2026 FALL TERM CLASS SCHEDULE
OCTOBER CLASSES
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Thursday Oct. 1 — 7 – 10 am – Noon
Title: Sofonisba Anguissola: Groundbreaking Italian Renaissance Artist
Presenter: Alice Cotton, SSI Member
Location: Zoom only
Class description: A 15th century artist became famous when women weren’t allowed to be known by the public. How did she do it? Bring your colors and pencils and paints to find out.
Bio: Alice was a practicing musician, house artist, author and adjunct art teacher in schools for many years. Now she teaches art for us and loves to have fun with her students.
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Week of October 5
Monday Oct. 5 — 10 –11 am
Title: Curiosity Cafe: The Failure of Digital Learning in Our Schools
Presenter: Warren Karmol, SSI Member
Location: Zoom only
Class description: A Jody Scheer MD, Cofounder, Oregon Unplugged, video. Classrooms have changed radically in the past decade, with Education Technology (EdTech) replacing traditional teacher-led, hands-on learning. This presentation will be an overview of the current state of K-12 education, the risks and harms to kids of Ed Tech, the startling decline in academic outcomes in our State, Nation and World over the past decade, and how we might reorient K-12 education for healthier outcomes for our children. A discussion will follow.
Bio: Dr. Scheer is a mother, grandmother and retired pediatrician, who worked nearly 40 years in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit taking care of sick and preterm infants. She is an advocate for all children to have a play-based childhood, rich in social interactions and with protection from the harms of screen overuse and corporate exploitation. And she is co-founder of Oregon Unplugged, a non-profit organization that educates and empowers families, legislators and school boards to protect children by developing safe technology policies and holds educational technology companies accountable to prove that their products are safe, effective and legal prior to their widespread use with children in schools.
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Tuesday Oct. 6 — 1 - 3 pm
Title: Shakespeare's Henry IV (2 of 3)
Presenter: Charlie Holmes, SSI Member
Location: CLIMB & Zoom
Class description: We’ll gather, scripts in hand, to read a few scenes from the play. We use the Folger editions, which you can download for free from the Folger Library website. https://www.folger.edu/explore/shakespeares-works/.
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Wednesday Oct. 7 — 10 am – Noon
Title: The New Age of Senior Fraud
Presenter: Detective Cheryl Waddell, Portland Police Bureau Certified Fraud Examiner (in person)
Location: NHH & Zoom
Class description: Learn to be aware, prevent and be empowered against fraud. The detective will provide realistic Portland case scenarios (no sensitive detail-community safe examples) of the top scams affecting Portland Seniors. We will highlight “red flags” and talk about simple, actionable steps Seniors can employ to protect themselves and their financials.
Bio: Portland Police Detective Cheryl Waddell has a passion for helping people with over 26 years’ experience as a Portland law enforcement officer. In 2010 Detective Waddell transferred to the Financial Crimes Unit and subsequently became a Certified Fraud Examiner from ACFE. She has earned multiple medals and commendations throughout her career.
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Thursday Oct. 8 — 7 – 8:30 PM (Evening)
Title: Home Hardening and Wildfire Mitigation: Creating Defensible Space to Minimize Damage (2026)
Presenter: Alison Green video
Location: Zoom only
Class description: We present a series from The Oregon State Fire Marshal’s Office describing the importance of a 0–5-foot zone around a home or structure, plant species and arrangement, recommended materials for roofing, gutters, ventilation and more. The Construction Contractors Board speaker describes working with contractors, how to check licenses and more.
Bio: Oregon Fire Marshal Defensible Space Coordinator Alison Green; Structural Program Assistant Chief Eric McMullen; and Leslie Culpepper, Construction Contractors Board.
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Week of October 12
Monday Oct. 12 — 10 – 11 am
Title: Curiosity Cafe: Hidden Heroines: The Women Who Shaped Us (Without the Spotlight)
Presenter: Warren Karmol, SSI Member
Location: Zoom only
Class description: This April Pereira video illuminates the lives of lesser-known women whose influence has quietly shaped culture, community, and movements for justice. Through a curated series of narrative spotlights, the talk explores figures such as Jovita Idár, Zitkála-Šá, Grace Lee Boggs, and Jessie Redmon Fauset, women whose contributions were foundational, yet often overlooked. Blending storytelling with cultural reflection, April Pereira (ile/they/she), Founding Director of StorySpark Collective, examines how historical narratives are shaped, why certain voices are marginalized, and what we lose when stories of care, creativity, and community leadership go unrecognized.
Bio: April Pereira is Founding Director of StorySpark Collective, a nonprofit organization dedicated to strengthening communities through the power of storytelling.
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Tuesday Oct. 13 — 1 - 3 pm
Title: Shakespeare's Henry IV (3 of 3)
Organizer: Charlie Holmes, SSI Member
Location: CLIMB only
Class description: Today, popcorn in hand, we’ll watch a recent movie of the play made for television viewing in Great Britain. Jeremy Irons plays King Henry IV; Tom Hiddleston plays his errant son, Prince Hal.
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Wednesday Oct. 14 — 10 am – Noon
Title: Ableism: The Politics and Culture of Disability Advocacy
Presenter: Jane Gravel, PhD, in person
Location: NHH & Zoom
Class description: Models of disability: We all look at the world a little differently. The way we think about disability changes how we answer four critical questions:
What is the problem?
What are the goals?
Who has the power to decide?
How do these choices show up in real life?
Bio: Jane Gravel was a speech-language pathologist whose experiences with clients led her to earn a PhD in Disability Studies. She was a member of the Society for Disability Studies and worked for Disability Rights Oregon. Her later career was spent working with Portland’s Disability Art and Culture Project and the National Black Disability Coalition.
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Thursday Oct. 15 — 10 am - Noon
Title: Edvard Munch: Pioneering Norwegian Artist
Presenter: Alice Cotton, SSI Member
Location: Zoom only
Class description: A pioneering Norwegian Expressionist best known for his masterpiece, The Scream. Heard of it? Let’s scream together using your colors.
Bio: Alice was a practicing musician, house artist, author and adjunct art teacher in schools for many years. Now she teaches art for us and loves to have fun with her students.
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Week of October 19
Monday Oct. 19 — 10 – 11 am
Title: Curiosity Cafe: Let's Change the Way We Think About Old Age
Presenter: Warren Karmol, SSI Member
Location: Zoom only
Class description: Ageism is a type of discrimination based on one's age, generally used to refer to age-based discrimination against elderly or younger people. It is a combination of three connected elements: negative attitudes towards old age and the ageing process, discriminatory practices against older people, and institutional practices and policies that perpetuate stereotypes about elderly people. Ageism is real and hurts everyone, not just persons over 55, and this video presentation will help you understand why. A discussion will follow.
Bio: Zaria Gorvett is an award-winning senior journalist at BBC Future, where she seeks out extraordinary stories across psychology, health, physics, history and beyond. Her work has featured on Chartbeat’s list of the most engaging articles of the year several times, including twice in 2021 and once in 2022.
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Tuesday Oct. 20 — 1 - 3 pm
Title: Great Decisions Discussion (2 of 3)
Presenter: Steve Browning, SSI Member
Location: CLIMB only
Class description: The Great Decisions discussion group will examine Chapter 7 of the Great Decisions Briefing Book, “US Engagement in Africa,” (https://fpa.org/product/great-decisions-2026/). Africa’s geopolitical role is growing. What lessons can the US learn from China’s presence there, and how might it strengthen ties, especially with leading nations like Nigeria? What tools of statecraft might the US bring to its engagement with Africa?
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Wednesday Oct. 21 — 10 - 11:30 am
Title: SSI New Member Welcome
Presenter: Various SSI Members (in person)
Location: NHH only
Class description: Meet and greet SSI’s newest members! This session is open to all members who want to give them a warm welcome. Members will share information about SSI’s history and organization and answer questions.
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Thursday Oct. 22 — 7 – 8:30 PM (Evening)
Title: The Reconstruction Era in Europe
Presenter: David Gaynon, SSI Member
Location: Zoom only
Class description: This class will explain how Union victory in the American Civil War and Lincoln's assassination encouraged liberal movements in Europe and the ending of European domination on the American continent.
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Week of October 26
Monday Oct. 26 — 10 – 11:30 am
Title: The SSI Board & What it Does for Members
Presenters: Diedre Cain, Andy Muniz, Betty Woods, SSI Members
Location: Zoom only; 1.5 hrs.
Class description: Learn about the all-volunteer Board history, the positions filled by Board members, the committees overseen by the Board, and ways that interested members can participate in the work the Board does. There will be ample time for questions and the sharing of ideas.
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Tuesday Oct. 27 — 1 - 3 pm
Title: Matinee Madness! “Mamma Mia” (2008)
Presenter: Warren Karmol, SSI Member
Location: CLIMB only
Class description: We will view this movie together and discuss afterwards.
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Wednesday Oct. 28 — 10 am – Noon
Title: Supreme Court 2026: More Presidential Power, Fewer Human Rights
Presenter: Barry Bennett, SSI Member
Location: NHH & Zoom
Class description: In 2026 the Supreme Court issued significant opinions concerning the separation of powers, elections, and citizenship. In this class we will discuss cases in which the Court opened the door to unchecked presidential power and racial discrimination in voting rights. The Court allowed the President to deport legal immigrants, deny asylum claims without due process, and fire agency heads arbitrarily. At the same time the Court dealt a final blow to the Voting Rights Act. The Court did check the President by endorsing the traditional view of birthright citizenship, even if by the thinnest of threads. We will explore these decisions as we assess the Court’s continued remaking of the law.
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Thursday Oct. 29 — 10 am – Noon
Title: Agnes Martin: Come Pencil Your Art with Agnes
Presenter: Alice Cotton, SSI Member
Location: Zoom only
Class description: Abstract Agnes1912–2004) was a seminal Canadian American abstract painter. Come view her serene, carefully penciled canvases “I paint with my back to the world,” she declared. Come find out what she is talking about.
Bio: Alice was a practicing musician, house artist, author and adjunct art teacher in schools for many years. Now she teaches art for us and loves to have fun with her students.
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