BY ANDY LEE WHITE
FOR THE OBSERVER
AUBURN —
Auburn University’s Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI) Fall Brown Bag lecture series will be wrapping up another successful season as it gets ready for its last two presentations of 2023. Lectures happen on Wednesdays from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Caroline Marshall Draughon Center for Art & Humanities at Pebble Hill, located at 101 S. Debardeleben St. in Auburn. Admission is free and open to the public.
The Fall 2023 series started on Sept. 13 and has featured a varied and unique range of subjects so far this season.
“As part of University Outreach, OLLI looks for opportunities to educate, entertain and enlighten members of our community,” said Cheri Lumpkin, who heads up communications and marketing for Auburn’s OLLI. “By choosing a variety of subjects for the series, we aim to engage audiences with a broad range of interests.”
The next lecture is scheduled for Wednesday, Oct. 25 and is titled The Architecture of Sunny Slope: History as Context for Design Students. The lecture will feature three architecture professors from Auburn University who will present the history of Sunny Slope and discuss how the former plantation influenced students’ architectural designs for an expanded OLLI campus at Sunny Slope. Sunny Slope was built circa 1850 and is one of Auburn’s oldest homes. It’s located at 1031 South College St. and is just up the road from the Jule Collins Smith Museum of Fine Art.
The historic home serves as the main center for Auburn’s OLLI program and sits next to the Sunny Slope Annex at 102 Kimberly Drive. The Greek Revival style home was once the center of a 2,500 acre plantation and at one time housed young William James Samford, for whom Samford Hall is named, along with his parents and twelve brothers and sisters.
Professors Gorham Bird, Jennifer Pindyck and Mary English will lead the informational session that will include student drawings, models and digital animations that visualize the potential new OLLI campus.
Nov. 1 marks the final lecture of the 2023 season’s Brown Bag Series. Doctoral candidate Kenny Harrison will present The Science of Movement: Insights from the Locomotor & Movement Control Laboratory. Harrison will discuss the work being done in the Locomotor and Movement Control Lab at Auburn University to promote healthy aging through research into the quality of movement in walking and balancing. Harrison will share techniques to improve walking, balance and mobility in people who experience falls and fear of falling. The lecture starts at 11:30 a.m. and runs until 1:30 p.m.
The Winter 2024 Brown Bag lecture series will start on Jan. 16 and run through March 1 with the Spring 2024 series kicking off March 25 and ending May 3. Speakers and dates will be announced prior to the start of each series.
The Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI) at Auburn University is a member organization offering non-credit classes in a variety of subjects. OLLI is a program of Auburn University Outreach, office of the vice president for University Outreach. Scott Bishop is Auburn’s OLLI director, Tenisha King is the program administrator and Lumpkin handles communications and marketing.
There are 125 Osher Lifelong Learning Institutes (OLLIs) spanning all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Alabama is home to three Osher Lifelong Learning Institutes including Auburn University, University of Alabama and University of Alabama in Huntsville.
Each is an independently operated lifelong learning initiative of its’ host college or university and is supported in part by The Bernard Osher Foundation, headquartered in San Francisco, California, and was founded in 1977.
OLLI at Auburn provides social interaction and volunteer opportunities with over 40 courses offered during Fall 2024. OLLI programs are designed for adults 50 and over though all adults are welcome. Membership benefits include: academic courses, workshops, field trips and social events, travel opportunities, community discounts, access to Auburn University libraries, Tiger Transit and course auditing. There are no requirements for membership in OLLI at Auburn and activities are designed to promote the participation and involvement of all members. Annual membership dues are only $50.
For more information about the numerous activities, classes and lectures offered by OLLI visit www.auburn.edu/olli or call 334-844-3146.
Gorham Bird, left; Jennifer Pindych, middle; and Mary English, right, are the OLLI speakers for the Brown Bag Series at Pebble Hill in Auburn on Oct. 2.5 They will present The Architecture of Sunny Slope: History as Context for Design Students