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UCR's Osher program embraces everyone, welcoming members from all walks of life. Whether you're joining us from another Osher program or you're a longtime member returning to enrich your learning journey, we're delighted to have you with us. Our doors are open to all, and we celebrate the richness that each individual brings to our community.


Welcome to UCRs Osher Lifelong Learning Institute

Riverside In Person   

  • What the History of Progressivism Can Tell Us About the Future
  • Fee: $75.00
    Item Number: W26COU109601
    Dates: 1/12/2026 - 3/2/2026
    Times: 10:00 AM - 12:00 PM
    Days: M
    Sessions: 6
    Building: EUV Riverside
    Room:
    Instructor: Michael Hayman

    REGISTRATION FOR THIS CLASS IS CLOSED. This class is already in session.

    At the same time the United States was traumatized by civil war and Reconstruction, violent class struggles take place pitting the rising industrial working class against large corporations determined to maintain complete control. In that environment between 1900 and 1928, Progressive politics was born as a desire to steer a course between socialism and an authoritarian capitalism. We will consider the ideas and fears that created Progressivism as a force in American politics and society.
 

  • Riverside Then & Now: From Citrus Groves to City of Arts & Innovation
  • Fee: $75.00
    Item Number: W26COU109701
    Dates: 1/13/2026 - 2/17/2026
    Times: 10:00 AM - 12:00 PM
    Days: Tu
    Sessions: 6
    Building:
    Room:
    Instructor: Susan Freeman

    REGISTRATION FOR THIS CLASS IS CLOSED. This class is already in session.

    In this six-week course, we’ll explore how a small settlement along the Santa Ana River gradually grew into the “citrus capital of the world” and, over time, into the diverse, university-centered city we know today. Together, we’ll trace Riverside’s journey from early ranchos and irrigation ditches to the Washington navel orange boom, the Gage Canal and early hydroelectric power, the rise of March Air Force Base, and today’s arts- and innovation-minded community. Using historic photos, maps, news clippings, and personal stories, we’ll look at how transportation, agriculture (including citrus groves and potato fields), neighborhoods, and local institutions shaped everyday life. We hope participants will feel comfortable sharing their own Riverside memories and noticing how their experiences fit into the larger story. No prior knowledge of local history is required—just curiosity and an interest in Riverside’s past and present.
 

  • The Week's News in Review - Riverside
  • Fee: $75.00
    Item Number: W26COU102701
    Dates: 1/15/2026 - 2/19/2026
    Times: 10:00 AM - 12:00 PM
    Days: Th
    Sessions: 6
    Building: EUV Riverside
    Room:
    Instructor: Martha Miller

    REGISTRATION FOR THIS CLASS IS CLOSED. This class is already in session.

    An interactive discussion of events shaping the news each week. Media sources include print, TV, the internet, and social media. This course will discuss politics, the economy, sports, show business, and topics pulled from the "headlines." Discussion based course hosted by UCR Osher volunteers.
 

  • UCR & Riverside: A Shared History and a Shared Future From Citrus Experiment Station to Research University
  • Fee: $75.00
    Dates: 2/24/2026 - 3/31/2026
    Times: 10:00 AM - 12:00 PM
    Days: Tu
    Sessions: 6
    Building: EUV Riverside
    Room:
    Instructor: Susan Freeman
    Seats Still Available: 45

    How did a small citrus experiment station on the edge of town grow into a world-class research university—and what has that meant for the City of Riverside? In this six-week course, we’ll explore the shared history of UC Riverside and the City of Riverside, from the early Citrus Experiment Station to today’s vibrant, diverse campus. Along the way, we’ll look at moments of collaboration, moments of tension, and the many ways campus and city have shaped one another. We hope participants will feel welcome sharing their own connections to UCR—as residents, alumni, parents, neighbors, or curious observers—and imagining how these relationships can continue to evolve. No prior knowledge is required—just curiosity and an interest in Riverside.

  • Please note that if you do not see the "Add to Cart" button under your course, you must first create a new account or sign in to your current account. If you do not have current membership, once you have signed in, add your membership to the cart in order to register for courses.
 

  • The Writer as Reformer and Activist
  • Fee: $75.00
    Dates: 2/25/2026 - 4/1/2026
    Times: 10:00 AM - 12:00 PM
    Days: W
    Sessions: 6
    Building: EUV Riverside
    Room:
    Instructor: Robert Ellingsen
    Seats Still Available: 29

    This course explores the careers of six influential public intellectuals who lived and worked primarily between 1900 and 1950. Each was a witness to war, injustice, and major social and political change, and each wrote extensively about the challenges of their time, often stirring controversy in the process. The figures studied include John Reed, who observed the 1917 Russian Revolution; Oswald Garrison Villard, a critic of U.S. involvement in both world wars; Dorothy Thompson, who interviewed Adolf Hitler in the early 1930s; W.E.B. Du Bois, founder and editor of the NAACP’s The Crisis; Upton Sinclair, author of the most famous “muckraking” novel in American history; and Walter Lippmann, a leading analyst of public opinion in twentieth-century politics. By examining their work and influence, the course concludes with a broader consideration of the role of journalism and public intellectuals in a large, complex democracy.

  • Please note that if you do not see the "Add to Cart" button under your course, you must first create a new account or sign in to your current account. If you do not have current membership, once you have signed in, add your membership to the cart in order to register for courses.
 

  • The Week's News in Review - Riverside
  • Fee: $75.00
    Dates: 2/26/2026 - 4/2/2026
    Times: 10:00 AM - 12:00 PM
    Days: Th
    Sessions: 6
    Building: EUV Riverside
    Room:
    Instructor: Martha Miller
    Seats Still Available: 24

    An interactive discussion of events shaping the news each week. Media sources include print, TV, the internet, and social media. This course will discuss politics, the economy, sports, show business, and topics pulled from the "headlines." Discussion based course hosted by UCR Osher volunteers.

  • Please note that if you do not see the "Add to Cart" button under your course, you must first create a new account or sign in to your current account. If you do not have current membership, once you have signed in, add your membership to the cart in order to register for courses.
 

  • Jeffrey Epstein: Naked Truth: In Person
  • Fee: $75.00
    Dates: 2/27/2026 - 4/3/2026
    Times: 10:00 AM - 12:00 PM
    Days: F
    Sessions: 6
    Building: EUV Riverside
    Room:
    Instructor: John Powers
    Seats Still Available: 40

    Despite the efforts by Republican and Democratic administrations to hide the truth of Jeffrey Epstein’s life, much is known about his endeavors. In this journey, we will separate the fact from fiction, the signal from noise. We will see that Epstein was more than a child sexual predator. We will discover how he provided a variety of services to many of the most powerful men on the planet during 40 years of deceit. We will realize, much to our chagrin, that Epstein, far from being an exception, is the “way of the world.”

  • Please note that if you do not see the "Add to Cart" button under your course, you must first create a new account or sign in to your current account. If you do not have current membership, once you have signed in, add your membership to the cart in order to register for courses.
 

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