Lecture Series

Our FAB students’ safety is important to us; therefore, we are taking precautions to make the in-person classes a safe and welcoming environment. In this environment, students will be able to enjoy face-to-face interactions with their faculty and classmates and the option to grab a coffee or a bite to eat before or after class. For those not able to join us in person, we continue to be your virtual home for learning!

Note: Walk-ins are not permitted. You may register via phone by calling 805-493-3290 at least 30 minutes prior to the start of the lecture, space permitting. Persons will not be allowed into the learning space if they are not on the roster in advance.

Regarding in-person attendance:

• FREE, accessible parking at both campus locations (view location and parking details HERE)
• Large lecture room with ample space meeting Cal/OSHA guidelines
• Masks are recommended but are not required

Can’t get to campus for an in-person lecture? No problem! Attend the course virtually instead.

In-Person & Virtual Learning

Using a hybrid learning model, in-person and virtual students can attend the same class simultaneously. A special “360-camera” will follow the instructor in the classroom, and students attending virtually will be able to see and hear the instructor and view the PowerPoint over Zoom (similar to our traditional virtual courses).

Part 1: Monday, March 31, 10am-12pm (Pacific)
Part 2: Monday, April 7, 10am-12pm (Pacific)
Choose to Attend Online via Zoom or In-Person in Thousand Oaks

Lecture Description:
It is during the time period of the Middle Ages in which Paris transformed from a small provincial city into an important commercial and religious center and the seat of the royal administration of the country. The Île de la Cité became the site of the royal palace and the new cathedral of Notre-Dame, begun in 1163. In the late 1100s, the collection of colleges on the Left Bank became one of the first and leading universities in Europe, while the Right Bank, where ports, central markets, artisans and merchants were located, became the commercial center of the city. Paris became a center for the creation of illuminated manuscripts and the birthplace of Gothic architecture. Despite civil wars, the plague, and foreign occupation, Paris became the most populous city in the Western world during the Medieval time period. This two-part lecture will focus on the development of art and architecture of the Middle Ages as centered and still visible in Paris.

View a preview of this course on our YouTube page at the following link: https://youtu.be/tGn0d-iF-is

Bio:
Katherine E. Zoraster is an Art Historian and a Professor of Art History at several local colleges specializing in Western art from the Renaissance to the 20th century. She graduated with a double major in English Literature and Art History from the University of California, Los Angeles. Following her undergraduate degree, she received a Master’s Degree with Distinction in Art History from the California State University at Northridge.

In addition to the courses Katherine teaches for other lifelong learning programs, she also works as an Art History Instructor for the full-time program at the Los Angeles Academy of Figurative Arts. Katherine also serves as a commissioner for the Burbank Cultural Arts Commission and volunteers at the Burbank Animal Shelter. In her free time, Katherine is an avid runner and travels extensively.

Wednesday, April 2, 10am-12pm (Pacific)
Choose to Attend Online via Zoom or In-Person in Thousand Oaks

Lecture Description:
With its origins in the late 19th century, ragtime burst onto the American scene and quickly became the first uniquely American musical style. Its influence affected early jazz, blues, country, and even European classical music with its infectious syncopation and melodic ingenuity. In this lecture, you will hear about the roots of ragtime: how it developed from 19th century marches, cakewalks from slavery days, and its origins in the saloons and juke joints of the American Midwest. In addition to learning about the lives of ragtime greats like Scott Joplin, we’ll hear examples of rags and their effect on popular music in the early 20th century, played on instruments such as piano, banjo, mandolin, and even full orchestras.

View a preview of this course on our YouTube page at the following link: https://youtu.be/dMnhExJvYd4

Bio:
Cary Ginell is a music historian and leader of the Sedalia Ragtime Orchestra, a group that keeps alive the sounds of vintage as well as contemporary ragtime music.

Additionally, Cary is a Grammy-nominated writer and author of 12 books on American music. After a 30-year career in radio, he has spent the last 20 years as a public speaker, talking about music in classrooms, at conferences, and on cruise ships. Cary brings a lifelong passion for the recording industry to his work and is one of the world’s foremost authorities on his specialty, western swing. Cary previously served as President of the Association for Recorded Sound Collections, an international organization of music scholars and world-renowned institutions. He holds a master’s degree in Folklore from UCLA and a bachelor’s in Radio/TV/Film from Cal State University Northridge.

Part 1: Wednesday, April 9, 1-3pm (Pacific)
Part 2: Wednesday, April 16, 1-3pm (Pacific)
Choose to Attend Online via Zoom or In-Person in Thousand Oaks

Lecture Description:
As the founding document of this country, the Declaration of Independence holds a position in American history that is nearly unrivaled. However, how many people could explain the declaration? How many could quote it, beyond the first few lines regarding “Life, Liberty, & the pursuit of happiness”? But, more than just quoting the document, how many could explain what it meant? This series of lectures will delve into the text and will discuss, in the context of the late 1700s, what the document meant to its signers and what it means to American citizens today.

View a preview of this course on our YouTube page at the following link: https://youtu.be/PagLG6enRHI

Bio:
Jason Hensley, PhD (Holocaust and Genocide Studies), Dmin (Biblical Studies), teaches religious studies at a private school in Los Angeles. He is a fellow of the Michael LaPrade Holocaust Education Institute of the Anti-Defamation League, a higher-education ambassador for the Council on Foreign Relations, and the award-winning author of 12 books. His work has been featured in The Huffington Post as well as the BBC, and he has served as the historical advisor for a Holocaust documentary. Connect with him at jasonhensley.net.

Part 1: Tuesday, April 22, 10am-12pm (Pacific)
Part 2: Tuesday, April 29, 10am-12pm (Pacific)
Choose to Attend Online via Zoom or In-Person in Oxnard

Lecture Description:
Every city has a particular feel about it, defined by its architecture, demographics, geography, climate, and the people and cultures that have shaped the city from its founding to its current status.  From historical to contemporary structures, this course will explore the iconic structures that identify various American cities and how they came to be.  A variety of architectural styles are discussed, as well as the sociopolitical context in which these buildings were created.

San Francisco, the City by the Bay: From the establishment of the Presidio and Mission Dolores by Spanish missionaries to the growth of the city brought about by the Gold Rush, San Francisco boasts beautiful Victorian mansions, luxurious hotels, and many fascinating and historic structures such as the Palace of Fine Arts, Coit Tower, and Alcatraz Prison.

New York, The Big Apple: From its establishment by Dutch settlers to its modern skyscrapers, New York is a study in architectural styles. In America’s Gilded Age of the late 19th century, New York was a center of booming industry, reflected in the elegant mansions of the wealthy industrialists. Inspirational churches, sophisticated hotels, and noteworthy museums add to the cachet of this celebrated city.

View a preview of this course on our YouTube page at the following link: https://youtu.be/V6n5owggGqI

Bios:
Eleanor Schrader is an award-winning educator, lecturer, and author. She lectures worldwide on art and architectural history, and leads art and architecture tours throughout the world.  She has been named a Distinguished Instructor at UCLA Extension, where she teaches history of architecture, interior design, furniture, and decorative arts. She is also Professor Emeritus of Art and Architectural History at Santa Monica College. She has done graduate work in fine and decorative arts at Sotheby's Institute in London and New York.  She has served as a Design Review Commissioner for the City of Beverly Hills and currently serves on the Board of Directors of the John Lautner Foundation.

Thursday, April 24, 10am-12pm (Pacific)
Online via Zoom

Lecture Description:
Dorothea Lange produced an astonishing body of photographic work in a career that lasted from the 1920s, when she ran the most successful portrait studio in San Francisco, to her death in 1965. Best known for her Depression-era documentary work—including the world-renowned “Migrant Mother”—Lange brought the humanity of the poor into sharp focus.

View a preview of this course on our YouTube page at the following link: https://youtu.be/DUkpR-fzn_Y

Bio:
Avril Angevine is an arts aficionado, teacher, and presenter with an interest in all things California. She has lived in the state since the age of 8 and is a proud graduate of California public schools, including the University of California, Berkeley. As an undergrad at UCLA and Berkeley, she studied English, several foreign languages, and art, and received an MA in Comparative Literature from UCB in 1977.  Over a long career, she has alternated between teaching and publications work. She has taught English, French, and Humanities at numerous local colleges and universities, public and private, and in between, worked as a freelance graphics designer and as art director of the State Coastal Conservancy’s magazine, Coast and Ocean.

Avril’s focus shifted more decisively to art in the last decade, when she became a museum guide at both the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art and the Oakland Museum of California. In that time, she served as chair of the guide councils of both museums, and as an ex-officio member of the Board of Trustees of SFMOMA. Through SFMOMA, she began doing talks on the collection at local libraries; from this modest start, she has developed a new career. She currently serves as a museum guide at the Sonoma Valley Museum of Art.

Monday, May 5, 10am-12pm (Pacific)
Online via Zoom

Lecture Description:
Neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and ALS affect millions, with limited treatment options. But what if we could repair or even replace damaged brain cells? In this lecture, we’ll explore the science of stem cells and their potential to revolutionize the treatment of neurodegenerative disorders. Learn how stem cells work, the latest breakthroughs in research, and the challenges of translating discoveries into real-world therapies. We’ll also discuss ethical concerns, clinical trials, and the future of regenerative medicine. This lecture will provide a clear understanding of how stem cell technology is shaping the future of brain health and aging.

View a preview of this course on our YouTube page at the following link: https://youtu.be/erRFP9AhmqI

Bio:
Wesley Tierney is currently a PhD candidate in Neuroscience at Arizona State University. He studies the mechanisms of Herpes Simplex Virus infection of neurons. He has worked in various research labs for seven years ranging from social psychology, entomology, regenerative medicine, virology, and neuroscience.

Wednesday, May 7, 10am-12pm (Pacific)
Choose to Attend Online via Zoom or In-Person in Thousand Oaks

Lecture Description:
On February 24, 2022, Russian troops launched a massive full-scale invasion of the Ukraine setting in motion the largest military conflict in Europe since the Second World War.  Thousands have been killed and the fighting has displaced more than a quarter of Ukraine’s pre-war population.  Although the West rallied to defend the Ukraine, the protracted conflict has strained the Western Alliance and threatens to undermine the world order The United States and its Allies fostered during what Time publisher Henry Luce called “The American Century.”  This lecture will explore the core diplomatic, military, and political events that shaped over a century of United States foreign policy and offers insights on how to think about and understand the current crisis in U.S.-European relations.

View a preview of this course on our YouTube page at the following link: https://youtu.be/zhvgqLAbIQU

Bio:
David Livingstone received BA and MA degrees in History from California State University, Northridge and a PhD in Modern European History from the University of California, San Diego. He has taught at California Lutheran University, Moorpark College, and the United States Naval War College.  He specializes in European political, diplomatic and military history with an emphasis on modern Germany.  He also served as a law enforcement officer for 34 years with the Simi Valley Police Department and retired in 2022 at the rank of Chief of Police.  David's first book, Militarization and Democracy in West Germany's Border Police, 1951-2005 was published by Camden House in 2024.  He also serves as a historian and guide for World War Two battlefield tours.

Part 1: Thursday, May 8, 1:30-3:30pm (Pacific)
Part 2: Thursday, May 15, 1:30-3:30pm (Pacific)
Online via Zoom

Lecture Description:
The Classic Blues style was recorded, defined and spread during the 1920-30s by its two foremost proponents, singers and songwriters Bessie Smith, “The Empress of the Blues” and Ma Rainey, “The Mother of the Blues.” They shaped an expressive, lusty, sobbing, growling ‘opera of the vernacular,’ inscribing their distinctive voices onto America’s musical culture.

This two-part lecture explores the life and times of several extraordinary blues divas including the first woman to sell a million blues records, Mamie Smith, the bawdy Creole chanteuse, Lizzie Miles and cross-dressing singer/pianist, Gladys Bentley. Each lecture features a dozen or more video and film clips including Bessie’s 1929 collaboration with composer W.C. Handy in the landmark movie-with-sound, “The Saint Louis Blues.”

View a preview of this course on our YouTube page at the following link: https://youtu.be/3RNY9UWn_EA

Bio:
During the last four decades Dave Radlauer has been telling tales of early Jazz, Blues and Swing on the radio, garnering six broadcast awards and authoring 200 articles for online and print publications.  For Stanford Libraries, he’s written interpretive online text and donated a large collection of unique music and photos.  He teaches lifelong learning courses at UCLA, UC Berkeley, San Francisco State and Dominican University.

Tuesday, May 13, 10am-12pm (Pacific)
Online via Zoom

Lecture Description:
Today, when we think of the United Kingdom, we presume England and gloss over Scotland, especially when considering art. Glasgow, Scotland was a growing industrial city in the 1880’s and through that growth produced a group of artists whose rebellious natures catapulted the art world into Modernism.

Many of the artist’s names are unfamiliar but the styles and design elements that were created by their innovations will be recognizable. Curious about who married the Macdonald sisters and were known as “The Four”? Who participated and created suffragette banners?

Discover the Glasgow Boys and Girls who pushed through and ahead of the existing, stale academy mindset and became the catalysts for a barrage of contemporary artistic movements in the 20th century, whose sphere of influence remains with us today.

Bio:
Christine Maasdam holds a Master in Humanities and a B.A. in Cultural Geography. Her art studies include The Courtauld Institute of Art in London, The Smithsonian Early Enrichment Center in D.C. and Post Graduate studies in Antiquities Trafficking and Art Crime at the University of Glasgow. She is a graduate of the Art Crime Investigation Seminar led by Robert Wittman, founder of the FBI's National Art Crime Team. Christine is a member of the International Foundation for Cultural Property Protection and holds a certificate from Trident Manor on Protection of Cultural Venues. Christine received Sotheby’s certification on Determining Value: An Appraiser’s Perspective. She has spent over a decade as a LACMA docent and is an active volunteer at the City of David archaeological dig in Israel.