Curious to keep learning? You’re in luck! Registration is open for the Presidents’ College Winter-Spring season. We welcome the UHart community, alumni, and the Greater Hartford and campus communities to try our non-credit lectures and 2-4 session courses, taught by University faculty and distinguished guest lecturers.
This semester, glean insights about trade and tariffs with Barney’s Farhad Rassekh, big-time sports with UHart president emeritus Walt Harrison, the food and culture of ancient Rome with food historian Mari Firkatian, and Hamlet with UHart president emeritus Humphrey Tonkin. Watch professional storyteller Tom Lee bring Grimms’ fairy tales to life, or seize the moment to discuss Ralph Ellison’s classic, Invisible Man, with Bryan Sinche. Interested in political thought? Chris Doyle debates the founding principles of liberty, equality, and revolution at America’s 250th birthday, while Benjamin Berger looks back to 1930s Europe to see what we can learn about resistance. There’s more, of course: more arts, with colonial music and African American Art and how music provokes change; more history, including a history of Hartford radio; more science – from AI’s environmental costs to new research on the aging brain, to immunology.
We innovate with you in mind and hope you’ll try one of these special experiences:
- Sample ancient recipes at our Roman Feast at Metro Bis in Simsbury;
- Hear from Maestra Kalena Bovell, Hartt School alum, about how conductors make musical decisions, before you see her conduct at the Hartford Symphony Orchestra;
- Take in the rare 19th century Japanese-inspired objects in the gallery and house at Hill-stead at our private lecture + exhibit + lunch at the Pope family estate in Farmington;
- Hear Human Rights Watch Director of Europe and Central Asia, Hugh Williamson, when he speaks on Ukraine and other conflicts with political science professor Jilda Aliotta;
- Experience documentary theater at Theaterworks—a multi-media performance exploring the Hartford Circus Fire and the power of community—with Presidents’ College director, Michele Troy;
- Learn to read the clashing rock layers of our fair state (all seven!) in our lecture + geological field trip into the wilds (!) of Canton.
Gather with us for thought-provoking Presidents’ College Conversations (free for Fellows, in thanks for a donation of $100+ per year):
- Does American Health Care Need Repair? Connecticut Representative Jillian Gilchrest (co-chair of Human Services Committee) and Ben Wade (Senior Vice President of Marketing and Strategy at Stamford Health, with responsibility for Government and Community Relations), Thurs., Feb. 12, 11 a.m.–12:15 p.m.
- Thinking Past “Us” vs. “Them”: A Conversation About Identity. Artist Siona Benjamin with Amy Weiss, director of the Maurice Greenberg Center of Judaic Studies. Tues., April 14, 11 a.m.–12:15 p.m.
All these offerings, and more, including our handy-dandy schedule chart, await you on our website. Our snazzy Presidents’ College Gift Certificates also let you give the perfect gift—the gift of knowledge—to neighbors, friends, and family for birthdays and un-birthdays alike. No membership necessary; just pay per course or lecture.
Faculty and staff are eligible to take one Presidents' College lecture for free every semester, or to receive a one-session discount ($20) for a longer course. Contact us at pcollege@hartford.edu or 860.768.4495.
*Made possible in part by the generosity of the Richard P. Garmany Fund at the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving.
ARTS
- Fresh Takes on Coming-of-Age Films*, Michael Walsh, Mondays, Jan. 12, 19, 26, Feb. 2, 3 p.m.–4:30 p.m., Wilde Auditorium/Harry Jack Gray Center
- The 19th Century Vogue for Japanese Culture at Hill-Stead & Beyond*, Anna Swinbourne, Thursday, Feb. 19, 11 a.m.–12:30 p.m., McLean (off-campus/Simsbury); Hill-Stead Experience: Lecture + Exhibit + Lunch: Tuesday, Apr. 28, 11 a.m.–1 p.m., Pope family estate in Farmington
- Harmonies of Our Homelands From Colonial Times*, Dee Hansen, Eric Hansen, Neal Humphreys, Friday, Feb. 20, 2 p.m.–3:30 p.m., The McAuley (off-campus/West Hartford)
- Bringing Grimms’ Fairy Tales to Life*, Tom Lee, Mondays, Feb. 23, Mar. 2, 9, 12:30 p.m.–2 p.m., Wilde Auditorium/Harry Jack Gray Center
- The Powerful Lineage of African American Art*, Christina Swaidan, Thursdays, Feb. 26, Mar. 5, 2 p.m.–3:30 p.m., KF Room/Harrison Libraries
- The Conductor’s Vision from Score to Stage*, Kalena Bovell, Lecture: Tuesday, Mar. 10, 3 p.m.–4:30 p.m., Wilde Auditorium/Harry Jack Gray Center; Hartford Symphony Orchestra Masterworks Performance: The Pines of Rome, Sunday, Mar. 15, 3 p.m., The Bushnell’s Belding Theater
- How Music Reflects and Provokes Historical Change*, Karen Cook, Wednesdays, Apr. 1, 8, 15, 10:30 a.m.–noon, KF Room/Harrison Libraries
- History Recast: Documentary Theater, Community, and the Hartford Circus Fire*, Michele Troy, Jacques Lamarre and Jared Mezzocchi, Lectures: Mondays, Apr. 27, May 4, 2 p.m.–3:30 p.m., KF Room/Harrison Libraries
Production: Sunday, May 3, 1:30 p.m. discussion with director & playwright, 2:30 p.m. Theaterworks show
HISTORY AND CURRENT EVENTS
- Trade, Tariffs & Technology, Farhad Rassekh, Thursdays, Jan. 22, 29, Feb. 5, 10:30 a.m.–noon, KF Room/Harrison Libraries
- How Big-Time College Sports Went Wrong & What To Do About It, Walter Harrison, Tuesdays, Mar. 10, 24, 31, 10:30 a.m.–noon, Greenberg Center/Harry Jack Gray Center
- Liberty, Equality, Revolution: Rethinking Our Founding Principles at 250 Years, Chris Doyle, Wednesdays, Mar. 11, 18, 25, 5:30 p.m.–7 p.m., Wilde Auditorium/Harry Jack Gray Center
- A Brief & Lively History of Hartford Radio, John Ramsey, Friday, Mar. 20, 2 p.m.–3:30 p.m., The McAuley (off-campus/West Hartford)
- Philosophical Lessons on Resistance from 1930s Europe, Benjamin Berger, Mondays, Mar. 30, Apr. 6, 13, 2 p.m.–3:30 p.m., KF Room/Harrison Libraries
- The Latest from Human Rights Watch Europe & Central Asia, Hugh Williamson and Jilda Aliotta, Tuesday, Apr. 21, 5:30 p.m.–7 p.m., Wilde Auditorium/Harry Jack Gray Center
LITERATURE AND CULTURE
- Food and Culture of Ancient Rome, Mari Firkatian, Tuesdays, Jan. 27, Feb. 3, 10, 2 p.m.–3:30 p.m., KF Room/Harrison Libraries
- A Roman Feast at Metro Bis, Mari Firkatian, Tuesday, Feb. 24, 6:30 p.m.–8:30 p.m., Metro Bis Restaurant (off-campus/Simsbury)
- Ralph Ellison’s Invisible Man, Bryan Sinche, Wednesdays, Feb. 4, 11, 18, 10:30 a.m.–noon, KF Room/Harrison Libraries
- Hamlet: Ghosts, Broken Promises & Shakespeare’s England, Humphrey Tonkin,
Thursdays, Mar. 26, Apr. 2, 9, 16, 2 p.m.–3:30 p.m., KF Room/Harrison Libraries
SCIENCE, ENGINEERING AND MATH
- Getting Around Town. . . In The Air, Paul Slaboch, Fridays, Jan. 16, 23, 1 p.m.–2:30 p.m., KF Room/Harrison Libraries
- AI's Hidden Environmental Cost, Laura Pence, Thursday, Mar. 12, 2 p.m.–3:30 p.m., KF Room/Harrison Libraries
OR
Friday, Apr. 17, 2–3:30 p.m., The McAuley (off-campus/West Hartford)
- Promising Research for the Aging Brain, Paola Sacchetti, Tuesday, Apr. 7, 2:30 p.m.–4 p.m., KF Room/Harrison Libraries
OR
Monday, Apr. 20, 2–3:30 p.m., McLean (off-campus/Simsbury)
- The Geology of CT (All Seven Layers!), Harold Wright, Lecture: Thursday, Apr. 30, 1:30 p.m.–3 p.m., KF Room/Harrison Libraries
Field Trip: Thursday, May 7, 1:30 p.m.–3:45 p.m. -- Enrollment limited to 25 students
- Why Immunology Could Revolutionize How We Fight Disease, Mike Magee,
Friday, May 15, 2 p.m.–3:30 p.m., The McAuley (off-campus/West Hartford)
- 20th Century Medical Discoveries: Small Steps Behind Radical Change, Mike Magee, Wed., Nov. 5, 12, 19, 1 p.m.–2:30 p.m.