The Institute for Learning in Retirement (ILR) is a community-based organization of retirement-age people, who share a love of learning. At its heart is an academic program designed by its members and taught by knowledgeable instructors.
Please note some courses are four weeks, some eight weeks, and the dates vary. Some courses offer a Zoom option, all are available for attendance in person on campus.
MONDAY COURSE
A Tree Tour of the Marietta College Campus
DATES: Each Monday, Sept. 15 to Nov. 3, 2025
TIME: 3–5 p.m.
LOCATION: Thomas 124, Marietta College Campus
FEE: $30 (8-Week Class)
PRESENTER: Nancy Dew, M.S. in Plant Biology, Ohio University. Master’s Thesis: Woody Plants of Blennerhassett Island.
DESCRIPTION: Learn about trees on the Marietta College campus by strolling the grounds and viewing slides when weather is uncooperative. Awarded the title of Tree Campus USA in 2014, the school has long been known for its beautiful tree-filled campus. Enjoy the fall weather and get to know more about the trees among us. Come prepared to walk, and to learn to identify sample trees.
Our Constitution: Its Principles and Your Rights
DATES: Each Tuesday, Sept, 16 to Oct. 7
TIME: 3–5 p.m.
LOCATION: Thomas Hall 124
FEE: $15
PRESENTERS: Betsy Cook, B.A. in Education, M.A. in Guidance and Counseling and History. Retired Social Studies teacher and counselor, life-long citizen advocate, leader of Living Democracy: Engaging Citizens;
Jacki Richey, B.A. in International Affairs, M.B.A. life-long citizen advocate, retired nonprofit executive, former president of League of Women Voters, former regional coordinator of RESULTS, treasurer of Living Democracy, Engaging Citizens;
Natalie Johnson, B.A. in political science, Marietta College. Advocacy Strategist for the ACLU of Ohio focusing on policy impact in Southeastern Ohio.
DESCRIPTION: Citizens must know their constitutional rights in order to use them. This course will look at the compromises that the framers made in order to balance different interests and the principles used to develop a governmental structure that has lasted over 230 years. Knowing how the government is supposed to work, can help citizens to assert their rights, challenge injustice, and be an advocate for change. Learn how to interact with the three levels of government to ensure your voice is being centered in decision-making, and building local power to protect your communities from executive over-reach. Also discussed will be the Bill of Rights and how it continues to protect citizens today.
Seeking the More Perfect Union: The Supreme Court and Developing the Meaning of the Constitution
DATES: Each Tuesday, Oct. 14 to Nov. 4
TIME: 4–6 p.m. (note time difference)
LOCATION: Thomas Hall 124 and ZOOM
FEE: $15
PRESENTER: Mitchell Krum, Ph.D. in Political Science, Indiana University, with specialties in Political Theory and American Politics.
DESCRIPTION: Does freedom of speech mean you can say things that harm others? Does free exercise of religion mean you can break otherwise applicable laws? What does the right to keep and bear arms mean today? What is the extent of the powers the Constitution gives to Congress, the President, and the Courts? What key fights over the powers held by each branch of government have happened and how do those fights illuminate today’s politics? The course will take up these issues and many others by examining the developing understanding of the Constitution in Supreme Court decisions from the founding in 1789 to today.
Cold Cases, Serial Killers, Scams, and Money Laundering
DATES: Each Wednesday, Sept. 17–Oct. 8
TIME: 3–5 p.m.
LOCATION: Thomas Hall 124 and ZOOM
FEE: $15
PRESENTERS: Larry Mincks, B.A. in Accounting, Marietta College, former Washington County Sheriff, served as a U.S. Air Force Intelligence Officer during the Vietnam War, former Ohio State Trooper, Certified Fraud Examiner, retired U.S. Treasury Department Supervisory Special Agent;
Jeff Sandy, B.B.A. in Accounting, Marshall University, retired U.S. Treasury Department Supervisory Special Agent, Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialist, Certified Fraud Examiner. Both are currently Forensic Accountants at Perry Forensic in Marietta
DESCRIPTION: Join retired law enforcement experts Jeff Sandy and Larry Mincks as they explore some of the most compelling investigations from 1960 to 2024. These cases span decades and continents, offering rare insights into the world of criminal justice and financial crime. Featured investigations include:
- Recovery of over $1 Billion from Saddam Hussein’s regime during the Gulf War
- The tragic murder of Washington County Chief Deputy Joe Clark
- Evidence suggesting the presence of a serial killer operating in Washington and Wood Counties
- A wide array of scams involving blackmail, extortion, romance, marriage fraud, FaceTime exploitation, inheritance schemes, and more.
Exploring Energy Options
DATES: Each Wednesday, Oct. 15 to Nov. 5, 2025
TIME: 3–5 p.m.
LOCATION: Thomas Hall 124 and ZOOM
FEE: $15 (4-Week Class)
PRESENTER: Ben W. Ebenhack, retired petroleum professor at Marietta College, author of four books on energy systems, edited the Energy Policy volume of UNESCO’s first guide to Sustainable Development, worked on Energy for Development with several developing nations.
DESCRIPTION: A great deal of controversy swirls around energy sources, uses, and impacts. A plethora of extreme views attend the controversies. What keeps ‘renewables’ from overtaking fossil fuels quickly? How much of Climate Change is anthropogenically driven? Are fossil fuels heavily subsidized — are ‘renewables’? This course will explore what we know about energy in terms of sustainable development and what paths are the most (and least) productive to lead to enhanced sustainability. It will be essential to look at what we know about various energy systems, what we need to learn, and what falsehoods we need to unlearn.
Grit, Guts, and Greatness: Walking with Women in History
DATES: Each Thursday, Sept. 18 to Oct. 9, 2025
TIME: 3–5 p.m.
LOCATION: Thomas Hall 124
FEE: $15 (4-Week Class)
PRESENTER: Jann Adams, local historian and author of local history articles and books.
DESCRIPTION: “Remember the Ladies!” Sounds a bit trite now. But when Abigail Adams wrote the famed letter to her husband, a future writer of laws for a new nation, she was quite stern and portended a “rebellion.” Did the founders mention women in the U.S. Constitution? No, but for hundreds of years, women have challenged traditional expectations by creating new expanded pathways for themselves. The course will acknowledge the roles and achievements of women from prehistory to the present. The lives of local women will be interwoven with the stories of Ohio women through the decades of transition in American culture.
The People In Between: Native Nations in the Ohio Country from Moundbuilders to The Ohio Company
DATES: Each Thursday, Oct. 16 to Nov. 6
TIME: 3–5 p.m.
LOCATION: Thomas Hall 124 and ZOOM
FEE: $15
PRESENTER: Scott Statler, M.S.S. in Social Science with a focus on the American Colonial period, Ohio University.
DESCRIPTION: Often our historic conversations in Marietta discuss Moundbuilders and casually travel to April 7, 1788, when The Ohio Company arrived here. What about the inhabitants of the Ohio Country that lived here between those points? This class will examine the Native American people who lived here and how they lived. We will take a look at where those historic groups are today, and how they got there.
Stepping Out of your Comfort Zone: Unusual Travel Destinations and Planning Adventures Abroad
DATES: Each Friday, Sept. 19 to Oct. 13
TIME: 3–5 p.m.
LOCATION: Thomas Hall 124
FEE: $15
PRESENTERS: Susan Blauvelt, ESL teacher in the United States and China, World Traveler;
Guest Speaker Joy Cowdery, retired Diversity of Education professor, World Traveler.
DESCRIPTION: Susan Blauvelt likes to research and plan trips so that she and her husband and travel partner Rick can have a deeper cultural connection with the people and places that they visit. She will show photos and share stories from their travels in places off the beaten path in Europe, North Africa, Mexico, and Central America. She will also explain how she designs trips for longer, slower travel in order to have meaningful experiences living ‘like a local’ (Rick Steves).
Joy Cowdery-Guest Speaker on Oct. 13 will talk about encouraging folks to step outside their comfort zone and visit places to learn about people and cultures. (featured: Cuba, India, Portmeirion).
Everything You Wanted to Know About Wine, but Were Afraid to Ask
DATES: Each Friday, Oct. 17 to Nov. 7
TIME: 3–5 p.m.
LOCATION: Thomas Hall 124 and ZOOM
FEE: $15, plus $25 for wine tasting
PRESENTER: MJ Stewart, grape farmer, Sommelier, and certified level two of the WSET wine certification.
This course will discover and examine the various regions of the world that produce the wines that can be found in our grocery stores. The goal will be for participants to be able to identify different wine regions of the world and start to identify their own personal wine tastes.
Participants will also enjoy wine tasting to compare some of same grape varietals from different regions and different growers. The first day of class, worries, concerns , and questions that “you were afraid to ask” will be collected. At the end of the course, those will be revisited to ensure they were answered. This course is open to those with all levels of wine knowledge, from first time learning about grapes and wine, to those who enjoy wine tastings on the weekends, to wine enthusiasts.
Registration Instructions
If the course you choose includes a Zoom option, you will be asked whether you prefer to attend in person or on Zoom. You can switch between Zoom and in-person from one week to the next if you like.
Enter the ILR storefront by registering with your name/email or enter as a "guest."
For online registration it is often easier to register as a “guest” rather than trying to login to your account with the payment company. Just click the “Checkout as Guest” button in the lower right corner of the “login” page
Select course(s), and proceed to checkout. Pay by VISA, Mastercard, or Discover card.
DOWNLOAD FORM TO REGISTER BY U.S. MAIL
To register by postal mail, download and complete the registration form available HERE.
Make checks payable to Institute for Learning in Retirement.
Mail form and check to:
Institute for Learning in Retirement
Jane Murray
515 4th Street, Marietta, OH 45750
REFUND POLICY: Full refunds will be given for any class that a student has paid for and withdraws from up to the Friday before the class begins. No refunds will be made after a class begins. If a student has paid for a book purchased by ILR, the cost of the book will not be refunded. To withdraw, please notify ILR by e-mail at mariettacollegeilr@gmail.com.