Jeffrey Engel | Southern Methodist University January 12th & 19th, 2022 – 7pm – 8:30 pm ET

Can our Republic be saved? Does it need to be? The United States has faced three great existential crises in our long history. Each time a great leader emerged to see us through. George Washington unified a fractious new nation. Abraham Lincoln saved the Union almost three generations later. Three generations after that it was Franklin Roosevelt’s turn, faced with a Great Depression and global war. Their genius and savvy saved the United States, but three generations after FDR we face profound questions about national unity, and its survival. Professor Jeffrey Engel is one of the country’s foremost experts on Presidents and their leadership styles, and he feels History may show us through – and perhaps reveal another presidential great along the way.

Brian Carpenter | Washington University in St. Louis January 27th & February 3rd, 2022 – 7:00 – 8:30 PM EDT

No matter how old you are, you’re aging. You started aging from the moment you were born, and you’ll continue aging until the moment you die. That’s the brutal, universal fact. But people age differently, as you’ve noticed if you’ve looked around and compared yourself to your peers. Are you aging better than they are? Worse than they are? In what ways and for what reasons? In this expanded intensive class we’ll review what biological, psychological, and social research has taught us about growing older. Along the way, we’ll discuss what’s common with aging (everybody shrinks a little), what’s not normal (Alzheimer’s is a disease not everyone gets), and key components of successful aging (friends and family are important, but perhaps in different ways). The trajectory of aging gets shaped very early in life, but there are powerful forces that guide it along the way, and steps you can take to maximize your later years.

Louis Masur | Rutgers University February 9th and 10th, 2022 – 7pm – 8:30 pm ET

This course offers a detailed and intimate look at Abraham Lincoln and Ulysses S. Grant whose partnership won the Civil War and set the terms for Reconstruction. Acclaimed historian Louis Masur will introduce students to the backgrounds of each figure, narrate their early struggles to succeed, and detail their efforts in peace and war to preserve the nation. Lincoln was a president who served as commander in chief and Grant was a general who became president. One witness to their first meeting in 1864 recalled “the two men had many traits in common, and there were numerous points of resemblance in their remarkable careers.” By exploring their similarities—and their differences— we will come to a deeper appreciation of them as individuals and leaders who worked tirelessly on the nation’s behalf. Purchase the premium course, “Lincoln and Grant: The Statesman and the Soldier in Peace and War” today.

Jeremi Suri | University of Texas February 22nd, 2022 – 7pm – 9:00 pm ET

This timely presentation will address the nature of the contemporary challenges to American foreign policy and the possible pathways forward. Professor Suri will discuss how we should define current American national interests, and how to pursue them. Special attention will be given to alliances, international institutions, and public diplomacy as assets for a renewed foreign policy, and will conclude with a discussion about the future of democracy as a component of our international standing. Professor Suri will also share his insights on future relations with China, Russia, Europe, the Middle East countries, and some surprises as well.

Edward O’Donnell | College of the Holy Cross March 9th and March 10th, 2022 – 7pm – 8:30 pm EST

In the relatively short history of the United States, there have been many turning points and landmark movements that irrevocably altered the direction of the nation and signaled the dramatic start of a new historical reality. Some took the form of groundbreaking political and philosophical concepts; some were dramatic military victories and defeats. Still others were nationwide social and religious movements, or technological and scientific innovations. What all of these turning points had in common, is that they forever changed the character of America. Sometimes the changes brought about by these events were obvious; sometimes they were more subtle. Sometimes the effects of these turning points were immediate; other times, their aftershocks reverberated for decades.

Joseph Luzzi | Bard College March 30th & 31st, 2022 – 7pm – 8:30 pm EST

In this brand-new premium course, award-winning Italian scholar and teacher, Professor Joseph Luzzi of Bard College, will take participants on a whirlwind tour of the defining cultural moments of the Renaissance, including its most beloved works of art, like the Sistine Chapel and Florence’s Duomo, as well its breakthrough literary works, such as Machiavelli’s Prince and its all-too-modern take on the power of “lies” and deceit in the making of political power. Other artists and topics we will cover include: the stunning engineering achievements of Brunelleschi, the pioneering female painter Artemisia Gentileschi, the creation of the world’s first international financial empire by the Medici Bank, how Dante’s literary “ghost” haunted the great Renaissance writers, and much more.

Marc Lapadula | Yale University April 13th & April 20th, 2022 – 7 pm – 9:00 pm EDT

It’s certainly not easy to create a limited compelling list of powerful and memorable acting performances in cinema history (and it would be quite impossible to include them all). Nevertheless, Yale Film Professor, Marc Lapadula, has undertaken that daunting task. According to New York Film Critic Richard Brody, just last year “The best cinematic performances don’t share some standard of craft or technique; what they have in common is a feeling of invention and discovery, of emotional depth and power, and a sense of self-consciousness regarding the idea and the art of performance itself. They also reflect broader transformations in the art of cinema during their times.” The classic and contemporary movies we will examine (listed below) will showcase the talents of: Katherine Hepburn, Cary Grant, Marlon Brando, Peter Sellers, Clint Eastwood, Dustin Hoffman, Cloris Leachman, Robert DeNiro, Meryl Streep, Ellen Burstyn, Daniel Day Lewis, Jodie Foster, Anthony Hopkins, Jack Nicholson, Tom Hanks, Halle Berry, Denzel Washington and others.

Kermit Roosevelt III | University of Pennsylvania April 28, 2022 – 7pm – 9:00 pm EST

There’s a common story we tell about America: that our fundamental values as a country were stated in the Declaration of Independence, fought for in the Revolution, and made law in the Constitution. But, with the country increasingly divided, this story isn’t working for us anymore—what’s more, it’s not even true. However, as Professor Roosevelt argues in this eye-opening reinterpretation of the American story, our fundamental values–particularly equality–are not part of the vision of the Founders. Instead, they were stated in Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address and were the hope of Reconstruction, when it was possible to envision the emergence of the nation committed to liberty and equality.