You can still sign up for Fall classes!

Our 48th semester is going strong, but there are still several classes with availability that have not begun yet. Registration is ongoing with classes running through mid December. And remember that many classes are being recorded so you can still sign-up and view the recordings. Check out our Courses page for the calendar view, grid view, a PDF and more.

You will receive a reminder email with all details about your class two business days before your class begins. This reminder will include the course schedule, any skip dates, course location, Zoom link and passcode if applicable, and how to access your class webpage (which is where you will find your class media and recordings (if applicable) among other things). Please keep your reminder email handy for reference throughout the semester. You can also find links to all our current class webpages by going to “Class Pages” at the top of our homepage. You will need the password provided in the reminder email to access the class page.

If you are not receiving emails from our membership/registration portal, please go to our Help/FAQs page and scroll down to “Troubleshooting” for suggestions on how to fix the problem.

Course evaluation links are emailed on the morning of the last day of class. Your class feedback is vital to our organization as we plan for future courses. You can also find the evaluation links at the bottom of the class webpage.

All current members should have received a membership survey emailed on October 21st. Please reply by November 1 to help shape the future of Encore Learning. If you did not receive the survey, it could be that your membership is not current. Login to your account to check your status, or email info@encoreleaning.net for assistance.

Many of our courses are filling up quickly, but there are still some open slots in select classes starting in the next month. Don’t wait—register

today to learn, connect and explore with Encore Learning!

2003: Estate Planning Basics (in-person)

2030: Emotional Health and Connections (in-person)

3103: History of Military Aviation (in-person)

3106: Fall of the Roman Republic (hybrid, recorded)

7043: Genealogy: Brick Walls & Questions (hybrid, recorded)

Know that many courses that have already begun have been recorded, so you can still sign-up for those and view the recordings up until February 28, 2027.

Professor Steve Pilloff leads an exercise in the Never Too Old to Play course. Members explore improv through imaginative games, collaborative storytelling, and activities that build listening, teamwork, creativity, and trust. Between semesters some members continue the fun in the Improv Club.

Instructor (and Board Member) Steve Shapiro leads a discussion in his timely and thought-provoking course Education and Employment in the AI Era.

The course Global Migration and US Immigration Policy: Where Reality and Fantasy Collide examines the larger U.S. immigration story against the background of international migration policy. Dr. Robert Albro is the instructor for this topical subject. This class is being recorded.

The Academic Programs Committee (APC) is working hard on next year’s curriculum! We would love introductions to potential instructors in your networks as we grow our pipeline. While we welcome introductions across subjects, we’re especially interested in offering courses on Cryptocurrency 101, African-American Literature, China trade policy, science, and health & wellness. We would also like to connect with instructors offering broad perspectives (e.g. from under represented groups). Please reach out with instructor ideas/introductions to Susan Bornstein (susanbornstein@me.com) or Deb Spero (deborahspero@gmail.com). Thank you!

When I last authored a note for our newsletter, I asked all of you to ponder the future for Encore Learning. A daunting task—and one that your leadership has been actively pursuing. Looking to Encore Learning celebrating 25 years has caused us to strategize for the next 25—from how we do business to what will make us better. To that end, we have instituted surveys of members to learn more about them and what interests them.  Suggested changes will be shared as they develop.

What will not change is what we were created for, and what we will continue to strive to deliver:  lifelong learning. Those of you who live in the “DMV” (District, Maryland and Virginia, for those not local) may have read a recent letter to the editor published the Washington Post. It so captured what we at Encore Learning wish to deliver to our members that I want to share it.

The writer, Stuart Gallant, (of Belmont, Massachusetts) wrote….. “(f)ar too many people think of education as a finite chapter that occurs only in the early years of life. Just because you marched in a graduation ceremony does not mean you have to stop learning. Night classes, mini-degrees and hobbies can allow you to continue learning throughout life. And there is always the choice to pick up a book and read. A healthy life involves work, family, spirituality and recreation, as well as learning about the world. So, remember the person you were when your age was counted in single digits. You probably loved art, music, reading, math and sports. Figure out how to keep learning, and you will fight off depression, alienation and weariness.”

There are no finite chapters for those who love to learn. And there will be no finite chapter for Encore Learning. We will continue to look for new areas of curriculum, and activities to entice. Please let us know what entices you!

–Marilyn Marton

Please visit the events page on our website to find complete details on our upcoming events.

October 29 (note that this is a Thursday not the usual Monday) – One Week. Two Democracies, Stressed. Virtual presentation by acclaimed journalist and political analyst Bill Schneider about the Israeli and US elections.  

October 30 – New Member Coffee at Van Metre Hall, GMU Arlington. Please register to attend.

November 2 – What Kind of City Do You Want: The Optimism of the Washington Metro with Metro expert and Professor Zachary Schrag. In-person at GMU Van Metre Hall. Registration required.

November 16 – Ken Avis’s Music Stars, Guitars & Roadhouse Bars–Rooted in Northern Virginia. Popular Encore Learning instructor, music historian and musician Ken Avis will speak about his new book. In-person at the Arlington Central Library. Registration required.

November 22- Colors of Fall, Sunday Reception and Concert with the Arlington Symphony Orchestra. Gunston Arts Center. Registration required.

December 7 – 1776: A Tale of Two Worlds: Washington’s America and Qianlong’s China. In-person at the Arlington Central Library. Registration required.

December 14 – Creating Our Commonwealth of Earth: Sustainable, Peaceful, Just. Virtual presentation by Bob McCan, author of the new book Destiny. Bob has been a civil rights activist, Baptist Minister and was a seven-year advocate for the Institute of Peace. On his 100th birthday, Bob was honored by the Institute of Peace. 

Thanks, to all who did not sign up for tours if there was a reasonable chance you would not be able to participate. Many of our tours have limited capacity and we want to accommodate as many members as possible. If you do sign up and you cannot make it, please cancel as soon as you know you cannot attend. Members on the wait list are more likely to be able to attend if they know early that a spot has opened up. However, if, at the last minute, you cannot make it, please do let the Encore Learning office know. If a tour fills up, we will look into scheduling an additional tour. 

Missed one of our Monday presentations? Don’t despair! Many of our Monday Zoom presentations are recorded. You can often catch it on our YouTube Channel. Encore Learning instructor Mike Agron has kindly shared his personal recording of his 9/28 presentation From Tin Pan Alley to Motown – Where Entertainment and Social Change Intersect. Click here to view.

One more reminder. Please do consider joining us for lunch after some of our tours. It is a great way to relax, enjoy each other’s company and have a meal after an enriching tour. 

The Special Events Team: Jan Burchard, Janet Gilleland, Louise Kenny, Tom Kilfoyle, and Tom Underwood.

Please email the Encore Learning office if you are interested in joining any of our clubs or would like more information. You may also visit our Clubs page on our website for details and a full list of our clubs.

Please note: Clubs are maintained by Encore Learning as a benefit to our members. If you’re not a member or have let your membership lapse, please go to our membership page for how to join or renew. Thank you!

Bridge Club

The Encore Learning Bridge Club met last week for the first time at The Riviera-Alexandria. The senior living residence offered us a free room, and even left us coffee, tea, water and some healthy snacks for us to give their place a try. The room was on the seventh floor with lots of windows and, as Friday was a lovely day, we were able to take our picture on the terrace outside the Bridge room. We had two tables on Friday, and are now getting ready to plan for our November meeting. We will be evaluating where we want to try to play next, either back at The Riviera-Alexandria or at one of the community centers. Anyone interested in joining the Bridge Club should contact the Encore Learning office and they will send your contact information on to the club co-chairs, Sharon Bisdee and Joan Carter. -Photo courtesy Lee Cooper.

Chamber Music Club

The Chamber Music Club meets every first and second Friday of the month, at noon, from October through May, to hear chamber concerts sponsored by the Friday Morning Music Club, a venerable institution dating to 1886.

The musicians are superb and the programming diverse and interesting.

The November concerts are on November 6 (featuring works by Brahms and Beethoven), and November 13 (featuring works by Hugo Wolf and Antonin Dvorak), at St. George’s Episcopal Church, 915 N. Oakland Street, adjacent to the Virginia Square Metro stop. Concerts start at noon. To join the Chamber Music Club, email info@encorelearning.net. -Rhoda Ritzenberg, Club Coordinator

Cinema Club

The Cinema Club has been busy. We average about 15 people per film—we see the selection and stay to discuss it at lunch. We’ve gathered to see such movies as Reading Lolita in Tehran, The Marching Band and The History of Concrete. 

The next movie dates are Tuesday, November 17, and Wednesday, December 9. Films to be determined when Cinema Arts Theater releases that week’s films. –Caroline Wooden and Dru Dowdy, Co-Coordinators.

Global Lunch Club

The Global Lunch Club had another great lunch at Panjshir restaurant in Falls Church. Panjshir has been serving the flavors of Kabul since 1985. The club meets once per month to enjoy the area’s great international cuisine. Suggestions welcome for future meetings.

-Jan Rothstein, Coordinator. Photo courtesy Ed Rader.

Kayak Club

Sadly the 2026 kayak season ended on October 25th and the Kayak Club members who have joined us on our outings will be putting away their equipment until the 2027 season begins.

As we have probably mentioned before, it is always fun to kayak out of Fletcher’s Boathouse on the Potomac. During the season we see loads of cormorants, baby waterfowl, jumping fish, ospreys, turtles and the occasional eagle. Even when the temperature is hot, it’s usually a bit cooler and more comfortable in the kayak. We have a hardy group of loyal members who paddle with us often, but we are always happy to see new members joining us.

Not only do we kayak, but after the paddle a number of kayakers go out to lunch, so we have an opportunity to get to know each other better.

-Janice Yeadon and Diana Warmann, Co-Coordinators

Mindfulness Club

The Mindfulness Club meets by Zoom most Wednesdays from Noon to 1:00 for topical discussion, a 20 minute guided meditation and some social time. (Our meeting time will be adjusted to 12:30 to 1:30 from October 7 through November 11 to accommodate an Encore Learning class schedule). The Club sends its email list a weekly reminder of the meeting along with a suggestion relating to mindfulness practice. Participation is come-as-you-can, and there is no commitment for regular participation. Participants say the meditation period anchors their week, and the topical discussion allows them to ask questions and share experiences.

You can be added to the Club’s email list by contacting the Encore Learning office. Our meetings are suitable for persons trying mindfulness practice for the first time as well as for those who are more experienced. All are welcome! – Dwight Rodgers, Club Coordinator

Nonfiction Book Club

The Encore Learning Nonfiction Book Club will meet next in the Arlington Central Library on November 9 to discuss the book, White Trash: The 400-Year Untold History of Class in America. We’ll meet in the Bluemont Room at 1:30 pm. Written by Nancy Isenberg, the book explores the long history of social class in the United States, focusing on how political and cultural elites have stigmatized poor white people for four centuries. The book challenges the American myth of a classless society by showing how an impoverished white underclass has consistently been marginalized and blamed for its condition since the colonial period. Feel free to join us. If interested in joining the book club, let the office know, and we’ll add you to the mailing list. –Ed Rader and Pat Chatten, co-coordinators.

Travel Club

The October Travel Club meeting featured a presentation by Barry and Marge Ginsberg on their summer trip to Switzerland.

The November 20th Travel Club presentation will be given by Bill and Ellen Mugg. The Mugg’s had a 10-day trip to Seattle, spending 7 days hiking in Olympic National Park, which includes three distinct ecosystems.

The Encore Learning Travel Club meets once a month, usually on the 3rd Friday of the month at 3:30 PM on Zoom. To become a member of the club and receive the club announcements, send an email to the office. We hope to see you virtually on Zoom! -Charlie Hallahan, co-coordinator. Photo courtesy Bill and Ellen Mugg.

If you’re taking Classic vs. Contemporary Plays with Tessa Klein this fall, you’re already getting a taste of Creative Age, a lifelong learning program from Educational Theatre Company (ETC).

Designed for adults 55+, Creative Age uses theatre as a starting point for learning, conversation, reflection, and connection. Always led by professional Teaching Artists, classes may explore classic and contemporary plays through readings and discussion, use scenes and themes to inspire personal storytelling, or bring generations together to create original work. No theatre experience is necessary—just curiosity and a willingness to join the conversation.

ETC is pleased to partner with Encore Learning to bring Tessa’s class to its members this fall. And if you’d like to continue exploring with us between Encore Learning sessions, Creative Age will offer an online class in February, open to participants from wherever they are.



Learn more about Creative Age →. February class details will be available soon.

What Remains?: The Vietnam War and Its Reckoning, curated by Cheryl Edwards, features intercultural artists who served during the Vietnam War, presenting works from public and private collections that honor memory, witness, and the lasting impact of service across generations. The exhibit runs through November 21st at Mason Exhibitions, 3601 North Fairfax Dr, Arlington. Please click on the link above for details and content advisory.

Robotic research in Fuse and Van Metre Hall

A team of researchers from the Computer Science Department will conduct robotic research in public areas of Fuse and Van Metre Hall from Oct. 22 through Nov. 1. A robot will move throughout the public areas on the second floors of these buildings and may also travel to the first floor.

The robot may be recording audio and video of its surroundings. If the robot records audio or video, signage will be posted on the robot indicating as such, and all recordings will be anonymized immediately after they are collected. Bystander faces will be blurred, and bystander speech will be distorted beyond recognition.

This research is conducted under supervising faculty member David Porfirio. Contact Mason Square Administration at arlops@gmu.edu with questions.

Peter Joyce’s book The Happiness Professor’s Hardest Lesson: A Story of Cancer, Love, and Hope, has been released.

It is now available in paperback, hardcover, and Kindle through Amazon.

In this deeply personal memoir, Peter chronicles his journey through cancer with remarkable honesty, blending journal entries, reflections, medical insight, and life lessons that explore what it truly means to live well in the face of uncertainty.

Arlington County is hosting a virtual Urban Forestry Info Session October 29 at 6:30 PM, to discuss tree planting, care, maintenance, and the County’s work to support our urban forest. Visit https://content.govdelivery.com/accounts/VAARLINGTON/bulletins/4298e1e for details and to register.

With the year-end approaching, some of you may be doing some tax planning and there are three ways to support Encore Learning and your other favorite charities while lowering your tax liability.

1. Qualified Charitable Distribution (QCD) from your IRA makes your donation 100% tax deductible even if you don’t itemize.
2. Appreciated securities (eg. stocks) will avoid paying capital gains tax and also increase your itemizable deductions
3. A grant from your donor-advised fund which has been funded from appreciated assets.

For more details, please visit this page for helpful info about end-of-year giving. You can bookmark it for later too!

The best thing about Encore Learning is our members! Give a friend or family member an Encore Learning “gift membership” this holiday season. What a wonderful way to start the new year.

Checkout our webpage for details:

https://encorelearning.net/membership/gifts/

In addition to giving a membership you can gift a class to an Encore Learning member. Contact the office to pre-purchase a credit to their account and that will be applied to their course registration.

Alternatively, if you know someone who seems interested in joining or know someone recently retiring, take a moment to explain to them what you find rewarding about Encore Learning. Then, let them know how to join. Joining is easy; all they have to do is visit our website and click on “join.” If they have questions about the process, they can email the staff at info@encorelearning.net. Memberships are tax deductible as a charitable contribution.

Our Fall Semester is already midway through with some classes ending and others that have not yet begun. We enjoy seeing members at Mason and love learning about connections that have been made. Some classes are having impromptu meetups after class, or adding another session for discussion.

We have more hybrid and more recorded classes this term and are grateful to the volunteers who have been diligent about improving the hybrid experience.

We have an impressive number of new members who joined us in September. When you learn that someone is new to Encore Learning be sure to introduce yourself and help them feel welcome.

There are so many ways to volunteer for Encore Learning, and there may be new ways to engage and connect. That is why we launched the recent Member Interest Survey. Be sure to take five minutes to complete the survey and let us know what interests you.

Thank you to the many volunteers who are working hard to make Encore Learning better every day. This keeps our expenses low and quality high.

Enjoy the fall and the rich opportunities to explore, learn and connect with Encore Learning.

~ Lora

Lora Pollari-Welbes

Executive Director

During September 2026, we welcomed the following new members:

• Mia Anderson
• Jim Angel
• Michael Baker
• Susan Beesley
• Lorelei Brush
• Kathleen Calder
• Kathryn Campbell
• Marianne Carlson
• Marie Cavanaugh
• Barbara Conaty
• Kathy Conrad
• Steven Creane
• Simon De Groot
• Michael Dunn
• James Firman
• Eric Freiwald
• Bonnie Gauch
• Karen Gerstner
• Mark Gibson
• Sarah Glassco
• Richard Glassco
• Marcia Green
• Stephen Guertin
• Steve Heare
• Adam Kaufman
• Peggy Keegan
• Richard Klass
• Ann Korky
• Nancy Landis

• Susan LaRue
• John Lee
• Charles Maclane
• Carol Mahaffey
• Carol Marsh
• Deborah McGill
• Rebecca Moscoso
• David Musel
• David O’Brien
• Mary Beth O’Donnell
• Peggy O’Neill
• Karen Parsons
• Stacy Roberts
• Laura Roth
• Pam Sheridan
• John Shippy
• Lisa Singer
• Kevin Steele
• Steve Sturgeon
• Christine Taylor
• James Thessin
• William Thoms
• Suzanne Vandegrift
• Cameron Vann
• Kathleen Wax
• Claudia White
• Mary Ann Wilson
• Marcie Ziegler

We look forward to having them become active participants in Encore Learning. Please introduce yourself to them if you meet them in a class, club or event.

Thank you to Goodwin House, Sandy Bruckner, Ann-Marie Bolton, D’Vera Cohn, Stuart Davis, Dianne Daily, Jerry Greenwald, Barry Ginsberg, Cheryl Hatch, Ann Kaupp, Peggy Keegan, Alan Luba, Peggy Montgomery, Gerry O’Brien, Jan Pomerantz, and Barbara Vobejda for referring friends who became members of Encore Learning!

If you’d like to bring Encore Learning to your community (residential building or neighborhood) to share information about membership, please let us know.

Encore Learning is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Any donation is a charitable contribution deductible from income tax to the full extent permitted by law. Members, friends and organizations wishing to support Encore Learning may direct contributions to our General Fund to support our sustainability or to the Arthur W. Gosling Youth Scholarship Fund. If you wish to designate a charitable gift in someone’s honor or memory, please email us indicating how the gift should be recognized. If you would like to discuss tax benefits of charitable giving and charitable remainder trusts, please view our Donate page or contact the office.

We hope you enjoyed this edition of The Inside Scoop. If you would like to submit an article or share some photos of members participating in Encore Learning activities, please email us at info@encorelearning.net.

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