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Earth is home to an amazing diversity of life—with over a million species of plants and animals—but those that are alive today represent only 1% of the total that have existed during Earth’s long history. This two-session course will provide an overview of the 99% that have come and gone: from bacteria to trilobites to the first amphibians to dinosaurs to woolly mammoths. Through hundreds of slides, we’ll learn about creatures like smilodons, aminoids, sauropods, and eoraptors, as well as the Pangean supercontinent. We’ll also discuss the remarkable ways how, in spite of each of Earth’s five major “extinction events” killing off more than 75% of then-existing life, enough creatures survived to provide the genetic material for the next round of flora and fauna to flourish.
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Instructor: Randall Schau
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Dates: 11/3/2025 - 11/10/2025
Times: 10:00 AM - 12:00 PM
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Sessions: 2
Days: M
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Building: Sangren Hall
Room: 2510
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Member Rate: $20, Non-Member Rate: $40
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This class is full. Please use the button below to be added to the waitlist.
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In this two-session class led by actress and professor Dwandra Nickole Lampkin, students will explore Marcus Gardley’s powerful play, “A House that Will Not Stand.” The first session offers an introduction to the play, examining its historical context, themes, and the cultural significance of its setting in post-Reconstruction New Orleans. Students will also engage in a conversation with some of the production’s designers, gaining insight into the creative process behind bringing the play to life. In the second session, you’ll experience a behind-the-scenes tour of the set followed by a post-show discussion led by Professor Lampkin, where students can reflect on the production’s impact, themes, and design elements. This immersive class provides a unique opportunity to deepen your understanding of both the play and the theatrical process, making it ideal for theater enthusiasts and those seeking a closer connection to contemporary drama. Students must purchase tickets on their own through the WMU Theater Department’s Box office; it is highly encouraged to attend one of the performances on November 14 or 15 at 7:30 p.m. or on November 16 at 2 p.m. Performances will also take place November 20 through 23.
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Instructor: Dwandra Nickole Lampkin
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Dates: 11/3/2025 - 11/17/2025
Times: 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM
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Sessions: 2
Days: M
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Building: Williams Theatre
Room:
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Member Rate: $20, Non-Member Rate: $40
Tickets to the performance are not included
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This class is full. Please use the button below to be added to the waitlist.
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The First Symphony of Johannes Brahms is filled with soaring melodies and rich harmonies that are imbued with Romantic passion within an expanded Classical structure. This magnificent piece will be featured in the Kalamazoo Symphony Orchestra’s concert on Saturday, November 15. Beforehand, we will explore Brahms’s Symphony with listening maps, excerpts, and insights, and by showtime, we will be thoroughly familiar with this remarkable masterpiece. In addition to two class sessions, you will be invited to join a KSO rehearsal a few days prior to the concert as an optional behind-the-scenes opportunity; attendance at the KSO’s performance on Saturday, November 15 is strongly encouraged for the full experience. Concert tickets are sold separately; call (269) 387-2300 or purchase online at www.KalamazooSymphony.com.
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Instructor: Jane Rooks Ross
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Dates: 11/4/2025 - 11/11/2025
Times: 10:00 AM - 12:00 PM
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Sessions: 2
Days: Tu
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Building: Sangren Hall
Room: 2510
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Member Rate: $20, Non-Member Rate: $40
Concert tickets are sold separately; call (269) 387-2300 or purchase online at www.KalamazooSymphony.com.
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This class is full. Please use the button below to be added to the waitlist.
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Participants in this course will be introduced to a variety of topics that one might wish to address in preparing for the eventuality of death. Rather than approach this as a taboo or morose topic, the course will focus on identifying important topics and issues that one wishes to be honored both before and after dying. These topics include legal documentation and considering if one wants a service and, if so, what kind of service. We’ll also think about some questions. Does one want to write their own obituary? Are there people one hopes to be present when near death? Or are there people one does not want to be present at that time? Overall, the theme of this course is to create an inventory of what is important and begin work on addressing each item in one's inventory.
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Instructor: Sue Caulfield
Capacity Remaining: 5
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Dates: 11/4/2025 - 11/18/2025
Times: 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM
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Sessions: 3
Days: Tu
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Building: Portage Zhang Senior Center
Room: Meeting Room 1B
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Member Rate: $30, Non-Member Rate: $60
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The Alzheimer’s Association is committed to supporting a dignified experience for individuals with dementia while promoting the well-being of family caregivers. This course will equip students with the skills they need to best prepare for future care decisions and changes, including respite care, residential care, and end-of-life care.
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Instructor: Shukurani Nsengiyumva
Capacity Remaining: 29
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Dates: 11/5/2025 - 11/5/2025
Times: 10:00 AM - 11:30 AM
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Sessions: 1
Days: W
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Building: Online
Room:
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Free to members, registration is required.
You must sign in to your account to verify membership before the add to cart button will appear.
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During World War II, the Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASP) became America’s first women to fly and ferry military aircraft. These 1,074 volunteers helped release male pilots to train for overseas combat and made major contributions toward the success of the war effort before the government sealed and stored their records for decades. Learn about the program, the women, their triumphs, and their challenges in this this presentation inspired by the Air Zoo’s newest exclusive exhibition. This course will be held at the Air Zoo at no additional charge, but if students wish to explore the museum before or after the program, admission will be required.
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Instructor: April Bryan
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Dates: 11/6/2025 - 11/6/2025
Times: 10:00 AM - 11:00 AM
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Sessions: 1
Days: Th
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Building: Air Zoo
Room: 6151 Portage Rd. 49002
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Member Rate: $10, Non-Member Rate: $20
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This class is full. Please use the button below to be added to the waitlist.
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Discover the behind-the-scenes responsibilities and activities of National Football League officials. In this course, you’ll learn about individual positions, their duties, and what it takes to conduct the fast-paced, highly skilled event that is part of "America's Game." Examples of real game action will be used to highlight commonly misunderstood game situations.
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Instructor: Ronald Winter
Capacity Remaining: 18
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Dates: 11/6/2025 - 11/13/2025
Times: 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM
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Sessions: 2
Days: Th
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Building: College of Health and Human Services
Room: 1035
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Member Rate: $20, Non-Member Rate: $40
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Most of us are familiar with countless photographic images that repeatedly appear in the public eye through print and electronic media—from the raising of the flag on Iwo Jima to Marilyn Monroe with her skirt blowing. Behind many iconic photos are often interesting stories about the occasion, the subject, the photographer, and the techniques used to create the image. The class will explore ten of these incredibly impactful photos and their backstories. Many of these images you should recognize, but some may be new to you!
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Instructor: Samuel Grossman
Capacity Remaining: 2
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Dates: 11/7/2025 - 11/7/2025
Times: 10:00 AM - 12:00 PM
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Sessions: 1
Days: F
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Building: College of Health and Human Services
Room: 2089
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Member Rate: $10, Non-Member Rate: $20
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The past comes alive through music in this unique course that features an old-time string band who will perform songs from the 19th century while explaining the hidden history embedded in these familiar melodies. You’ll hear the stories behind several of the tunes associated with the American Civil War, as well as learn how the cultural currents reflected by this music connected to the rise of racist tropes in the Minstrel Era and Reconstruction Period that followed.
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Instructor: Howard Steiner
Capacity Remaining: 45
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Dates: 11/7/2025 - 11/7/2025
Times: 10:30 AM - 12:30 PM
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Sessions: 1
Days: F
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Building: Vicksburg Senior Center
Room: Taylor Room
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Member Rate: $10, Non-Member Rate: $20
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Since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution in the mid-18th century, burning fossil fuels has been the main driver of climate change. This course comprehensively analyzes how the combustion of fossil fuels elevates greenhouse gas levels, especially carbon dioxide, and the devastating effects this practice has on our earth’s surface, air, and ocean—including increasingly extreme global temperatures; rising sea levels and disruptions to ocean currents; the melting of ice sheets in Greenland and Antarctica; a dramatic increase of destructive rainstorms; wildfires spiraling out of control; the rapid intensification and strength of hurricanes; and ever-worsening droughts. We’ll also examine how climate change will and has already begun to impact the creatures that live on the earth. Humans will face changes to property insurance and housing prices, increased health risks, and encounter difficulties affecting the yield and quality of food crops. Animals will also encounter food scarcity and possible species extinction, with marine life and coral reefs set to endure possibly fatal stressors due to the multiple issues currently facing the ocean’s delicate balance.
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Instructor: Robert Balik
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Dates: 11/10/2025 - 11/10/2025
Times: 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM
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Sessions: 1
Days: M
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Building: Sangren Hall
Room: 2510
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Member Rate: $10, Non-Member Rate: $20
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This class is full. Please use the button below to be added to the waitlist.
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In 1959, a group of men participated in intense training to become the original Mercury 7 astronauts. Shortly thereafter, between 1960 and 1961, 25 women pilots underwent the same rigorous trials and testing, with one candidate successfully passing every requirement. Twenty years later, Sally Ride became the first American woman to fly into space when she launched aboard the Space Shuttle Challenger in 1983. Why did it take so long to put an American woman in space, and what can we learn from the experiences gained by those original female candidates? This course will be held at the Air Zoo at no additional charge, but if students wish to explore the museum before or after the program, admission will be required.
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Instructor: Erin Lewis
Capacity Remaining: 21
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Dates: 11/13/2025 - 11/13/2025
Times: 10:00 AM - 11:00 AM
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Sessions: 1
Days: Th
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Building: Air Zoo
Room: 6151 Portage Rd. 49002
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Member Rate: $10, Non-Member Rate: $20
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While we may not realize it, our country’s Civil War stirred a great deal of international interest. For example, most Americans may not know that Karl Marx was a close observer of the conflict. He wrote over a hundred articles and letters that addressed the war, commenting on the Union’s military tactics, Lincoln’s political strategy, emancipation and the impact it would have upon the postwar republic, and many other topics. Join us as we dive into Marx’s unique opinions and analyze his observations about the American Civil War from a new perspective.
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Instructor: Thomas Dietz
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Dates: 11/17/2025 - 11/24/2025
Times: 10:00 AM - 12:00 PM
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Sessions: 2
Days: M
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Building: Portage Zhang Senior Center
Room: Lower Level Activity Room
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Member Rate: $20, Non-Member Rate: $40
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This class is full. Please use the button below to be added to the waitlist.
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We’re going to discuss retirement—but not in the typical sense. Many people expect retirement to mean the end of work, but is that what it truly means? Come explore the different phases of retirement, the challenges, the opportunities, and everything else in-between. This course will be jam packed with information and helpful tips to make sure you can live “those golden years” to the fullest!
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Instructor: Chase Imberger
Capacity Remaining: 25
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Dates: 11/18/2025 - 11/18/2025
Times: 10:00 AM - 12:00 PM
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Sessions: 1
Days: Tu
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Building: Milestone Senior Services
Room: 918 Jasper St, Kalamazoo MI 49001
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Free to Members
You must sign-in for the add-to-cart button to appear
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The language of mathematics allows us to talk with exquisite precision about phenomena that reside exclusively in our imagination—like the concept of “infinity.” In this course, we will develop ways to talk clearly about ideas that involve infinity and try these out with a few simple examples. Then, after a short break, we will use our new linguistic competence to explore some of the deeper understanding and breakthroughs that this language will lead us towards. We will want to allow plenty of time to savor some of the surprises that we will encounter along the way.
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Instructor: John Fink
Capacity Remaining: 2
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Dates: 11/19/2025 - 11/19/2025
Times: 10:00 AM - 12:00 PM
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Sessions: 1
Days: W
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Building: Friendship Village
Room: Village Clubhouse Keystone
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Member Rate: $10, Non-Member Rate: $20
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This seminar examines how the decline of local journalism impacts community health and civic engagement. As newspapers close at an alarming rate and news deserts expand, we’ll explore the consequences: reduced government accountability, weakened social bonds, and growing political polarization. Through case studies and discussions, we'll analyze how local reporting traditionally strengthened community identity and the economic forces dismantling traditional news models. We’ll also research how news access correlates to voter turnout, municipal efficiency, and public health, as well as the impact of the rise of misinformation within communities that do not have access to reliable news sources. We’ll conclude by introducing an innovative Kalamazoo County nonprofit organization working to revitalize local journalism in our area, discuss their community-centered approach, and explore opportunities for civic participation. Join us to understand this critical challenge and discover how you can support solutions that strengthen our democratic foundations!
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Instructor: Ben Lando, Reid Williams
Capacity Remaining: 30
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Dates: 11/21/2025 - 11/21/2025
Times: 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM
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Sessions: 1
Days: F
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Building: Sangren Hall
Room: 2510
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Member Rate: $10, Non-Member Rate: $20
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In 2026, the Kalamazoo/Battle Creek International Airport (AZO) will celebrate its 100th birthday. As we look ahead to the airport’s centennial, let’s also look back over AZO’s interesting history! We’ll begin in the 1920s with the airport’s first scheduled flights, regular air mail service, and original name. Next, we’ll explore expansions and architectural changes that took off in the 1950s, including discovering how the airport helped to launch a museum! You’ll learn about the airlines that served the airport through the years, see AZO-related archives and artifacts from the Air Zoo’s Collection, and hear (and share your own) stories about those who worked at and traveled in and out of our community’s historic airport.
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Instructor: April Bryan
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Dates: 11/20/2025 - 11/20/2025
Times: 10:00 AM - 11:00 AM
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Sessions: 1
Days: Th
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Building: Air Zoo
Room: 6151 Portage Rd. 49002
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Member Rate: $10, Non-Member Rate: $20
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This class is full. Please use the button below to be added to the waitlist.
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