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Message from the President

Dear <<First Name>>,

Springtime at LLI

Whether on campus or on Zoom, our spring semester offers thirty-three choices for a broad variety of courses and activities for LLI members to choose from. None of this would be possible if not for the incredible people who volunteer their time and expertise. We can be proud of our all-volunteer organization. Many of the people who work behind the scenes remind me of the best managers and executives one encounters at large for-profit corporations and firms.  

I want to thank the presenters, members of the Curriculum Committee, Communications, Catalog, Membership Development, Hospitality and Program Support for their hard work and dedication to LLI.

The work involved in recruiting presenters and getting courses from concept to classroom is a lot of work, and our producers are incredibly good at it. The other people who support the presenters, such as class and session managers, are essential to our operations. Then there is the Tech Team that is everywhere at once and never sleeps! Thank you.

Coming up in May is our annual meeting, which will be held on Thursday morning, May 16th, at Olin Hall. We expect to serve members a light brunch in the Olin Atrium, and there is a rumor we might have a special entertainment program as well. More details will be forthcoming shortly.

Please join us to say farewell to Jerry Brockett, our treasurer, who chose not to run again, and meet our newly elected treasurer, Karen Kane, as well as our re-elected officers and members at large whose second two-year term will begin on July 1. 

As for business matters, members will be asked to vote to approve last year’s annual meeting minutes, and the tentative budget for our fiscal year beginning on July 1. The tentative budget contains a membership fee increase of $25, which will enable LLI to increase our annual donations to Bard by approximately $8,750, to a total of approximately $41,000. Our contributions benefit students directly in a wide variety of ways. Note that LLI has not increased the membership fee in several years, and most folks would agree that, for the price, LLI is a rare bargain. In addition, we have moved $10,000 from our fund balance to the tentative budget, to pay for LLI’s 25th anniversary party, to be celebrated next year. That money was donated to LLI by Henry and Roz Young in 2017. Council had planned to use that very generous donation to celebrate LLI’s 20th anniversary, but the pandemic intruded.

Links to both documents will be made available prior to the meeting, as well as a registration link.

Best, 

Robert Beaury

president@lli.bard.edu

SummerFest Alert

by Deborah Lanser

Mark your calendars for June 7th, the first of the four successive Fridays of SummerFest. In-person classes will be held over three periods, while a Zoom class and off-Friday classes are also in the works. As of this writing, the course offerings have not been finalized. Some possible topics include the Belle Époque, the status of healthcare, the writings of Herman Melville, General Lafayette’s last visit to the United States, and the paintings of Norman Rockwell with a field trip to the museum of his works. A reminder: SummerFest is free for all members of LLI, while nonmembers can attend for a nominal fee. The catalog will be available on May 24, and registration will start on May 31. 

2024 Evaluations and Surveys; A Bard LLI Odyssey

by Alan Katz

It has not even taken over the world yet and I am already tired of A.I. Almost every newspaper and internet article tells us of the inevitable rise of artificial intelligence. Perhaps worst of all, A.I. is behind the endless stream of requests we receive by email, text, and cell phone for evaluations and surveys. 

But evaluations and surveys at LLI are put together by actual intelligence (or some semblance thereof), NOT A.I., so please read on to learn why LLI evaluations and surveys are truly valuable to LLI members.  

April Blooms at Bard

by Gretchen Lytle

Winters have become milder and a bit shorter in the Hudson Valley. But winter is winter, and we all seem to long for spring’s arrival. Come early March at Bard, we look for signs of spring awakenings by the south sides of buildings, in little protected areas, at low elevations, and down near the river. Those are the warmer spots where buds first blossom. April is here now, and we can see more than little white snowdrops, bright yellow aconite, blue scilla, and purple, white, or yellow crocus close to the ground along the paths and framing the buildings on campus. The taller daffodils have emerged, followed by tulips and hyacinths. Now the shrubs and trees are waking up, budding and flowering, and they are at the mercy of the seasonal weather swings in precipitation and temperature. If the temperature drops precipitously overnight, buds can freeze, blossoms can brown, and fruit growth can be stopped in its tracks. We can only hope for a gentle transition into true spring. 

Spring Pickleball at the Red Hook Courts

by L. Walker

Mark your calendars for Open Play Pickleball on Tuesdays from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. on May 14, 21, 28, and June 4, 11, 18, 25. We meet at the Red Hook Rec Park pickleball courts, located at 99 Linden Avenue, Red Hook, NY 12571

Contact L. Walker for more information at Iwalker@lli.bard.edu

Council Notes for March 2024

by Susan Simon

At the Council Meeting of March 18, 2024, Council members noted that:

• The 2024-25 LLI Budget will be reviewed by Council at the April meeting for presentation and vote by members at the May annual meeting.
• All those running for Council office have been elected/re-elected.

Highlights of the Bard Calendar

by Felice Gelman

There are many interesting events this April—take a look for some distraction from doing your taxes, mulching your garden, or sorting through your spring and summer clothes!

April 6 to May 26, there is a new exhibit, Spillover, at the Hessel Museum. The exhibit is a collection of 11 curatorial projects organized by the graduate student class of 2024. The exhibits are distinct but converge on a commitment to experimental art forms, ephemeral materials, and affective atmospheres. Check the Museum website here for hours. 

Sunday, April 7, from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m., and then again on April 10, 11, and 12 from 1:30 to 4 p.m. Returning Home: A Contemporary Native Photography Exhibition can be seen at Montgomery Place. You must choose a time here to visit the exhibit. The exhibit addresses the kidnapping of Native children to be sent to boarding schools alongside the works of four contemporary Native photographers. The exhibition is an intervention in a house museum whose history is intertwined with the forced removal of the Mohican people in early colonial New York. In addition to the exhibit, on April 7 at 3 p.m., there will be an artist’s talk with Dana Claxton at the Montgomery Place visitor center—register here for seating. And on April 10 at 3 p.m., a documentary on the work of the exhibitor who created Following the Light will be screened at Preston Cinema/Theater.  

Tuesday, April 9, from 1:30 to 3 p.m. in the Olin Auditorium, Omer Bartov will speak on Keywords in Understanding Israel/Palestine: “Genocide.” Bartov is the Samuel Pisar Professor of Holocaust and Genocide Studies at Brown University. He has written on interethnic relations and violence in Eastern Europe, population displacement in Europe, and Palestine. 

Thursday, April 11 at 4 p.m., in Olin Hall, a lecture Unnoticed and as Beautiful: The Native American Figure in Toni Morrison’s Literature questions how the Native American figure shapes Morrison’s “sense of blackness.”  

Wednesday, April 17, from 8 to 10 p.m. in the Bitó Conservatory Performance Space, Bard Professor Joan Tower will curate a program of music by women composers, Music Alive!

Friday, April 19, from 6 to 10 p.m. in the Bitó Conservatory Performance Space, is Day 1 of the Chamber Music Marathon. Day 2 is Saturday, April 20, from 12 to 8 p.m., also in the Performance Space. 

Upcoming Meetings and Important Dates
for Members

by Carmela Gersbeck

Tuesday, April 9: Curriculum Committee meeting at 10:00 a.m. on Zoom. Anyone interested in joining a meeting should email Anne Brueckner at abrueckner@lli.bard.edu.

Wednesday, April 10: Membership Development Committee meeting at 9:00 a.m. on Zoom. Any member interested in joining a Membership Development meeting should email Robert Inglish at ringlish@lli.bard.edu.

Monday, April 15: Council meeting at 9:30 a.m. on Zoom. Any member interested in observing a Council meeting should email Mary McClellan at mmcclellan@lli.bard.edu.

Monday, April 29: The Communications team meets at 9:30 a.m. on Zoom. Any member interested in joining a Communications meeting should email Deborah Lanser at dlanser@lli.bard.edu.

Thursday, May 2: DEI/Social Justice meeting at 4:00 p.m. on Zoom. Anyone interested in joining a DEI/Social Justice meeting should email Laura Brown at lbrown@lli.bard.edu.

Wednesday, May 8: Membership Development Committee meeting at 9:00 a.m. on Zoom. Any member interested in joining a Membership Development meeting should email Robert Inglish at ringlish@lli.bard.edu.

Tuesday, May 14: Curriculum Committee meeting at 10:00 a.m. on Zoom. Anyone interested in joining a meeting should email Anne Brueckner at abrueckner@lli.bard.edu.

Thursday, May 16: LLI Annual Meeting will be held in Olin Hall. Festivities will begin with a light brunch tentatively scheduled at 9 a.m. More info to follow.

Monday, May 20: Council meeting at 9:30 a.m. on Zoom. Any member interested in observing a Council meeting should email Mary McClellan at mmcclellan@lli.bard.edu.

Friday, May 24: SummerFest catalog released.

Tuesday, May 28: The Communications team meets at 9:30 a.m. on Zoom. Any member interested in joining a Communications meeting should email Deborah Lanser at dlanser@lli.bard.edu.

Friday, May 31: Registration for SummerFest starts at 9:00 a.m. in ProClass.

The opinions and views expressed in the LLI Newsletter are those of the author(s). They do not purport to reflect the opinions or views of LLI or its members. In addition, any link to a website or content belonging to or originating from third parties are not investigated, monitored or checked for accuracy, adequacy, validity, reliability or completeness by LLI, nor does LLI accept any responsibility for such content.