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- Canals and the Making of the Modern World - OsherOnline
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Fee: $50.00
Dates: 7/8/2026 - 8/12/2026
Times: 11:00 AM - 12:30 PM
Days: W
Sessions: 6
Building: Online
Room:
Instructor: Osher Online
Seats Available: 9
When the Erie Canal opened in 1825, it revolutionized American travel and transportation, but it was inspired by Europe’s earlier canal networks. In this course, we will trace French, British, and Irish canals of the 17th and 18th centuries, then follow the story into the 19th century as we examine American canals, especially in New York and Pennsylvania. We will explore how canals reflect national politics and ambitions and why they remain vital to global shipping today.
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- Codename Delmar: Soviet Spy in Dayton
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THIS CLASS IS FULL. Please click the "Add to Waitlist" button below.
Explore the intersection of Dayton's history and the shadowy world of George Koval, the American-born Soviet spy codenamed "Delmar," who infiltrated the Manhattan Project and altered the course of the nuclear arms race. The two-hour seminar will unravels Koval’s life as a Soviet spy in Dayton, the programs that he accessed, and his escape to Russia. We will discuss his hidden motivations to commit espionage and his profound but largely covert impact on the United States' post-World War II spy hunts.
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- Deaf Culture and History - OsherOnline
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Fee: $50.00
Dates: 7/9/2026 - 8/13/2026
Times: 5:00 PM - 6:30 PM
Days: Th
Sessions: 6
Building: Online
Room:
Instructor: Osher Online
Seats Available: 13
In this course, we will introduce key aspects of Deaf Culture in the United States and explore what defines the Deaf community as a cultural minority. We will examine cultural identity, group norms, social interaction, values, and traditions, while emphasizing awareness, diversity, and language preservation. We will investigate how modern technology shapes community life, along with emerging issues, trends, and advocacy. We will also discuss communication, terminology, educational alternatives, legislation, and community resources.
Watch the commercial: https://vimeo.com/1139062445?fl=ml&fe=ec
Matthew Cooper is an Assistant Professor of American Sign Language at the University of Tulsa and adjunct faculty at Tulsa Community College. Born to two Deaf parents, Cooper grew up a CODA (Child of Deaf Adults) in a family who were leaders and active participants in the Deaf community. In 2025, Cooper was a TEDx Editor’s Pick for his TEDx Talk titled Between Two Worlds: A CODA’s Perspective. He is currently writing a book about the modern CODA experience.
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- Hindu Traditions: Ritual, Knowledge, Devotion - OsherOnline
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Fee: $50.00
Dates: 7/15/2026 - 8/19/2026
Times: 3:00 PM - 4:30 PM
Days: W
Sessions: 6
Building: Online
Room:
Instructor: Osher Online
Seats Available: 8
In this course, we will explore Hindu traditions from classical to contemporary times, emphasizing ritual, knowledge, and devotion. We will begin with South Asian roots in the Vedic tradition and key religious foundations. We will examine early and classical Hindu thought through the concept of dharma, then explore major deities through their narratives, practices, and iconography. We will examine the six major schools of Hindu philosophy using primary and secondary sources, consider bhakti (devotion), and conclude with sacred spaces (temples and tīrthas) and pilgrimage practices.
Watch the commercial: https://vimeo.com/1137712232?fl=ml&fe=ec
Eileen Goddard is a Religious Studies Ph.D. candidate at the University of California, Santa Barbara. Goddard lectures on Indian and Asian religious traditions at both UCSB and the University of Houston. Her research centers on the interrelationship of soteriology and embodiment in the sixteenth-century Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇava Kṛṣṇa tradition. She is a comparative scholar whose research also includes the Pātañjala Yoga, Advaita Vedānta, Śrīvaiṣṇava, and Pāñcarātra traditions, analyzing how emotion, desire, meditation, and ritual variously contribute towards ultimate realization of self and/or divine Other.
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- History of Signs: How Signs Tell America’s Story - OsherOnline
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Fee: $50.00
Dates: 7/24/2026 - 8/28/2026
Times: 11:00 AM - 12:30 PM
Days: F
Sessions: 6
Building: Online
Room:
Instructor: Osher Online
Seats Available: 12
Explore 100 years of American history through objects often taken for granted in everyday life: signs. This course introduces the Museum’s origins and features a conversation with ASM’s founder about why signs matter. We will examine how signs have evolved due to trends in commerce and technology and explore case studies of three major food companies who used signage to shape their brands. In the final session, we will take a virtual visit to ASM’s neon shop to see how a neon sign is made.
Watch the commercial: https://vimeo.com/1139420654?fl=ml&fe=ec
The American Sign Museum (Cincinnati, Ohio) covers more than 100 years of American sign history and displays more than 800 signs and artifacts, making it the most comprehensive museum of its kind. With a mission to educate the community about the history of the sign industry and its significant contribution to commerce and the American landscape, the Museum is organized to preserve, archive and display a historical collection of signs in their many types and forms.
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- Memoirs of a Marauder Man - Stories From a WWII B-26 Bomber Crewman (NEW)
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Technical Sergeant Joe Girz flew 57 combat missions during World War II, as a Radio Operator-Waist Gunner in B-26 Martin Marauder medium bombers. Flying out of Sardinia, Corsica, and Dijon, France, between August 1944 and May 1945, he and his crewmates flew bombing missions to hit specific targets in Italy, France, and Germany.
During this time, TSgt Girz kept a personal log of each of his missions while serving in the 17th Bombardment Group. Written in the first person, these memoirs become an interesting viewpoint to tell the story of this challenging time, by placing TSgt Girz’s personal story within the greater war effort – the air and ground operations of the Mediterranean and European conflicts.
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- Mr. Lincoln’s Law Practice (NEW)
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While Abraham Lincoln is often remembered as “Lincoln the Lawyer” who represented ordinary people in small legal matters, he also built a highly successful practice representing some of the largest corporations of his time. This session explores Lincoln’s appellate court work in Springfield, where he practiced alongside many of Illinois’ most influential attorneys and handled more appellate cases than any other lawyer in the state.
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- O'er the Ramparts He Watched (NEW)
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The surprise attack on Pearl Harbor Hawaii in 1941 was a traumatic event, disrupting lives of millions of Americans in the war years that followed. Many military aged young men felt the need to avenge the intrusion, not just for the benefit of the country, but for them personally. The instructor’s father was one of these young men. The focus of this lecture highlights his enlistment in the Marine Corps in 1942 to his discharge in 1946. The presentation also includes a “show-and-tell” of actual “grunt” gear and uniforms of a Marine during this time period.
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- Revolutionary Echoes in Washington DC - OsherOnline
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Fee: $50.00
Dates: 7/9/2026 - 8/13/2026
Times: 1:00 PM - 2:30 PM
Days: Th
Sessions: 6
Building: Online
Room:
Instructor: Osher Online
Seats Available: 12
The Declaration of Independence shaped Americans long after the Revolution. This course will examine how people in Washington, D.C. invoked the Declaration and its ideas after independence - from city planners shaping the capital to Union soldiers defending it during the Civil War. We will explore how the Declaration was used to advance causes and define the nation’s civic identity. Featuring museum artifacts from the Albert H. Small Washingtoniana Collection, this course will trace D.C.’s early history through.
Watch the commercial: https://vimeo.com/1132116430?fl=ml&fe=ec
Kasey Sease, PhD, is Curator of the Albert H. Small Washingtoniana Collection at The George Washington University Museum and The Textile Museum in Washington, D.C. Beyond developing exhibitions and activating the collection, she programs the Albert H. Small Center for National Capital Area Studies. A former Managing Editor of Washington History, Kasey holds degrees from the College of William and Mary (PhD, MA, history) and the University of Virginia (BA, history and government).
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- The Indispensable Founder: George Washington - OsherOnline
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Fee: $50.00
Dates: 7/13/2026 - 8/17/2026
Times: 1:00 PM - 2:30 PM
Days: M
Sessions: 6
Building: Online
Room:
Instructor: Osher Online
Seats Available: 8
As America celebrates 250 years of independence, this course examines the indispensable founder, George Washington – his life, political leadership, and roles as farmer, entrepreneur, and architect. We will also explore the groundbreaking Mount Vernon Ladies’ Association, which has owned and managed Mount Vernon since 1858, when a determined group of women without the right to vote or own property united to save Washington’s home, launching the American historic preservation movement.
Watch the commercial: https://vimeo.com/1148135458?fl=ml&fe=ec
Anne “Dede” Neal Petri was elected the 24th Regent of the Mount Vernon Ladies’ Association (MVLA) in 2024. The MVLA, founded in 1858, is responsible for the management and preservation of George Washington's Mount Vernon. The MVLA mission is to educate the world about the leadership and character of George Washington in order to inspire future generations. Petri received her undergraduate degree in American history and literature from Harvard College and her law degree from Harvard Law School.
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University of Dayton Olli