Summer Term
OLLI at Duke is excited to offer members four, six-week fee-based online learning courses. They will meet on Tuesdays and Thursdays, from May 19 thru June 23. Registration opens on May 11 on the learnmore.duke.edu website. Note that since online courses can accommodate so many students without a wait list, you can plan to register at your leisure any time during the week of May 11.
A description of the summer term courses appears below.
Note that the OLLI at Duke Code of Conduct applies to our online courses, too.
A description of the summer term courses appears below.
Note that the OLLI at Duke Code of Conduct applies to our online courses, too.
Lincoln & His America
There is universal agreement that Abraham Lincoln deserves his place among the greatest of our presidents. This course will examine how the frontier experience and the process of becoming a self-educated man instilled in him the ambition to succeed and rise far above his roots. To understand Lincoln the man, the politician, and the statesman, it is necessary to place him in the context of his time. This study will explore the major movements, issues, and events of America’s antebellum period—while these were transforming the United States, they were forming Lincoln. • Lecture (plus questions).
Ginger Wilson has three degrees from Duke. She served as the dean of humanities at the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics and taught history there for thirty years.
Gerald Wilson received his undergraduate degree from Davidson, two graduate degrees from Duke, and his PhD from UNC–Chapel Hill. He is a senior associate dean–chief of staff for Duke’s undergraduate college and teaches American history.
Ginger Wilson has three degrees from Duke. She served as the dean of humanities at the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics and taught history there for thirty years.
Gerald Wilson received his undergraduate degree from Davidson, two graduate degrees from Duke, and his PhD from UNC–Chapel Hill. He is a senior associate dean–chief of staff for Duke’s undergraduate college and teaches American history.
- 6 Tue, May 19-June 23, 2:00-3:15pm
- Online Learning via Zoom
- Maximum: 490; Fee: $70; Course ID: 3127
Rodgers & Hammerstein Encore!
On March 31, 1943, the curtain went up on Oklahoma!, the first collaboration between two Broadway veterans, and American musical theater was never again the same. Over the next twenty years, Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II produced five acknowledged masterpieces, some near-misses, and a few notable flops. In the six sessions of this course we will spend one session on their early (separate) careers. In the remaining sessions we will focus on their five major musicals: Oklahoma!, Carousel, South Pacific, The King and I, and The Sound of Music. Come join us as we travel from “Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin’” to “Climb Every Mountain” in order to understand what distinguished their work from previous musical comedies and how their legacy continues to influence us today. ● Lecture (plus questions); Listening to audio recordings; Viewing videos.
Recommended text:
Todd S. Purdum, Something Wonderful: Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Broadway Revolution (9781627798341)
Alan Teasley began his career as a high school English and drama teacher. In 2006, he retired after 31 years in the Durham Public Schools. He continued to work as a professor in Duke’s Master of Arts in Teaching Program until 2015. He now serves as an at-large member on the OLLI Advisory Board. Most relevant to his qualifications to teach this particular course, however, is that when a teenager, the first LP he ever bought with his own money was an album of Rodgers and Hammerstein overtures.
Recommended text:
Todd S. Purdum, Something Wonderful: Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Broadway Revolution (9781627798341)
Alan Teasley began his career as a high school English and drama teacher. In 2006, he retired after 31 years in the Durham Public Schools. He continued to work as a professor in Duke’s Master of Arts in Teaching Program until 2015. He now serves as an at-large member on the OLLI Advisory Board. Most relevant to his qualifications to teach this particular course, however, is that when a teenager, the first LP he ever bought with his own money was an album of Rodgers and Hammerstein overtures.
- 6 Thu, May 21-June 25, 2:00-3:15pm
- Online Learning via Zoom
- Maximum: 490; Fee: $70; Course ID: 3129
Are We Home Alone in the Universe?
Humankind has struggled with existential questions such as the meaning of our existence, and are we alone, for as long as there has been humankind. In this course, we look outward at the universe for discussions of our place in the universe. We start with a survey of current knowledge of stars, galaxies, and the universe, and then discuss the great outstanding cosmological questions: what is dark matter, what is dark energy, what is the nature of black holes, how did the universe begin, how will the universe end, questions about exoplanets and exolife, and the role of intelligence in the cosmos. We end with a far-ranging discussion on the implications of perhaps being alone in the universe, and what our future in the cosmos will be, and should be. The answer is not here, it is out there. ● Lecture (plus questions).
Brand Fortner is a teaching professor in Physics at North Carolina State University, and adjunct professor of physics at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. His Ph.D. in theoretical high energy astrophysics is from the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign. A founder of two software companies, he previously held positions at NASA, NCSA, and Johns Hopkins University.
Brand Fortner is a teaching professor in Physics at North Carolina State University, and adjunct professor of physics at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. His Ph.D. in theoretical high energy astrophysics is from the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign. A founder of two software companies, he previously held positions at NASA, NCSA, and Johns Hopkins University.
- 6 Tue, May 19-June 23, 10:00-11:15am
- Online Learning via Zoom
- Maximum: 490; Fee: $70; Course ID: 3126
Imprisoned
Why do some people end up in prison instead of getting an honest job? Shouldn’t people who abuse drugs or alcohol take responsibility for their own bad decisions? If you’ve ever heard these kinds of questions (or asked them yourself), you won’t want to miss this 6-week online course that builds on a recent OLLI class titled Addicted, Homeless, or Imprisoned, that received rave reviews. You’ll learn about — and meet — people in our community who are dealing with addiction, homelessness, and incarceration. A series of speakers will share their experiences and research. We’ll explore the human and financial costs of our current situation, consider the history of our laws and look ahead to possible new approaches. Come learn about this misunderstood world. ● Lecture (plus questions).
Mark Hall knows these issues because he served ten years in prison, learning from fellow prisoners about the addiction, homelessness, and other issues in their lives. At fifty, after a life of privilege and career success, Mark was sentenced to prison for financial crimes. He acknowledged his actions and sought to change his life. Now active with the Durham Rescue Mission and other organizations, he has earned a Duke certificate in nonprofit management and will soon complete an MBA.
Mark Hall knows these issues because he served ten years in prison, learning from fellow prisoners about the addiction, homelessness, and other issues in their lives. At fifty, after a life of privilege and career success, Mark was sentenced to prison for financial crimes. He acknowledged his actions and sought to change his life. Now active with the Durham Rescue Mission and other organizations, he has earned a Duke certificate in nonprofit management and will soon complete an MBA.
- 6 Thu, May 21-June 25, 10:00-11:15am
- Online Learning via Zoom
- Maximum: 490; Fee: $70; Course ID: 3128