Lee University’s Encore Program, which offers people age 60 and over the opportunity to take university courses, has announced its spring 2022 offerings.

With a fee of $25, Encore students may choose up to two of the following courses: Biblical Civilizations; Fitness Class; Grief and Loss; Imagining Our Neighbors as Ourselves: Empathy & the Arts; Joint Conditioning; Making Sense of the Middle Ages II (1000-1500); Our Worship: Truth or Treason; Oil Painting for Beginning & Intermediate Painters; Origin and Early History of the Church of God and Lee University; Pandemics!; Practical Organic…Biology and Chemistry for Experts…and Dummies; Spanish for Beginners; The Book of Amos: A Prophetic Message for Today; The Good Society; Tennessee in Tennis Shoes: A Traveling History Course; and World War II and the Holocaust.

From Creation to the Greco-Roman World, the Biblical Civilizations course will contextualize the biblical events with their contemporary world cultures. By exploring the various societies and cultures in which the Jewish nation interacted, this course will uncover the wider socio-political environment of the Ancient World. Dr. Timothy Lay will teach this five-week class on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 4:15-5:45 p.m., beginning March 22.

In the Fitness Class, students will build muscle and strength by using weights. They will also stand to increase endurance and mobility while enjoying fun music that helps with coordination. Students will need to wear the proper attire, such as clothing that one can move easily in, along with comfortable walking shoes. Roxanne Tyson teaches this 10-week course on Wednesdays from 1-1:50 p.m., starting Jan. 19.

Grief and Loss exposes students to knowledge and skills of counseling psychology with current research and theory in grief and bereavement. Grief therapy is a unique form of counseling and views bereavement as a normal response to life crisis. Students are taught the active steps in grieving that help people through their individual process of recovery. This six-week course, taught by Lena Barber, meets on Tuesdays from 2-4 p.m., beginning Jan. 18.

Imagining Our Neighbors as Ourselves: Empathy & the Arts will focus on how engaging stories via the arts (short fiction, poetry, film, television, music) can help students use their imaginations well to grow their capacity for empathy in order to love their neighbors better. This four-week course, beginning Jan. 17, will run 4:30-6 p.m. and is taught by Dr. Mary McCampbell.

Joint Conditioning will cover different techniques to help students strengthen and regain movement in their joints. The class will include different stretches and breathing techniques to help with relaxation, flexibility, agility, and strength. Chairs will be used in class, but some of the exercises do require standing. The class, led by Tyson, takes place on Wednesdays from 2-2:50 p.m. and starts on Jan. 19.

Making Sense of the Middle Ages II (1000-1500) is the second half of a survey of the historic trends of medieval Europe from the fall of Rome through the Renaissance, tracing how these trends conform (or not) to modern notions of the Middle Ages and in what ways the modern world is an inheritance of the European Middle Ages. Taught by David Schlosser, this 10-week course will begin on Jan. 19 and meet on Wednesdays from 11:15 a.m.-12:15 p.m.

The purpose of the class Our Worship: Truth or Treason is to establish principles to evaluate both personal and corporate worship. Biblical passages will provide the basis for considering styles of worship and personal involvement. Consideration will be given to 1st century worship and the 20th century worship renewal. The five-week course will meet on Tuesdays from 4-5:15 p.m. Led by Dr. Jerald Daffe, it begins on Jan. 18 and ends Feb. 15.

The oil painting course will concentrate on painting in a wet-on-wet process and finishing as many paintings as possible. The course is designed with an introduction before each class to demonstrate a technique or objective, which students will then try. For those painters who want to work at their own pace and interests, the instructor will be available for one-on-one consultation after the initial group instruction. This six-week course, which begins Feb. 15, will meet on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 6-8 p.m. The class is led by Gary McDonald.

In the Origin and Early History of the Church of God and Lee University, students will learn why both the Church of God and Lee University were established. They will also learn about the origins – history of both from their beginning to 1950 – along with important persons, events, and dates connected with the growth of the Church of God and Lee. The class, taught by Dr. Henry Smith, will take place on Mondays from 4:30-6 p.m., Jan. 24-Feb. 28.

The five-week class Pandemics! analyzes pandemics, past and present, from an epidemiological, societal, and individual perspective. In two sessions, students will first look at the history of pandemics, using national and global patterns, and then focus on what has happened during the current pandemic, using current research in epidemiology and public health. The class, led by Dr. Karen Mundy-Judkins and Dr. Bennett Judkins, will culminate in a “Celebration of Spring Soiree.” The course will begin on Feb. 1 and meet on Tuesdays from 4-5:30 p.m.

Practical Organic…Biology and Chemistry for Experts…and Dummies is a course for students interested in developing a practical understanding of the body’s systems, as well as a practical approach to their health. A specific focus will be on disease prevention with emphasis on nutrition and on dealing with the ramifications of unavoidable consequences of individual medical histories. The seven-week course will be taught by Dr. Keith Mills and will take place on Mondays and Thursdays from 6:30-8 p.m., beginning Jan. 17.

Spanish for Beginners will expose students to beginning Spanish vocabulary, basic grammar, and speaking. The class will also focus on issues of culture and mission in Latin America as students learn the target language. Students will have the opportunity to speak with native speakers of Spanish from other countries. The course is led by Dr. Alexander Steffanell. Class begins Feb. 2-March 30 and takes place every Wednesday from 1:25-2:15 p.m.

The Book of Amos: A Prophetic Message for Today focuses on Amos and how the message of this 8th century prophet, spoken to the Northern Kingdom of Israel, applies to the modern context. This six-week course, taught by Dr. Brian Peterson, will meet on Thursdays from 11:45 a.m.-12:45 p.m., beginning Jan. 20.

In Good Society, students will look at the positive attributes o f America’s past, present, and future, and consider how far America has come in living up to the basic values inherent in its founding. Over this five-week course, students will be guided by research on everything from education, religion, culture, and health to arrive at a picture of where America is headed. The class will take place on Tuesdays from 4-5:30 p.m. and will also culminate in a “Celebration of Spring Soiree.” The course is taught Dr. Karen Mundy-Judkins and Dr. Bennett Judkins and will begin March 20.

Tennessee in Tennis Shoes: A Traveling History Course, led by Dr. David Altopp, will include visits to historical sites in Tennessee, Georgia, or Alabama. Potential sites include the Knoxville Zoo, Cumberland Playhouse, General Longstreet Museum, Cordell Hull Birthplace and Museum, and Ripley’s Believe It or Not Museum. Class participants may choose which sites they wish to visit at the informational meeting with a minimum of 25 participants required for each trip. Dates of travel and locations will be announced at the meeting on Tuesday, Jan. 25, at 4 p.m.

The Second World War and the Holocaust are defining moments of the 20th century. This course examines the events and personalities involved in the politics and campaigns of the conflict that gave rise to America’s Greatest Generation. Some of the topics that will be covered with specificity include the rise of totalitarianism in Europe and militarism in Japan, Pearl Harbor, D-Day, and the dropping of the atomic bombs. This seven-week course, taught by John Keegan, will take place on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 4:15-5:45 p.m., beginning Jan. 18.

All courses are on a first-come, first-served basis, and spaces are limited. Students may choose up to two courses from the list of traditional courses and special lecture topics. All enrolled students will have free entry to campus concerts, plays, and athletic events.

Registration will take place on Tuesday, Jan. 11, and Wednesday, Jan. 12, from 5-7 p.m. in the Centenary Room, located in the Higginbotham Administration Building.

Lee University’s Encore Program is a part of the institution’s commitment of service to the community.

For more information about Encore, contact Community Relations at (423) 614-8310 or [email protected] or visit leeuniversity.edu/encore.