LearningQUEST has presentations open to the general public. All are welcome to attend these programs, so please join us.

Upcoming Programs:

P1-Clearing the Smoke: Facts Behind the Vaping Cloud
Instructor: AnnMarie Martin
Date: Tuesday, July 7
Time: 6:00 – 7:00
Location: Online

Before Covid-19 was the top public health crisis on the news, the epidemic rise of vaping among teenagers and a deadly vaping-related lung illness dominated the 2019 headlines. The vaping problem hasn’t gone away, and Partnership for a Drug-Free Community’s Youth Tobacco/Vaping Prevention Program aims to raise awareness among parents, grandparents, teachers, and anyone else who works with teens and preteens. At least one grandparent has used facts from our program to convince a teenager to quit vaping. The curriculum is based on the Tobacco Prevention Toolkit from Stanford University Medical School and is updated regularly. We cover these points: Identification and description of e- cigarettes (vapes, JUULs, Puff Bars, Pops); Nicotine and the high levels of this addictive drug in vapes, plus some of the ways nicotine harms all parts of the body;Dangers of toxic chemicals that create the fruit and candy flavors in vapes; Covid-19 and the fact that people who vape and/or smoke are more likely to catch the coronavirus and to get sicker than people who don’t use tobacco products; Marketing efforts by Big Tobacco/Big Vape to convince people to use their products; and Alabama Quitline, which offers proven ways to quit smoking and/or vaping.

P2-Keep Watching the Skies: A Very Subjective History of Science Fiction Films in Hollywood,1950 to the Present
Instructor: David Lilly
Date: Tuesday, October 5
Time: 10-11:30
Location: AUD

This program will explore the history of Hollywood science fiction films as a genre meant to entertain adult audiences. These films, which began in the early 50s, seem to have run in cycles until the early 80s, at which time they became an immensely popular and permanent go-to film genre. They were also significantly influenced by the fears, interests, and concerns of their time, and the presenter will explore the historical background that made these films what they were. The program will include a number of film clips of some of the best (and worst!) of these movies. It should be an entertaining and informative presentation for anyone who grew up watching these films and who continues to love them to this day, or for anyone who is open to becoming a fan.

P3-Baseball on Stamps
Instructor: Kathy Campbell
Date: Wednesday, October 20
Time: 10:00 – 11:30
Location: AUD

This course is designed for stamp lovers, baseball lovers, and anyone else looking to be enlightened. A slide program will feature U.S. postage stamps relating to all aspects of baseball.

P4-Who You Gonna Call? Fraudbusters
Instructor: Anna Blair
Date: Monday, October 25
Time: Noon – 1:00
Location: AUD

Pain management doctor gets five years in prison. Two doctors face 5 to 20 years behind bars. Former state lawmaker pleads guilty to Medicare fraud. Every year the federal government, specifically the Departments of Justice and Health and Human Services, working together, garner several billions of dollars in fines and penalties against healthcare providers who steal
taxpayer dollars by committing Medicare, Medicaid, and Tricare fraud and abuse. In 2019, three local doctors were caught in a five-state sweep by Medicare Fraud Strike Forces. These practitioners face possible monetary fines and penalties, prison terms, and loss of their medical licenses. Medicare maintains information on its Website to help beneficiaries recognize signs of
possible fraud and abuse, including instructions on how to report your suspicions of wrongdoing. Become a Medicare Fraud Buster. It’s your money these crooks are stealing!

P5-Read to Me, Alabama
Instructor: John Archibald
Date: Monday, November 15
Time: 11:30 – 12:30
Location: AUD

Alabama native son, winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Commentary, University of Alabama alumnus, and a whole lot more, John Archibald will read from his book, Shaking the Gates of Hell, released earlier this year. The subtitle to this volume is A Search for Family and Truth in
the Wake of the Civil Rights Revolution. One reviewer writes,“From the Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist—son of a long line of Methodist preachers—a moving and powerful book about growing up in the American South of the early 1960s.” Archibald will also share some of his
learning experiences at Harvard during the year of COVID.

P6-Alabama Speaks: Women’s Suffrage – The Long, Hard, Slog
Instructor: Anna Blair
Date: Friday, December 3
Time: Noon – 1:00
Location: AUD

This Readers Theatre production features 8-10 actors reading for real men and women—on national, state, and local levels—whose names are linked to the struggle to vote in this country. Examples range from Abigail Adams’s plea that was met instantly with her husband’s mocking response to Virginia Durr’s efforts to rid this country of the poll tax.

P7-Welcome to LearningQUEST (Open House)
Instructor: Darryl Palm
Date: Monday, December 6
Time: 1:00 – 3:00
Location: AUD

Representatives from each committee, as well as the Board of Directors, will provide insight to our various activities and volunteer opportunities. We will also be seeking input from attendees for programmatic suggestions, as well as how we might better serve the learning community. Refreshments will be provided during the event.