Osher Lifelong Learning
Institute at Brandeis (BOLLI)

H&G7-F09

Together we will explore American architecture from indigenous cultures through current times. We will focus on key transitions in the design, form and execution of buildings and on the architects who left their mark. Our discussions will include examples of private and public structures in the context of their date and location.

This is a participatory class.  Class members are expected to present brief reports on innovative architects, their buildings and/or styles.  Classroom discussions will revolve around architectural issues such as: 

The readings will be supplemented by pertinent websites and occasional DVDs.  We will try optional field trips to innovative buildings in the Boston area.
“Architecture teaches you to see.” - I. M. Pei
“When we build, let us think that we build for ever.” - John Ruskin

2 - 4 hours

Required, to receive email assignments and to prepare reports.

My working days involved software design and development of government communication systems. I also trained new personnel. Ten years ago I graduated from work and began to play at BOLLI. At BOLLI I led classes in Archaeology/Maya, play reading/presentation and Contemporary Short Fiction. I was trained as a Boston By Foot docent and led many historical and architectural walking tours in the Boston area. We are so fortunate to live where numerous local buildings were built by innovative American architects.

The SGL is open to contact by phone at or email at 617-969-6786, 9am-7pm or by email at emitmail@verizon.net

Lit6-F09

The world of the Theatre is a world of Illusion and Reality, a fertile ground for the mysterious. Theater companies are often hotbeds of intrigue.  Their members are playing roles and being someone different from the person they “really” are or the person they were yesterday. It is easy to get mixed up about what is real and what is illusion, what is true and what is false.  Audiences also get caught up in this confusion. Given this environment, unraveling of crimes requires special abilities to see through the maze.  The detective may also need to be able to play a part. We will read several short mysteries in which crimes and other untoward events occur in theatre settings. How did the special theatrical environment contribute to the mystery and its solution?  How does a confusion between reality and illusion and the inability to separate them contribute to the mysteries of our lives? The chosen mystery stories will cover a wide variety of time periods and geographic locations and will be a good introduction to the genre for those unfamiliar with it. I know that the reading list looks intimidatingly long, with a book each week, but most are quite short and very readable – you won’t be able to put them down. Lots of class participation will be encouraged, and this should be great fun for all of us. All levels of experience with mystery fiction are welcome.

 Most titles will be readily available in any public library, or can be purchased cheaply secondhand online. Any edition is fine.

There will be a short mystery (200-300 pages) to be read each week. Time required depends on the individual’s reading speed. This is easy reading, 2-4 hours for most people.

Desirable, I will communicate with the class by email, but can accommodate anyone who does not have email capability.

I graduated from Swarthmore College with a B.A. in Mathematics, Economics, and Philosophy. After working for several years as an Analyst at Lincoln Labs, I switched careers and received an M.L.S. from Simmons School of Library and Information Science. I worked for almost thirty years as a Reference and Adult Services Librarian at the Wellesley Free Library, helping patrons select reading materials and leading many book discussion groups. My interest in mysteries was sparked by several “literary tours” of the British Isles, including a “Mystery Tour” to the haunts of several mystery writers. This is the seventh Mystery Study Group I have led at BOLLI.

The SGL is open to contact by phone at or email at 781-894-7754 or by email at nrawson@earthlink.net

Lit9-F09

Women have been on the road, traveling by foot, boat, camels and other varieties of transport, for hundreds of years. They have been explorers, politicians, tourists. They are adventurers, wives, bored spinsters and just the plain curious - some became famous, others did not - but all were remarkable in their own way. In this course we will read many of their writings and look into the background of the individual lives of the women, and the history, politics and geography of the places they traveled in.  No prior knowledge is needed, and the course is intended for all who enjoy learning about people and places. Every person signing up for the course will be encouraged to make a presentation (working with the SGL if needed) and to take a full part in the discussion.

(R) Robinson, Jane. Unsuitable for Ladies. Oxford University Press, 2001, ISBN 0-19-2802011.

2 to 3 hours

Not necessary but will certainly enrich the class experience.

I received my undergraduate degree from Hunter College in English Literature, a Masters degree in Library Science from Simmons, and in Religion from the Episcopal Divinity School in Cambridge. Since childhood I have been an avid reader of books and memoirs about strange countries - to me - and even stranger people!

The SGL is open to contact by phone at 508-653-4054 between 9 am and 9 pm or by email cjsheddr@verizon.net

Mu2-F09

Jews, Music and Identity in America
This course will be held in the Old South Street Building

This ten-week course will explore how Jewish music helped shape and express Jewish identities in America. Do you want to know about, and understand the varieties of Jewish music here in America?  This course will be a survey of American Jewish music from the colonial period through the present, highlighting individual contributions and general trends of music. This course will emphasize understanding the music through the lens of an American-Jewish context. We will discuss how an amazing array of musical styles represented expressions of Jewishness-- from Bloch to Bernstein, Gershwin to Isaacson, Rosenblatt to Carlebach, Ellstein to Statman, from Zeisler to Ziegfeld to Zorn. We will examine the relationships of socio-historical changes to the musical styles from the Golden Age of Cantors, Yiddish songs, musicals, synagogue repertoire, klezmer revival, to today’s Jewish hip hop. We will learn about the transformations in the musical roles women have played in both synagogue and in popular culture. Members don’t have to be able to read music, and there are no prerequisites. Members will be asked to do a few hours of reading each week, and come prepared to discuss the subject in the next class. During class, members will hear samples and discuss the music. Some members may volunteer to give presentations during class, on topics approved by the SGL. Access to a CD player and computer is critical to taking the class.  The BOLLI eBoard, Email, and the Internet will be used to distribute information and class materials.

Around 2 hours of reading a week. Some selected listening will be suggested.

Access to a CD player and computer is critical to taking the class.  Email and the Internet will be used to distribute readings. Members may be able to play their CDs on a computer instead of a CD player. Adobe Acrobat Reader for opening PDF reading attachments is necessary. ITunes or similar software is helpful.

Judith S. Pinnolis is the RIS Humanities Librarian at Brandeis University. She is creator and editor of the The Jewish Music WebCenter at http://www.jmwc.org/. Pinnolis has published many book reviews, and articles in several works on Jewish music, including Encyclopedia Judaica (2006); Women and Music in America Since 1900: An Encyclopedia (2002); and Reader's Guide to Judaism (2000). Pinnolis is Chair of the Chapters Council of the Association of College and Research Libraries, and is Past-President of the ACRL New England Chapter.  She has also served over ten years as the national Chair of the Jewish Music Roundtable of the Music Library Association.

The SGL is open to contact by phone at 617-527-5798, evenings.

Mu3-F09

The objectives of the course are, first, to examine in depth Mozart’s greatest work, Don Giovanni, and, second, to acquaint students with Das Rheingold, the first (and shortest) of the operas comprising Wagner’s tetralogy, The Ring of the Nibelung.  The course is intended to be of value to students unfamiliar with the operas as well as to afford a greater appreciation of the operas to students already familiar with them.  Don Giovanni will be covered at greater length and in greater depth than Das Rheingold.  Students with no familiarity with opera may find the course a bit challenging, but should be able to follow it if they attend the classes and do the reading and listening assignments, which will be described in detail in weekly emails.  I plan to devote about six weeks to Don Giovanni and the remainder of the course to Das Rheingold.  Accordingly the material in the first six weeks and in the last four will build from week to week, and students should make every effort to attend all of the sessions in each segment in order to follow the development of the action and the music.  Students will have the opportunity to prepare and present short reports on relevant subjects that I will suggest or that students may suggest on their own initiative.

2 hours per week

Required; I like to send out emails each week to tell students what to watch and listen for as they prepare for the next class.

I have undergraduate and graduate degrees in physics and worked as a physicist for a few years before switching to law.  I held various legal positions in private practice, with the US Government and as inside corporate counsel before retiring in 2004 as vice president and group general counsel with Raytheon in Marlborough, MA.

The SGL is open to contact by phone at or email at 508-358-3375 days and evenings by email at plradoff@yahoo.com

Comp1-F09

Prerequisites*: STUDENTS MUST HAVE GOOD PC SKILLS, INCLUDING
-         A home PC with Internet access
-         Capable keyboarding skills and ability to effectively use a mouse for navigation
-         Active user of email
-         Familiarity with the Internet and Web browsers
* Prerequisites to enrollment must be met.

This course will provide a review of the Internet, including a historical perspective and a comparison of the different Internet Service Providers (ISPs) and Web browsers. Topics to be covered in the course include:
-         Secure online Web surfing (navigating) techniques
-         Internet search engines
-         Social Networking for seniors (e.g., Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, LinkedIn)
-         Groups and Newsgroups
-         Introduction to Web-based Digital Photography
-         Security and how to avoid threats on the Web (Identity Theft, Viruses, Hoaxes, Urban Legends, Scams, & SPAM)
-         Using the Web to save, share and edit digital photos
-         Student selected topics of interest
We will also review the BOLLI eBoard, which will be used throughout the course.

The students will use shareware/freeware tutorials, and will complete in-class exercises, homework and outside reading.

N/A

1-2 hours

Required, computer lab course. Each lesson plan contains hands-on student exercises.

 Len Heier has an extensive technical background based on his work experience and outside interests.  He shares his knowledge with contemporaries at BOLLI as a founding member of the Technology and Website Development Committees. Len holds degrees from NYU and the University of California. He worked as a management consultant, an IT specialist, and owner of a network integration services business. He has led a variety of technology, computer and digital photography courses at BOLLI and the BC ILR programs.

H&G10-F09

The President, Congress and the Executive Branch each have a role in formulating and executing foreign policy. Among these political institutions, the President is the key decision-maker. How well he fulfills his role depends on a number of factors: the extent of his foreign policy experience; his personality and its impact on his leadership style and effectiveness; his belief system; and his skill as a politician.

This study group will examine the President’s performance in the formulation and conduct of American foreign policy.  From Richard Nixon to George W. Bush, we will see, through an administration insider’s observations, impressions and examples, how each leader’s personality, strategic point of view, and management style influenced the direction of events and outcomes. As we discuss their mistakes and successes, we will build a yardstick to measure the performance of the new Obama administration.

No prior knowledge is required for this group. The material for this course will build from week to week; therefore, it is important that you plan to attend every week. Volunteers will be asked to make class presentations. Members will need access to a computer.

2 ½ hours per week

Rosenbaum served for 25 years as President/CEO of Boston’s Jewish Vocational Service, a large nonprofit, nonsectarian workforce development agency. She is an MPA graduate of Harvard’s KSG, and a Littauer Fellow. Ms Rosenbaum is serving a three year term on the Governor’s Workforce Training Fund Board. In the fall of 2008, she led a study group in Terrorism and Counter-terrorism at HILR. With this new course that explores the President’s role, she continues to deepen her understanding of how foreign policy is made and implemented.

The SGL is open to contact by email at bsrllc@comcast.net

Lit1-F09

What do the great poets have to say about love and death?  In this course we will focus on their different treatments of these subjects, Do we agree or disagree with Horace, Shakespeare, Neruda?  (90% of these poems will be new to members who've taken my courses previously.)  While the course is suitable for anyone who wants to study poetry, we will do more than read poems; we will discuss and delve into some of them deeply.  Depending on each members' individual reactions, experiences and ideas, we will find different meanings for each work. Every week I will lecture briefly on an aspect of the poetic craft, such as voice, rhythm or imagery.  I will provide handouts to those who want to explore technique further. Members will be expected to read the assigned poems silently and aloud at home and to volunteer to read aloud in class. I will provide study questions to assist in the reading and to ponder at home. Volunteers will be expected to make brief class presentations on a poet's life. This is not a writing course, but those who wish to try their hand will have an opportunity to apply what we have learned. The overall purpose of the course is to deepen our reading, understanding and enjoyment of poetry.

2-3 hours

Desirable. The internet is an excellent tool for researching poets’ lives, although it can certainly be done in other ways.  Also, those who wish to read more poems by some of the poets we study can obtain them easily on the internet.

The SGL is open to contact by phone at or email at (617)-332-1653 from 9am-1pm and 5-9 pm or by email at ruthk1@rcn.com

Lit3-F09

We hope to provide an opportunity for us all to learn about the perspectives both social and personal that shape modern East Asian cultural and psychological contexts, as they are presented in modern East Asian short stories by authors including Lu Xun, Ailing Zhang, Mishima, Atugawa, Yiyun Li, Amy Tan and Ha Jin.

As always, we ask our participants to read, make notes, REREAD, and make further notes of their experience of the story to contribute to the story to be discussed. Your perspectives and personal experiences of the story are the heart of the heart of the course. Volunteers are also asked to present brief biographic summaries of the authors. 

Though computer use is not mandatory, we hope members will be using it to look further into the background of the time, setting and culture of the story under discussion after they have read and REREAD the story under discussion.

1 ½ - 2 hours

Desirable, useful for looking up historical and other background information of special interest to the member, who we hope will share those discoveries with the class.

The SGL is open to contact by phone at or email at 617-527-6850, evenings before 9pm or by email at rjk527us@yahoo.com

Lit7-F09

 Participants are expected to read the plays and to be prepared to participate in discussions. Voluntary participation in preparing reports on the playwright and/or the relevance of the issue to current times and to read/act scenes is most welcome.  Videos augment some of the discussions.

SGL is not a drama expert—rather, a facilitator of shared discovery learning.

I encourage people to use the library and will send a bibliography with library references.
(R) Justice by John Galsworthy
(R) Twelve Angry Men by Reginald Rose  ISBN 978-0-14-310440-7
(R) Gods of the Lightning by Maxwell Anderson
(R) Winterset by Maxwell Anderson
(R) The Caine Mutiny Court Martial by Herman Wouk  ISBN 978-0-385-51441-5
(R) A Few Good Men by Aaron Sorkin  ISBN 0573 69200 9

2 hours

The ‘hunt’ for materials for this course was intellectually stimulating .Thinking of ways to make the course enjoyable as well as meaningful gives me great pleasure.  My back ground is in early childhood special education where, through ‘play’ and ‘playfulness’ much meaningful learning can take place. I believe that philosophy is suitable to adult learning as well. I love seeing plays and acting: I am not a drama expert. So, if you decide to enroll in this course, think of yourself as part of a troupe of actors working together to learn and enjoy. I will be the enabler by setting the stage.

The SGL is open to contact by phone at 781-538-6536 or email at bresr28@comcast.net

Wr2-F09

The goal of this course is to aid participants to amass a minimum of ten pieces of writing, to write freely, using techniques to trigger memories and ideas, with concrete “how to’s.”  Getting started in writing memoirs is often difficult, possibly intimidating.  Students are encouraged to think of writing as “talking with a pencil in your hand or talking at the keyboard.”  Writing a memoir is a way to revisit past life experiences from the perspective of today, a way of reflecting on various periods in our lives.  It is an opportunity to savor the events of our lives, to preserve them.  We will develop a supportive community, by sharing our writing, which will foster our enriching and inspiring one another.  We will spend part of each session writing.

No textbooks, handouts.

2 hours approximately, but this depends on the writer

Desirable

Marlyn Katz Levenson, an educator and a skilled interviewer and oral historian, has been involved in oral history for more than 20 years, first interviewing family members on audiocassettes and then utilizing the camcorder as it became available. She feels ly that we should value our journey, and record it in some manner, being aware that no one else in the world has our memories of “the way it was,” as seen through our eyes, our reflective lenses. Each person's life, and life story is unique, valid, interesting, and the highlights should be preserved, remembered. Marlyn has been teaching this course at BOLLI since the Fall, 2002 semester. She also leads workshops on How to Get Started in Memoir Writing.

She has taught ESL for many years, serving from 1981-1991 as the Director of the ESL program for all of the Russian Jews of the Greater Boston area and those non-Jews from the former Soviet Union and then taught ESL at Harvard for several years and then at Northeastern University for 10 years. She is the past president of MATSOL (Massachusetts Teachers to Speakers of Other Languages).

The SGL is open to contact by phone at 617-559-0518, not on Saturdays.

H&G1-F09

The class on the Spanish Inquisition is designed to clarify common misconceptions about one of the most important eras in Jewish-Christian relations. There is no prior knowledge necessary. Background reading will be provided as well as articles to be discussed. A PowerPoint presentation will be used to guide the class through the various phases of the history of the Inquisition: the various reasons it was instituted and the extraordinary and unforeseen results which emanated from it. We will concentrate on the history of the "Judaizers," Conversos, and the scholarly controversies which surround the phenomena of the Anusim up to the present day. By the end of the course we will analyze, The Woman Who Defied Kings by Andrée Aelion Brooks, from a unique perspective that many of the reading groups of this popular book might overlook.

(R) The Woman Who Defied Kings: The life and times of Doña Gracia Nasi by Andrée Aelion Brooks, ISBN 15577880507, hard back, 1557788294, paperback
(S) The Spanish Inquisition by Cecil Roth, buy on Abebooks.com for $1.00. Please do not spend more than $5. This book is for background.

2 hours reading

Required, email attachments, I will email articles to be read for class.

Merle Luber Friedenberg, PhD. I have been a college professor for many years and have for the past several years become involved in programs for Life Long Learning at Brandeis and Rivier College, and OLLI at Granite State College in Manchester, NH where I live. I have spent the past four years writing and reading on the history of the Spanish Inquisition and the Identity Crisis of Anusim.

The SGL is open to contact by phone at or email at 603-647-2961 or by email at brestlitovsk@comcast.net

H&G2-F09

Have you ever had trouble Finding Your Way through the Medical Maze? This ten week workshop will deal with some of the complexities of today’s medical care questions related to health issues for both men and women.  No prior knowledge is required and the course is appropriate for anyone. Several specialists in the medical care field will give presentations to help clarify the pros and cons of various medical problems that you and your family are likely to face now, or in the future. Questions related to the daily topic will be addressed during informal discussions.   We will talk about how, when, and why to include your family in decision making. The advantages and disadvantages of having, or being, a medical health care advocate will be explored.  Health care proxies, as well as important common medical, ethical and legal issues will be reviewed. Class members will be asked to volunteer to present the pros and cons of controversial topics such as Universal Health Care vs. our present system and issues related to right to die laws and physician assisted suicide. By the time we’ve worked our way through the maze you will have a resource notebook with medical and insurance information, including your rights as a patient. The overall purpose of the course will be to demystify, simplify and clarify, Finding Your Way Through The Medical Maze.

Informational pamphlets and handouts will be distributed.

1 hour or less

Not required but would be helpful.

The SGL is open to contact by phone at or email at 617-332-3176, until 9:00 pm or by email at shellyglazier@verizon.net

H&G4-F09

A rich body of literature focuses on the lives of immigrants whether one is uprooted by war, famine, ambition, fear, politics, etc. A. Aciman writes: “Everyone’s exile is different, and every writer has his or her own way of groping in the dark.” Each writer mourns the first known home and asks if it is ever possible to re-build a sense of home and belonging in an alien culture.

We will examine a small book of essays, Letters of Transit:  Reflections on Exile, Identity, Language, and Loss and compare these lectures (first presented at the N.Y. Public Library) to the memoirs or works of fiction written by the same authors. How are ideas expressed in these essays transformed into creative works? Which form is more expressive? Believable? Compelling? Which form transports the reader into compassion and understanding? A variety of literary forms and writers from various cultures will be utilized. Other immigration literature will be integrated into the course.

No prior knowledge is needed, simply a sensitivity to the challenges of immigration. The course is appropriate for those who like to discuss creativity and individual growth. Material will build from one class to another. Class presentations are expected. They will enrich our understanding of  the diverse cultural background that each writer/immigrant carries and the psychological challenges that immigrants must meet in adjusting to contemporary conditions in the U.S.

Between 1 - 3 hours

Desirable, research for class presentations is much more easily completed on computers.  Some reading materials may be accessed through the computer.  For instance, the first chapter of Edward Said’s memoir can be accessed through a website.

I retired from an active career that lead from teaching English at a NYC high school to then becoming a guidance counselor and clinical social worker in Massachusetts for most of my professional life. During my retirement, I have volunteered as a research associate at the Women’s Studies Research Center at Brandeis for several years. I have been an SGL three times, creating courses that focused on various aspects of immigration and Mexico. I am drawn to the subject of immigration on several levels.  I am deeply moved by the heroism of my grandparents’ journeys to the U.S. more than one hundred years ago. More recently, I have lived in Mexico for 13 winters, and I am troubled by the plight of the millions of undocumented immigrants to the U.S. Whether legal or illegal, the literature concerning the challenges that  immigrants face is rich and diverse, revealing people who survive and sometimes flourish under enormous psychological and economic stresses

The SGL is open to contact by phone at or email at 617-670-9799 from 5-6 pm or by email at ejaffe80@aol.com

H&G6-F09

Military intervention in foreign countries for humanitarian or national security reasons has become one of the most challenging issues of U.S. foreign policy.  But once a failed or rogue state is broken, it must be fixed, and this involves a very complicated task called nation-building.  This course will evaluate past efforts at regime change and nation-building, the ideological, cultural and socio-political problems involved (including the challenge of Islamism), and try to reach a conclusion of what works and what doesn't.

No prior knowledge or expertise will be required in discussion, but participants should plan to attend every week so as not fall behind and to enhance their understanding.

2 hours plus time spent preparing presentation

Desirable

The SGL is open to contact by phone at 617 965-3230, mornings until 2:00 p.m. or by email at rmallon@comcast.net

Lit5-F09

Latin American literature is vibrant and sophisticated, and its authors’ literary concerns are sometimes quite different from ours. Some of the novels I have chosen have themes that are universal: love, death, family relationships, growing up. Others have themes that are more regionally particular: revolution, politics, race. To give a broad picture, each author I have chosen is from a different country: Mexico, Cuba, Colombia, Peru, Argentina, Chile and Puerto Rico (U.S.).

No prior knowledge needed, just curiosity. Appropriate for any level. There is a continuity of ideas from one book to the next, so regular attendance is necessary.

When looking in the library, look under Vargas for Vargas Llosa and under García for García Márquez.

Depends upon reading speed.  Most of the novels are only about 125 – 250 pages long.

Desirable if members want to read more about the author and his/her other books.

I taught in the Dept. of Romance Languages at BC for nearly 30 years. My primary field of interest is Latin America – its language, culture and literature. I have lived in Argentina and Mexico, have held two NEH fellowships, and published 14 textbooks.

The SGL is open to contact by phone at or email at 617-232-1727, evenings or by email at kupfersc@bc.edu

Starting with the death of Saul and Jonathan and David's ascension to the throne of Israel, this book continues to describe David's exploits, e.g.,: battles to unite the land, conquering of Jerusalem; his love affair with Bath Sheba and its' consequences.  The main consequence was there would be unrest in David's reign until his death.  The unrest included the jealousies and vying of his sons as to the ascendancy to David's throne, David's son’s rape of his sister Tamar, David's inability to build a proper tabernacle (temple) etc. Despite this contentiousness, David is remembered and enshrined as G-d's beloved (indeed, the very name David means beloved), as the sweet singer of Israel, and the progenitor of the Messiah.  David is the warrior extraordinaire, the conqueror and uniter of the golden age of the Israelite kingdom.  In Christianity, David the son of Jesse (similar root of the name Jesus), having been born in Bethlehem is tied to the Messianic theme.  Prior knowledge is not necessary, and the course is appropriate for all levels. Class presentations will be on a voluntary basis.

1 hour

The SGL is open to contact by email at ifshear@msn.com

SGL1-F09

This course will provide the environment needed for members to investigate ideas for and develop study group proposals to ensure that the BOLLI Program will continue to thrive. The purpose is to encourage, give practical input, and assistance to program members who have not given presentations or led courses at BOLLI and do not see themselves as a presenter or potential study group leader.  Past and present study group leaders are also welcome. "The best way to learn is to teach.”

This will depend on the goals and commitment of each of the course participants who may be motivated to do a considerable amount of work to complete a course proposal form.

As a retired teacher, I believe that learning is essential to our continued growth and well-being.  Conveying what we know to others is as important as what we ourselves want to learn and can be very exciting! This course will offer members an opportunity to share the incredible knowledge that exists at BOLLI!

Received B.S. degree from Boston University and a M.ED from Lesley University.  I am the past Chair of the Curriculum Committee and past Chair of the Resource Committee. Most of my professional work has been in the field of teaching, mentoring, and teacher training. I am presently a Wheelock College Supervisor, Consultant, and Site Placement Officer. I retired from the Newton Public Schools in June 2003 and am actively involved in many community programs

The SGL is open to contact by phone at or email at (617)-969-6878 in the evenings or by email at myrna.cohen@comcast.net

H&G5-F09

Russia has experienced a turbulent history over the past 100+ years, and has been very much in the forefront of world news over the past year. This course will explore quickly the events that led to the Russian Revolution, the Communist era and its early leaders, and the characteristics of the Soviet Empire. We will then concentrate on the events leading up to the breakup of the Soviet Union in 1991 and its aftermath. Why did the breakup happen? What has been the aftermath for the key ex-Soviet republics and the autonomous regions within present-day Russia? How is Russia’s economic, political and economic power being used today? What role is Russia playing vis-à-vis the EU, NATO and the West? Is the Cold War returning? Do we again need to fear Russia?  The course is appropriate for beginning and intermediate students who are serious about learning of the recent history and evolution of an important global player. While we will be aware of current developments, this is not designed to be a current events course. I will utilize a broad range of media during the semester, and will also invite BOLLI Scholars from the region to participate. Finally, I discourage registrants who expect to be away more than 2 weeks during the semester.

I ly recommend The New Cold War: Putin’s Russia and the Threat to the West, Edward Lucas, Palgrave Macmillan, 2008 for background, and I will refer to it and excerpt from it occasionally. However, it is not required reading as it covers recent events such as the murders of journalists, the mafia and corruption, which I will only cover lightly.

1-2 hours. Additional preparation time for presenters.

Required, I will correspond almost entirely via email, and will also assign Internet-based homework. Class members will be expected to be able to handle email attachments in Word, PowerPoint, and other common formats. Also, I ask presenters to prepare an outline version of their presentations in advance so they can be projected to the class and distributed afterwards.

As an international business consultant, I have lived in or travelled to over 50 countries, including a few of those in the former USSR. My personal interests have always included politics, history and geography and this has often been my study focus at BOLLI. In fact, as an SGL, I have led a number of Current Events courses and co-led a course on the history and development of the European Union. I also led a course in fall 2008 on the USSR, and one similar to this one on Russia in spring 2009.

The SGL is open to contact by phone at or email at 617-964-6740 at any reasonable hour, or by email at ronlevy@comcast.net

Lit2-F09

My last few courses have been on family relationships, of parents, as viewed by their children. This time we shall focus on the relationships of adult couples as described in memoirs or biographies.  Most of our selections are of a dark nature.  We shall discuss the reasons for this darkness.  We shall read 6 books or parts of books and discuss themes of the books from a psychological and ethical viewpoint. In some instances we shall have more than one view of a certain relationship or the book might be supplemented by some personal letters. The study group leader regards herself as a catalyst, initiating lively discussions through providing a structure and asking (hopefully) intriguing questions regarding the characters, their relationships and the contexts in which they live. Since we shall look at couples in which either one partner, or both, were famous, we shall try to get to know something about the lives and ideas of these people, perhaps through class volunteers, but not in great detail since emphasis will be on the partner relationship.  I will be looking for voluntary class presentations. If we read parts of a book, a class volunteer may present the other parts. That may be quite a bit of extra work, so I hope volunteers can be found. (If not, I can present the summaries myself). The course is open to anyone and no prior knowledge is necessary. The most important requirement is to keep up with the readings. I shall try to keep a week’s assignment to 100 pages but sometimes a bit more.

This is a heavy reading course, about 100 pages a week, perhaps 6 hours, depending on reading speed.

Not Necessary. I sometimes send out messages during the week, but this can be handled differently if certain class members have no computer.

I started as a clinical social worker and then became an academic teacher for the next 30 years of my life, before joining BOLLI. I think this is my 10th new course for our program. Inventing new courses has become my old age pas-time.  I received a BA from Harvard, a MSW from Simmons and 20 years later, a Ph.D. from the Heller School at Brandeis. I was a professor of social work at the Simmons College School of Social Work for 30 years. My areas of teaching were courses on Developmental psychology, theories of psychotherapy, group work, theories on family dynamics, etc. I am also an avid reader and books have been my cherished companions as a reader, book reviewer and author of 2 books, the latter a biography of my mother whose husband was the son of a famous man. 

The SGL is open to contact by phone at 781-259-9729, not between 5:30 -7:30 pm or by email at sophiefr@verizon.net

Rel1-F09

Prophets in the Bible were the go-betweens for the people and God as our ancestors gradually developed their self-image. Prophets authored the message key to western religion. We’ll read stories of seers and oracles, of the early wonder workers, court advisors, and critics. We’ll study teachings of the great innovators who followed and consider their descriptions of spiritual experience.

 Participants in the first and second courses that I offered will have had the advantage of acquaintance with the historical/critical approach to the literature. Newcomers to my courses might prepare by reading Richard E. Friedman’s Who Wrote the Bible. There will likely be one other reading assignment for historical background.

Having learned from the participants when I first offered this course, I look forward to offering it again.

2 hours

Desirable, the class has had good success using Wiggio.com as the repository for supplementary readings, timelines, and links to outside material. The site also has a discussion board and facilitates communication between participants.

Early on I was interested in archaeological/historical studies. I focused on the origins and early development of the people of Israel. University classes moved me in the direction of literary criticism and theology. I teach Bible as world-class literature and a treasure of ideas that remain current today.

The SGL is open to contact by phone at or email at 617-599-3341, mornings or by email at davidlkline@gmail.com