural themes in American short stories. America does not have the crumbling castles of Europe, but American writers adapted the genre to the historical, cultural, and geographical context of the United States, exploring landscapes like ominous caves, the vast and often threatening frontier wilderness, the Civil War battlefield, and decaying Southern plantations. These authors turn, too, to exploring the internal terrors and anxieties of the human psyche—rationality and irrationality, sanity and madness, guilt and sin (one legacy of Puritanism in Colonial America), the power of the past, uncanny and supernatural happenings, and the symbolic presence of ghosts and monsters. We will travel from Colonial New England's Salem to some of today's American masters of spooky stories. Some of the writers we may encounter are these: Washington Irving, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Edgar Allan Poe, Harriet Prescott Spofford, Mary Wilkins Freeman, Ambrose Bierce, Edith Wharton, William Faulkner, Stephen King, Paul Tremblay. Links to and/or copies of the short stories under discussion will be provided. You are welcome (but NOT required) to read along!

Getting to Know You

Maribeth Eiken and Colleen Huckabee, class facilitators and Lifelong Learning Institute Steering Committee members

Fridays, 9:30 am - 11:30 am (October 10, 17, 24)

Class Location: The October 17th class will be held in Merrick Hall, third-floor classroom, with all other classes to be held in the OWU Hamilton-Williams Campus Center, first-floor Benes Rooms.

The Lifelong Learning Institute draws an engaged and enthusiastic audience each term but doesn't provide many chances to get to know one another. This class is designed to connect in a fun way. Through exploration of various topics, participants will learn more about each other and share aspects of their own story.

Based on attendee input, the group may explore shared interests to discover common hobbies and experiences, dive into childhood and more recent memories, and perhaps inspire fellow classmates to embark on new adventures, such as travel. The three-session class may evolve into other longer avenues for connection, such as the formation of new or participation in existing book discussion groups, photography club, and/or other interests as defined by class participants. Join the class and get to know your fellow LLI students. Give it a go!