It’s a perfect match: educators, scientists, artists, actors, professionals in the fields of healthcare, architecture, astronomy, literature, history, political science, and psychology — all offering courses in their chosen fields to eager learners. Both the teachers and the students are older adults, mostly retirees. And these seniors are active, curious, and willing to stretch and investigate new ideas and perspectives. For them, school never lets out; learning is a lifelong process.  

On Jan. 4, online registration begins for a new term at Coastal Senior College, which serves residents in Lincoln and Knox counties. The 13 winter courses are listed below, and full descriptions of course content and instructor biographies can be found on the CSC website. Courses begin in mid-January and are generally 6–8 weeks long, held during the daytime hours Tuesday–Friday. Most of the winter courses are on Zoom; in the spring and fall terms, many are held in person at various libraries and other public buildings, churches, and retirement facilities in the area. 

Coastal Senior College is an independent non-profit organization, and the faculty and committee members are all volunteers, keeping fees low. Annual membership is $25. Courses are $35 each. The friendships formed are priceless.  

On Mondays when the longer classes are not scheduled, members can participate, at no cost, in an a variety of activities: walks in the spring and fall, a lunchtime lecture series in winter, and interest groups (Murder Mysteries! Shakespeare!) throughout the year. In addition, members of one senior college can register for courses at any one of 16 other regional senior colleges throughout the state of Maine.   

To explore the full offerings of CSC, and to sign up for membership, courses, and activities (or perhaps to teach a new course), visit www.coastalseniorcollege.org.   

Tuesdays

Puu Ja Kivi: Scandinavian Architecture & Design. Arne Aho. Zoom.  

How Should A Person Be? Art and Ethics in Contemporary Novels by Women. Charisse Gendron. Zoom.  

The American Revolution Revisited. Jayne Gordon. Zoom. 

Wednesdays

Abraham Lincoln’s Words for Our Times. Maurice Cunningham. Damariscotta.  

Life Stories: Introducing William Carlos Williams’s Paterson. Stephen Hahn. Zoom.  

The Making of a Modern Othello? Michelle Miller. Zoom. 

Space Exploration. Timothy Barrows. Zoom. 

Thursdays

Our Wits v. Their Genes: Epidemics, Pandemics, and Infectious Diseases. Jonathan Gold. Zoom.  

Introduction to Psychology. Joel Shapiro. Zoom.  

Circe: A Bewitching Novel. Maryanne Ward. Zoom.  

After Van Gogh: Watercolor Landscape Painting. Cynthia Dias. Zoom.  

The Sonnet in English: How It Grew and Prospered. John Ward. Zoom. 

Fridays

It’s About Time. Theodore Williams. Zoom.