March	April
Mar. 15, 12pm: Spring 2017 Kickoff Luncheon in Michel Student Center Ballrooms	Apr. 5, 12, 19, 26: OLLI Spring Classes
	Apr. 11, 9am: Learning Trip Committee Meeting in Michel Student Center Executive Suite
	Apr. 13 & 27, 2pm: Study Group Committee Meetings at Peoria NEXT Innovation Center

Don't Shoot Peoria Call In (Activity Level 1)

Thursday, March 30

4:00 - 8:00 p.m.

Peoria Public Library Main Branch 

Don't Shoot Peoria is hosting a Call In for the Most Violent Offender (MVO) Initiative.  This initiative utilizes a focused deterrent strategy to deliver a clear message to individuals that have committed weapon and/or violent offenses.  Those participating in this Call In will receive a clear message that their violence will no longer be tolerated by law enforcement and the community.  We will also offer assistance and resources for those who request help.  By sitting in the audience, which surrounds those individuals most likely to commit violent crimes, you have the opportunity to show that their own community disapproves of the violence and that it has to stop. 

$25 - includes round-trip shuttle transportation, dinner, gratuities.  Participants will park at CampusTown and walk over to meet at Avanti's at 4:00 p.m. for an early dinner, and then will be dropped off at CampusTown by 8:00 p.m. after the presentation.

Did you know that our very own Peoria City Hall is a finalist in a competition for the most beautiful city hall in the nation?  We are currently up against Vancouver, WA in the final match-up --  CLICK HERE to vote once per day and help Peoria win!

This spring, we'll be visiting this historic site on a local trip.  Don't miss your chance to tour the most beautiful city hall in the country!

Peoria City Hall (Activity Level 2)

Thursday, March 30 

8:45 a.m. - 1:30 p.m. 

Peoria City Hall, constructed in 1897 on the site of an outdoor produce market, houses priceless art and architecture. Stacy Peterson, Communications Specialist with the City of Peoria, will be our guide as we take a private tour and learn about all the planning, politics, and Peorians involved in constructing the Flemish Renaissance-style building at the corner of Madison and Fulton. We'll view the building's artworks, Italian marble wainscoting, copper cupola bell tower, ornamented stepped gables, and the open atrium rotunda with a stained glass skylight. In addition, we will visit the Council chambers and visit with a guest from City of Peoria staff who will provide further insight about this local landmark. 

$25 - includes lunch, gratuities, tour, and shuttle transportation

To register, call Gwen at 309-677-3900.

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OLLI Spring Classes offer a wide variety of topics, including this featured class on community gardening.  

Community Garden: Enriching Neighborhoods as They Grow Together (class #12)

People have an ever increasing hunger to grow their own food in sustainable ways that are healthy and cost- and time-effective.  Community gardens meet these needs by bringing people together to grow food and enrich neighborhoods.  Rhonda Ferree, University of Illinois Extension horticulture educator, will discuss various types of community gardens, and participants will learn what is needed to start, organize, and manage a successful community garden.  Local examples will be highlighted.

For $95, you can choose four different classes that will each be held on the following Wednesdays: April 5, 12, 19, and 26.  To see a complete list of class offerings, click here.  

Register for classes today by calling Bonnie at 309-677-3900!

Looking for a good reading experience along with thought-provoking discussions?  This study group is offering a look at some of America's best writers that most OLLI members may not have had the opportunity to read in literature courses forty years ago.

African-American Short Stories 

Mondays, April 10 - May 8

10:15 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.

Peoria Public Library Lakeview Branch

Minimum 8 participants, register by March 27

Please join six guest facilitators to read the short stories of Charles Chesnutt, Ramona Lowe, Ralph Ellison, Anne Scott, and others in "African-American Short Stories."  Our guest discussion leaders will include Jane Hense, popular OLLI study group facilitator, Peoria Public Library Assistant Director Roberta Koscielski, Common Place's Director of Adults Program, Wayne Cannon, Illinois Central College Adjunct English Instructor Andrea Walton, Attorney Beverly Jones, and Judge Mary McDade.

Don't miss this chance to enhance your knowledge of short stories written by outstanding African-American writers.

$45 - facilitated by the volunteers as noted above.

To register, call Bonnie at 309-677-3900.

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OLLI members have an exciting learning opportunity this spring, but time is running short to take advantage of it.  

America and the Great War: Centennial Remembrances and Reflections

Tuesdays, March 28 - April 18

9:30 - 11:45 a.m.

Washington District Library

Minimum 8 participants, register by March 14

Although the Greatest Generation and its children are fascinated with the topic of World War II, we need to remember that an understanding of World War I is needed to comprehend what happened in Europe between 1939-1945.

To do that and commemorate America's entry into World War I, the Study Group Committee urges you to join Dr. David Thompson in a discussion of that conflict.  Dave Thompson, Professor of History at Illinois Central College has been teaching Western Civilization, World Civilization, and International Studies courses for approximately twenty years.  He grew up in Morton, Illinois, received his undergraduate degree in history from Augustana College, and went on to earn a doctoral degree at Ohio State University, specializing in military history.

Dr. Thompson has previously taught two OLLI classes on "Decisive Battles of World War II" and "World War II at Sea" during our 2015 and 2016 winter sessions.  Last year he led a thought-provoking discussion of Last Days in Vietnam, a documentary film about America's final hours in Saigon in 1975.  All three discussions were very well received.  Now we have an opportunity to learn about World War I with this outstanding educator.

Ask a friend to sign up with you, make the short drive to Washington, spend four Tuesdays at America and the Great War, and grab lunch afterwards to talk about what you learned!

$45 - facilitated by David Thompson, Professor of History, Illinois Central College and OLLI class instructor.

To register, call Bonnie at 309-677-3900.

The Student Scholarship Exposition at Bradley University is an annual celebration of the research, scholarship, and creative production of Bradley undergraduate and graduate students.  Students showcase and present their work to a judging team comprised of both Bradley faculty members and representatives from the surrounding community in hopes of receiving an EXPO Award for the best presentation of their work to  generalist audience.

In this 25th year, we expect to receive more student submissions than ever before.  Your contributions as an EXPO Judge will include listening to and assessing 3-5 brief student presentations as an informed generalist audience-- someone who has interest and a working knowledge of the students' topics, without necessarily being an expert in the field-- with a focus on the presentation and dissemination skills of the students.  

Your judging period would consist of a two-hour block on April 12th, between 11:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m., in the Renaissance Coliseum at Bradley.

For more information, please check out the following links:

EXPO Home Page

Judge Frequently Asked Questions

Online Judge Registration Form

A public viewing session will be held on April 13th, from 3:30 - 5:30 p.m., followed by the awards ceremony at 5:30 p.m.; all are invited to attend and support our students' work.

If you have any further questions, please email one of the following representatives from the Office of Sponsored Programs:

Sandra Shumaker, Executive Director of Research and Sponsored Programs

Email: [email protected]

Luke Burton, Graduate Assistant, Office of Sponsored Programs

Email: [email protected]

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Issue Briefing on Education Access for Children Living in Extreme Poverty

Presented by the Peoria Area World Affairs Council

Thursday, March 23

5:30 - 7:30 p.m.

Cayenne, 4542 N. Prospect Road, Peoria Heights

The Peoria Area World Affairs Council (PAWAC) will host an Issue Briefing dinner and discussion on Education Access for Children Living in Extreme Poverty.  Participants wishing to order dinner are advised to arrive by 5:30 p.m.  The program and discussion will begin at 6:00 p.m.

Lack of access to quality education, especially among the poorest, prevents millions around the world from escaping the cycle of violence.  Further, more than 130 million girls globally, a population larger than that of present-day Germany, are denied the basic right to attend school.  The issue briefing will focus on ideas to enhance transparency and accelerate the impact of assistance to promote quality basic education in developing countries and to better enable such countries to achieve universal access to quality basic education and improved learning outcomes.

The evening's speaker, Janet Bantz Glavin, MA, is the Volunteer and Congressional District Leader for ONE.  She has recently returned from Washington, DC, where she attended meetings and events that focused on ways the United States Congress is working on addressing the issues of education access and poverty reduction.

The events is free, but attendees must order and pay for their own food and beverages at the event.  Advance registration is required by Tuesday, March 21 by calling 309-677-2454 or emailing [email protected].

The Journey to Mollie's War: The Women's  Army Corps and World War II

Saturday, March 11

1:00 p.m.

Chillicothe Public Library, 430 N Bradley Avenue, Chillicothe

Cost: FREE!

Members of the Women's Army Corps - WACs -

 were the first women other than nurses to serve overseas in World War II.  Cyndee Schaffer's mother, Mollie Weinstein Schaffer, was one of them.  Drawing upon excerpts from Mollie's letters written home during the war, Cyndee presents a vivid glimpse into the life of a woman in uniform during this crucial time in history and invites contemplation of the vital and varied roles that women have fulfilled in the American military.

This presentation details Mollie's experiences from basic training in Florida in October 1943 to the dramatic moment when the Statue of Liberty came into view upon her return in November 1945.  It traces the footsteps of the women who served in Europe, following Mollie and her fellow WACs stations in London before D-Day and during the post-D-Day German buzz bomb attacks.  The WACs were transferred to Normandy two months after D-Day and then to Paris after its liberation by the Allies.  Finally, they traveled to Frankfurt as a part of the Army of Occupation, and witness first-hand the devastation of that country before returning to the United States. 

This event is being produced in part by Illinois Humanities Road Scholars Speakers Bureau, a program that provides organizations statewide with affordable, entertaining, and thought-provoking humanities events for their communities.

Dollar-a-Day Boys: A Tribute to the Civilian Conservation Corps

Wednesday, March 15

2:00 p.m.

Chillicothe Public Library, 430 N Bradley Avenue, Chillicothe

Cost: FREE!

Bill Jamerson presents a multi-media program about the Cilivian Consevation Corps.  Dressed in uniform, he tells stories, sings songs with his guitar, reads from his book, and shows a video clip from the PBS film he made.  The program is nostalgic, with humorous and heartfelt stories picked up from former CCC boys.  

In Illinois, over 165,000 men enlisted in the Civilian Conservation Corps, FDR's work program during the Great Depression.  They built a dozen state parks, worked on farms, built roads, and much more.  Camps in Elmwood, Galva, Ottawa, and Henry housed men who came into towns on weekends to patronize stores, bowling alleys, and billiard halls, go to the movies, and attend church.

Refreshments will be served, and Jamerson will sign books after his talk.  Attendees are encouraged to bring photo albums and CCC memorabilia.

This program is made possible by the generous support of Evergreen Senior Living.

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