Take Community Classes this Spring on Topics Ranging from Compassion to the Historic Changes of the 1970s

This spring, community members can learn about life of Mao Zedong; gender, migration, and human rights; the historic changes of the 1970; cultivating compassion; travel writing; and adobe. In addition, they can learn about politics from one of the most influential thinkers of the past century, Noam Chomsky.

Offered by the University of Arizona College of Social and Behavioral Sciences, the Community Classroom allows Tucson community members to explore fascinating topics with renowned UArizona professors and community scholars, dive into the social sciences and liberal arts, learn new professional skills, and participate in enriching cultural immersion experiences.

Registration is now open for our spring courses. communityclassroom.arizona.edu.

The Life and Times of Mao Zedong: China in Revolution

Lifelong Learning Course
Wednesdays, 5-7 p.m.
01/08/20 -2/5/20
Dunbar Pavilion
Tuition: $135

Taught by historian David Pietz, this course examines the grand sweep of 20th Century Chinese history through the lens of Mao Zedong’s life – a life that was complex and often contradictory, but one that ultimately left a lasting legacy for today’s China.

What is Politics?

Classroom with Professor Chomsky
Tuesdays and Thursdays, 5:30-7:30 p.m.
1/16/20-3/5/20
UA Campus
Tuition: $250

Linguistics Professor and Agnese Nelms Haury Chair Noam Chomsky and UA Emeritus Professor Marv Waterstone will co-teach this seven-week class that is both a general education course for undergraduates and open to the life-long learners from the public.

In this fourth iteration of the course, the instructors will look at urgent contemporary issues and place them in their historical and conceptual contexts. The course will examine industrial state capitalism as the dominant organizing principle of our economic and political lives.

Adobe: A Noble Material

Cultural Immersion Experience
Feb. 29, 9:30 a.m.-11:30 a.m., Valley of the Moon
Mar. 7, 9:30 a.m. -1:30 p.m., Valley of the Moon
Mar. 21, 9:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m., Tumacacori National Historic Park
Tuition: $135

Master adobe maker and conservator David Yubeta will lead students through a robust narrative of adobe and its use in southwestern architecture and life. Participants will learn to identify adobe structures (first session), make adobe bricks for building (second session), and learn about the wide ranging conservation efforts master adobe makers engage in (third session). 

1970: Looking Back on Half a Century

Lifelong Learning Course
Thursdays, 3-5 p.m.
3/12/20-4/23/20
The Loft Cinema
Tuition: $160

This six-week class – taught by Thomas P. Miller, Professor of Rhetoric, Composition, and the Teaching of English –  will explore 1970 as a pivotal year for various developments, including changes in how we communicate, sexual politics, demographic shifts, the impact of Vietnam, and the evolution of ecological consciousness.

Courageous Compassion: Tools for Cultivating Care and Compassion

Professional Development Course
Wednesdays, 6 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.
3/18/20 – 4/08/20
Little Chapel of All Nations
Tuition: $80

Taught by Leslie Langbert, executive director of the Center for Compassion Studies, this class offers an introduction to Sustainable Compassion Training. The instructor will provide tools to deepen participants’ experience of receiving care, extending care, and expanding self-care in order to avoid burn out and empathy fatigue.

Gender, Migration, and Human Rights

Lifelong Learning Course
Tuesdays, 6 p.m. – 8 p.m.
3/24/20 – 4/14/20
Dunbar Pavilion
Tuition: $120

This course – taught by Michelle Téllez, an Assistant Professor in the Department of Mexican American Studies – will examine economic, political, and socio-cultural dimensions that have shaped the dynamics of the U.S.-Mexico border region, with a focus on the role of gender.

Travel Writing: A Grand Tour

Professional Development Course
Saturday, 9:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.
3/28/2020
Dunbar Pavilion
Tuition: $55

In this workshop, travel writer and editor Edie Jarolim will give an overview of the field, covering everything from travel magazine articles and blog posts to full-length memoirs and guidebooks. Participants will try their hands at gearing a story towards different audiences and outlets.