Osher Lifelong Learning Institute

Osher Courses

Courses & Events

Osher Membership Fee

A required individual Osher membership fee of just $25 will be collected during the fall semester each year to grant participation in the Osher offerings for the next 12 months. Your paid membership allows you to attend Osher courses and special events. Membership in Osher helps to keep the cost of classes affordable for all. We're excited to nurture your ongoing quest to learn as you engage with and contribute greatly to the world around you.

July 16, 2025 to June 30, 2026

Donation to the Osher Institute

The Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at KU was established in 2004 by a grant for the Bernard Osher Foundation as an outreach program of the University of Kansas. Its mission is to offer noncredit enrichment courses and events to folks over 50 years of age, although we welcome learners of all ages. We rely on financial support from our members and the community to create a sustainable program. If you would like to support the Osher Institute, please click the link below. If you have questions, please contact Osher at osher@ku.edu. Thank you.

December 8, 2025 to July 31, 2026

1865: The Union Restored

It's 1865, and the American Civil War has raged for four long years. We'll continue examining the military history of the war, including how the North and South each approached what would culminate in the war's end. We'll look at the evaluation of the ends, ways and means of both sides' strategy in 1865, and the course, conduct and outcomes of major operations. We'll also address strategic and political contexts that shaped military operations in Virginia, Tennessee and elsewhere, as well as the leaders, such as Abraham Lincoln, Jefferson Davis, Joseph Johnston, Robert E. Lee, William T. Sherman and Ulysses S. Grant, whose decision and leadership influenced their handling of the war and its end results. * Please note: this class will be offered as a hybrid class but will not be recorded, at the request of the instructor.*


Instructor Bio: Ethan S. Rafuse received his doctorate at the University of Missouri-Kansas City and is professor of military history at the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College. His publications include "Robert E. Lee and the Fall of the Confederacy 1863 - 1865," essays in "The Chattanooga Campaign" and "The Chickamauga Campaign," and "U.S. Presidents During Wartime."


June 10-24, 2026, KU Edwards Campus, Regnier Hall & Online

A History of Music in the White House From 1948 - 2016

Join us for a survey history of music in the White House from the Truman administration through the Obama years. Fun facts: President Truman was an accomplished pianist who started piano lessons at age seven! Yo-Yo Ma was seven when he performed at the White House for Presidents Kennedy and Eisenhower. Paul McCartney was approaching age 70 when he rocked the building performing "Hey Jude" for President and Mrs. Obama and their guests. Want to learn more?


Instructor Bio: Jean Hein recently moved to Kansas from South Carolina, where she was director and recorder performer with Columbia Baroque as well as a clarinetist. She currently teaches online recorder classes for seniors. Hein has served on the board of Early Music America. She holds music degrees from Oberlin Conservatory and Northwestern University.


June 9-23, 2026, St Andrews Classroom

Cartoons: From Disney to Saturday Morning to Pixar and Beyond

We started watching cartoons as children, either at the movies or on television on Saturday mornings. Many of us continue to watch them, even without children or grandchildren. We'll look at the invention of the animated cartoon in the Silent Era, the creation of a certain Mouse by a guy from Kansas City and the entertainment empire that spawned, cartoons from other studios (Betty Boop, Popeye, Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Tom and Jerry, Mr. Magoo, Mighty Mouse), how cartoons went to war in the 1940s and how they migrated to television, both on Saturday mornings and on "kiddie" shows on weekday afternoons. We'll review the Disney renaissance in the 1990s, with "The Little Mermaid" and "The Lion King," long-running prime-time cartoons such as "The Simpsons," recent Disney competitors (Don Bluth, Ralph Bakshi, DreamWorks), and Pixar, who led the way in computer-generated animation with "Toy Story" and "Frozen". We'll also share where we watched cartoons: the movies, television, VHS/DVD/BluRay and now streaming services like Disney+.


Instructor bio: Karl Menninger is a retired government lawyer who seems to have found an avocation teaching courses on disability law, citizenship, comedy and James Bond, among other topics. 


June 11-25, 2026, Beacon Mental Health (Clay County)

Immortalized: Sports Museums and Halls of Fame

Why do sports mean so much to so many in our society? Sports museums and halls of fame help build these emotional connections by remembering, celebrating and commemorating iconic athletes, coaches and events. We'll learn about the field of sports heritage, discover the different types of sports museums and reflect on how legends are remembered.


Instructor Bio: Andrew Stockmann is curator of exhibitions at the Watkins Museum of History in Lawrence. He grew up visiting baseball stadiums and museums with his family, which sparked his love for history. Andrew is from Liberty, Missouri, and is a 2024 graduate of the museum studies master's program at the University of Kansas and holds a bachelor's degree in sport management from Wichita State University.


June 10-24, 2026, St Andrews Classroom

The History of John Brown

In life and death John Brown was called many things: hero, terrorist, martyr and criminal. This class puts his life and legacy in the context of the times, exploring Brown as an individual and a determined actor that could only have existed in the Antebellum United States. A life full of contradictions, a supporter of civil rights and freedom, yet able to justify murder, Brown's actions were part of a uniquely American life whose legacy still echoes to this day.


Instructor Bio: Aaron Margolis received his doctorate in history from the University of Texas at El Paso where he concentrated on Latin American and borderlands history. He is currently an associate professor of history at Kansas City Kansas Community College.


June 8-22, 2026, KU Edwards Campus, Regnier Hall & Online

The Life and Music of George Gershwin

One of the leading musical figures in the history of the United States, George Gershwin (1898 - 1937) combined influences from Tin Pan Alley, classical music, jazz and blues into a distinctive musical style heard in his numerous Broadway musicals, songs for Hollywood films and concert works. This course explores his biography and each aspect of his musical output. Emphasis will be placed on two of his musicals ("Girl Crazy" and "Of Thee I Sing"); his opera "Porgy and Bess"; and the concert works "Rhapsody in Blue," "Piano Concerto in F" and the tone poem, "An American in Paris."

Instructor Bio: Paul Laird is professor emeritus of musicology at the University of Kansas, where two of his teaching specialties were Baroque music and music of the United States. He has published widely on such topics as Leonard Bernstein and American musical theater and won the 2021 KU Chancellor's Club Career Teaching Award. Paul has taught many Osher classes since the program's inception at KU.

June 9-30, 2026, Brewster Place In Person

The Life and Wars of Robert E. Lee

Robert E. Lee was the son of fabled Revolutionary War general "Light Horse" Harry Lee. In this course, we'll examine how this general's son became one of the most respected officers in the U.S. Army, only to forge a record in the Confederacy that made him one of the most respected commanders in history. We'll look at the great maneuvers that carried him to triumph at Chancellorsville in 1863, and then to complete defeat in 1865. We will consider the factors that shaped Lee's generalship both in victory and defeat, then look at how Lee dealt with the aftermath of defeat in his postwar endeavors. Please note this class will be presented in hybrid format but will not be recorded at the request of the instructor. 


Instructor Bio: Ethan S. Rafuse has many published works include Robert E. Lee and the Fall of the Confederacy, 1863-1865. He received his doctorate at the University of Missouri-Kansas City and teaches military history at the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College at Fort Leavenworth.

July 13-27, 2026, KU Edwards Campus, Regnier Hall & Online

The U.S. Naturalization Process & the Path to Citizenship

The U.S. naturalization process has changed significantly since it started in 1790. We'll delve into the history of the process as well as walk through the steps of eligibility, application and interview processes and culminating ceremony.


Instructor Bio: Anita Tebbe is a retired professor in the legal studies department at Johnson County Community College. She earned an undergraduate degree in history, a graduate degree in education and a law degree. Anita is a Kansas-licensed attorney and has more than 40 years of teaching experience at the high school and college levels.


June 11-25, 2026, KU Edwards Campus, Regnier Hall & Online

Broadway Musicals in the 1950's

The 1950s were a very special decade in the history of the musical with such figures as Rodgers and Hammerstein, Lerner and Loewe, Frank Loesser, Leonard Bernstein, and Jule Styne writing such shows as The King and I, The Sound of Music, My Fair Lady, Guys and Dolls, West Side Story, and Gypsy for the Broadway stage. This will be survey of the decade's most popular shows, the people who wrote them, and the stars who played in them.


Instructor bio: Paul Laird is a Professor Emeritus of Musicology who taught at KU for thirty years. He has published widely on the American musical theater and taught dozens of Osher courses over the last three decades.


June 24, 2026 to July 8, 2026, Osher Institute, St. Andrews Office Facility In Person