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MORNINGS WITH THE PROFESSORS
Friday, April 12 , 9:30 am – 11:30 am CDT
March 29, April 5, 12, 19, 26, May 3 (Fridays) 9:30-11:30 a.m.
Attend in person at ISU’s Alumni Center, 1101 N. Main St., Normal
OR
Watch Online via Zoom
FEES:
$35 for Senior Professional members (includes all six sessions)
$45 for non-members (includes all six sessions)
For in-person participation, pricing is per person.
For Zoom participation, pricing is one registration per household.
Price includes:
Six 2-hour sessions (one Academy of Seniors class).
$15 single-session option available for in-person attendance (pay at door).
Register online at seniorprofessionals.illinoisstate.edu or call (309) 438-2160.
Zoom participants will receive a Zoom link a week prior to the start of the class(es) and again on the day of each session.
March 29 – A PEEK BEHIND THE CURTAIN: DEMYSTIFYING THE FOREIGN SERVICE
Drawing on her distinguished career, former Ambassador Geeta Pasi will discuss how the State Department is structured and its operations. A three-time Chief of Mission, Pasi most recently served as the U.S. Ambassador to Ethiopia. She earlier served as U.S. Ambassador to Chad and Djibouti as well as Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Bureau of African Affairs, leading a team that developed and advanced U.S. policy in Africa.
United States Ambassador (retired) Geeta Pasi, Inaugural Donald F. McHenry Visiting Professor in Diplomacy and International Affairs, ISU
April 5 – ISU DIGS: THE NORTHWEST BOLSENA ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
Learn about the Northwest Bolsena Archaeological Project, an ISU-based interdisciplinary research project and field school focused on the Roman site of Valle Gianni, Italy, and its surrounding landscape. The site is characterized by two primary features: the partially exposed remains of a Roman imperial period monumental fountain, possibly a nymphaeum, and an agricultural zone containing recessed vats, suggesting wine production, predating the fountain. Gain insight into two years of excavation, exciting discoveries that have been made and future plans.
Lea Cline, Professor of Art History, Affiliate Faculty of Women’s and Gender Studies, Assistant Director of the European Studies Program and a Provost Fellow
Kathryn Jasper, Associate Professor of History and Director of European Studies, ISU
April 12 – EXPLORING THE HIDDEN TREASURES OF CENTRAL ILLINOIS
There is no need to travel to another time zone or even another state to enjoy natural wonders. Some are in our own backyards. Learn about places to explore nature within about an hour of Bloomington- Normal, how to discover these hidden treasures, what’s being done to preserve them and how we can help.
Lenore Sobota, retired reporter for The Pantagraph who wrote the column “Explore with Lenore” for several years
April 19 – CAN YOU HEAR ME? BEETHOVEN’S LIFE IN NINE SYMPHONIES
Be guided on a walk-through of Beethoven’s nine symphonies by Jacobsen Woollen, using each as a chapter in the life story of this most mythical of
composers. Discover the loss of hearing, the hapless love life, the fraught relations with aristocrats, the evolving musical language and much more. And enjoy some sublime music along the way!
Jacobsen Woollen, Assistant Conductor, Illinois Symphony Orchestra; Music Director, Illinois Symphony Youth Orchestra; Music Director, Springfield Choral Society; Music Director, University of Illinois-Springfield Orchestra
April 26 – THE BIG QUESTIONS: INVESTIGATING THE MYSTERIES OF SCIENCE
Has the universe existed forever? Will it exist forever? And if I go really far that way, will I ever hit the edge of the universe? Or does space just keep going? Or maybe eventually I will get back to where I started, even without turning around. Believe it or not, many of the big questions have been successfully answered thanks to a combination of powerful telescopes, clever theoretical physicists and dumb luck. This lecture will cover the historical development of scientific cosmology, the current state of the field and its open questions.
Matt Caplan, Assistant Professor of Physics, ISU
May 3 – UNDERSTANDING AMERICAN POPULAR CULTURE
Popular culture is often derided as entertainment meant to accommodate an escape from the real world, but
it represents one of the most influential sites through which sociopolitical values, ideas and ideological discourses are sustained, interrogated or dismantled. Popular culture not only influences and reflects the values of those who consume it but is also a political arena wherein ideas are advanced or contested. In addition to serving as a form of entertainment or escape, it also performs a variety of other functions.
Byron Craig, Assistant Professor, School of Communication, ISU
Steve Rahko, Assistant Professor, School of Communication, ISU
