Available Courses

The following are Bluestem U courses currently being offered. There are a variety of topics to choose from, providing educational and social opportunities with fellow community members. Classes will be held on or near a Bluestem Communities campus and may be during the day or evening based on the professor’s schedule. We invite you to immerse yourself in a new learning environment.

NORTH NEWTON, KS

SLOWING DOWN TO THE SPEED OF POETRY

Raylene Hinz-Penner

Sorry, we have reached enrollment capacity for this class.

Date: Mondays - March 13, 20, 27 & April 3, 10 & 17

Time: 1 to 2:30 p.m.

Location: Kaye Penner Education Center, 3001 Ivy Drive, North Newton, KS

Course Cost: $50

Americans found they needed poetry during the pandemic. As an art form, poetry has always been a resource for finding solace and connection in times of crisis, transition, and struggle. This course will study the work of three important late twentieth century poets: Gwendolyn…

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MUSIC, MIND, AND BRAIN: HOW THE BRAIN TURNS MUSICAL SOUNDS INTO EMOTIONAL RESPONSES

Dwight Krehbiel

Date: Mondays - March 20, 27 & April 3, 10, 17 & 24

Time: 10 to 11:30 a.m.

Location: Kaye Penner Education Center, 3001 Ivy Drive, North Newton, KS

Course Cost: $50

This course will explore the processing of musical sounds in mind and brain with special emphasis on emotional responses to music and their role in aesthetic experience. Other areas of study will include music and language, how the brain is changed by music, music and memory,…

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DISCOVERING DESIDERIUS;  THE CONTEMPORARY RELEVANCE OF ERASMUS

Dale Schrag

Date: Wednesdays - March 15, 22, 29 & April 5, 12, 19 & 26

Time: 10 to 10:50 a.m.

Location: Kaye Penner Education Center, 3001 Ivy Drive, North Newton, KS

Class available in-person and online via Zoom

Course Cost: $50

Desiderius Erasmus (1466?/1469?-1536) was arguably the greatest scholar and most popular author of his time. With the onset of the Protestant Reformation in 1517, that time became intensely polarized (perhaps even more polarized than our own time). Accused by Catholics of…

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HESSTON, KS

PRAIRIE LANDSCAPING 101

Brad Guhr

Date: Mondays - Sep. 19, 26 and Oct. 3

Time: 4 to 6pm

Location: Dyck Arboretum of the Plains (177 W. Hickory, Hesston)

Course Cost: $50

Incorporating elements of the prairie into your landscape is a life-giving journey. You and your landscape will benefit from and be inspired by the experience of getting in touch with the natural and cultural history of Kansas. In this class, you will learn about the rich…

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HAPPY HABITS FROM POSITIVE PSYCHOLOGY

Kevin Wilder

Date: Thursdays - Sep. 8, 15, 22, 29 and Oct. 6

Time: 10 to 11:30am

Location: Water’s Edge Restaurant & Catering (701 S. Main St., Hesston, KS)

Course Cost: $50

A little more than 20 years ago, a new branch of psychology was started called positive psychology. Positive psychology studies healthy and happy people to find out what helps them have a fulfilling and meaningful life. In the last 20 years, we have learned a lot about these…

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Zoom

BUGGIES, BONNETS, AND BOUNDARIES: A STUDY OF AMISH FAITH, LIFE, AND CULTURE

John Sharp

Date: Wednesdays - Sep. 28 and Oct. 5, 12, 19

Time: 1 to 2:30pm

Location: Zoom

Course Cost: $50

This course invites you to look beyond the occasional news headline, Late Show quips, and the ubiquitous ads for Amish-made products to examine the Amish in historical, religious, and cultural contexts. Learn about the well-honed ability of the Amish to negotiate with…

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