The Susan Lerner and Steve Katona Big Ideas Series
Acadia Senior College presents “The Susan Lerner and Steve Katona Big Ideas Series” in honor of the couple who originated the concept. Our definition of a 'big idea' is one that fundamentally changes the way we think about our world.
Please click here for more information, and to read about past events in this series.
Eat and Edify presents lunch and lectures that take place the final Friday of each month (except in summer) in the Birch Bay Village Inn dining room. ASC members and friends deliver talks on their favorite timely topic, followed by question and answer.
One of the few ASC event programs that is open to members only, this group gathers over breakfast on the first and third Friday of each month (off-season) to discuss a subject of common interest. Based upon a shared conviction that conversations can change the world, participants take turns presenting a topic for the group to explore informally. Expertise is not a prerequisite at our Coffee Clash, just a desire to exchange ideas in the convivial atmosphere of a local eatery.
Sips Restaurant, Southwest Harbor
Occasional Fridays, 9:00 - 10:30 am
(Reservations required. Members only for this event.)
Please click here for details, and to view the Coffee Clash schedule .
Our first-ever workshop, held at Southwest Harbor Library in 2008, gave participants experience using MARVEL!, Maine's outstanding Virtual Library, and the online Minerva catalog that includes over six million items including books, DVD's, audio books, magazines, and music CD's.
As a follow-up, "The Magic of Google Book Search" was presented by the Southwest Harbor Library to a receptive audience in mid-May.
Watch for notices about upcoming workshops.
No upcoming events scheduled at this time.
In the fall of 2009 we are sponsoring a Sailing opportunity. Plans are being made to offer Tai Chi and Curling in the winter of 2009-10. ASC membership is required to join these leagues. Watch this page for additional recreational pursuits currently in the planning stages.
Click here to view upcoming Recreational Programs .
Still in the conceptual stage, we aim to plan one day outings around purposes such as visiting art galleries; examining invasive species; taking photographs, or whatever else might ignite the interest of a critical mass of members.
No Field Study events listed at this time .
Our first few intergenerational events took place at College of the Atlantic, with presentations by ASC members to the students. Ed Kaelber led a program on the future of Social Security; Jim Clunan and Margot Haertel discussed options for National Service. (See Camden Conference page for additional programs). We have more such initiatives on the drawing board.
No Intergenerational Events listed at this time .
Special community events, such as lectures, panel discussions, conversation groups, recreational activities, and program series, are an important part of ASC's year-round program. In an ongoing effort to bring local people and visitors together around a common purpose, we offer many of these programs to the public free of charge. We build on the strong assets of our community: the site partners who provide attractive and comfortable venues, the volunteers who ably organize and publicize, and the leaders who freely offer their time and talent to help create a more stimulating cultural environment on MDI.
In the summer months, ASC hosts a series of public policy lectures. This series began in 2004 to honor Philip Geyelin, a Pulitzer Prize winner and summer resident of Mount Desert Island. These lectures are conducted in the spirit of bipartisan public inquiry advocated by Geyelin. Among many notable presenters were Frederick P Hitz, former inspector general of the CIA, Zbigniew Brzezinski, former National Security Advisor to President Carter, David Hackett Fischer, Pulitzer Prize winning Historian, Theda Skocpol, Dean, Graduate School of Arts & Sciences, Harvard, Frederick Benson, a former White House Fellow, Senator George Mitchell, retired Ambassador James
Lowenstein, and Boyden Gray, U.S. Ambassador to the European Union.
In summer 2009 two sample courses were offered to the public. Moorhead "Mike" Kennedy gave two talks from his popular Islam course. Bill Clark offered three "Conversations on MDI's Geology." Two active members of the Contemporary Art scene gave talks, made possible by a generous grant from Kathryn Davis. Susan Sollins presented "Curating for Television: Compassion and Other Topics." Patterson Sims discussed "Women in Art." Click below for further information on the summer sampler.
Click here to view the Summer Sampler.