OLLI: the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at Berkshire Community College

06/11/2026

Great news from campus!

BCC is proud to announce that our library has been renamed The Ruth Edmonds Hill Library in honor of a lifelong librarian, educator, oral historian and Pittsfield native whose work helped preserve stories across generations.

Hill began her career in librarianship at the Berkshire Athenaeum and later worked at North Adams State College and BCC before joining the Schlesinger Library at Harvard, where she helped lead groundbreaking oral history projects, including the Black Women Oral History Project.

The new name follows years of research, community feedback and an inclusive review process shaped by faculty, staff, students, alumni and the broader Berkshire community.

We look forward to celebrating this new chapter for BCC’s library this fall in partnership with the Berkshire Historical Society and the Samuel Harrison Society.

Read more about this announcement: https://www.berkshirecc.edu/news-events/2026/ruth-edmonds-library.php

06/10/2026

Bogus Astronomy with Kenneth Bechis
Two sessions:
July 21 and 28 from 11:30 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.
at Berkshire Community College
In-person only.
Learn more and register: https://berkshireolli.org/event-6675186

Is it true that "In space no one can hear you scream"? Do Hollywood movies accurately portray spaceship battles, laser cannons, and explosions? Are space aliens invading Earth really ill-advised? How well do Earthbound media and the general population understand astronomical concepts -- e.g., why is it hotter in the summer than in the winter? Does it matter that our Sun travels yearly through 14 constellations, not just the 12 familiar Zodiacal ones? Why does astronomy, unlike other sciences, have conspiracy theories -- e.g., did Stanley Kubrick help NASA fake the Moon landings? Or, did the Martians construct a giant Face on their planet along with canals? Why are tens of millions of Americans today convinced the Earth is flat? Let's explore these a more in Bogus Astronomy!

Kenneth P. Bechis retired from Northrop Grumman as Chief Scientist in the Space Operations/ Environmental Solutions Division, and as a Distinguished Technical Fellow in the Intelligence Systems Sector. He holds a bachelor's in astronomy from Harvard College, a master of science in physics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, a doctorate in astrophysics from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, and is a former NASA Payload Specialist Astronaut.

Cost: $30 for OLLI at BCC members,
$40 for non-members

Sign up today!

06/10/2026

Come see the wonderful work of our OLLI artists!

Gallery Hours During the Exhibit:

Wednesdays 11-3
Thursdays 11-3
Fridays 11-5
Saturdays 12-5

06/08/2026

This Moment in Grief: The Poetry in Being Present for What Is
Thursday, July 2, 9, and 16
2:00 p.m. - 3:30 p.m.
In-person at Berkshire Community College
Learn more and register: https://berkshireolli.org/event-6659892

Grief changes like life does. As we open ourselves to grow through grief we open to what is hidden in it - so often, love. We'll draw on poetry, writing and sharing to give voice to our grief at this moment in life, discovering new ways to reflect on our experience of loss. As we bring ourselves present we support each other in being present too.

Charlotte Nuessle, BSc, is a certified grief educator with David Kessler. She has co-led grief groups for 2 years. For the past 11 years she facilitated groups in exploring death and dying, as well as groups focused on strengthening resilience and personal development. She retired from a 25-year career in adaptive yoga and developing self-awareness for seniors and elders. Reading and writing poetry has given her a perspective on grief that opened creativity and possibility in the midst of loss.

Cost: $35 for OLLI at BCC members
$45 for non-members

Sign up today!

Charlotte Nuessle, BSc,is a certified grief educator with David Kessler. She has co-led grief groups for 2 years. For the past 11 years she facilitated groups in exploring death and dying, as well as groups focused on strengthening resilience and personal development. She retired from a 25-year care...

06/08/2026

The OLLI Distinguished Speakers Series presents: Prof. Jeremy Yudkin - Highlights of Tanglewood 2026
Saturday, June 27, 2025 at 10:00 a.m. ET
In-person at the Lenox Town Hall, Lenox, MA
Learn more and register: https://berkshireolli.org/event-6689510

Jeremy Yudkin will discuss the highlights of the upcoming Tanglewood season, including the most important symphonies, concertos, chamber music, and solo recitals to look out for this summer.

Dr. Jeremy Yudkin is Professor of Music at Boston University. He has served as Visiting Professor of Music at Oxford University and Harvard, and he is the author of ten books on music. This year marks the forty-second consecutive year of his much-loved Pre-Concert Tanglewood Talks, sponsored by the Lenox Library Association and given every Friday afternoon at 2:30 p.m. and Sunday mornings at 11 a.m. at the Lenox Town Hall Auditorium.

This in-person lecture will not be recorded.

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Ticket information:

Admission is $10 for OLLI at BCC members, and $15 for the general public.

Admission is free for students, staff and faculty from Berkshire Community College, MCLA, and Williams; youth 17 and under, and those holding WIC, EBT/SNAP, or ConnectorCare cards.

OLLI: the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at Berkshire Community College Partners in education with Williams College and the Massachusetts College of Liberal [email protected]

06/04/2026

Summer Two 2026 Term Begins July 13, 2026
Online registration is now open!!

Our Summer Two term runs July 13 - August 21, 2026, and includes a mix of in-person, online, and hybrid (online and in-person) courses.

See the catalog and register: https://berkshireolli.org/summertwo2026

OLLI at BCC Sponsors include: Berkshire Health Systems

06/02/2026

107 Days at Sea: The Journey That Changed Everything with Jill Chalsty
Thursday, June 18 at 4:00 p.m.
In-person at Berkshire Community College and online via Zoom
Free and open to the public.
Learn more and register: https://berkshireolli.org/event-6688836

At 63, Jill Chalsty boarded a ship alone, grieving her husband’s death and battling cancer. What began as a voyage around the world became far more than a trip. In this lecture, Jill shares the story behind her memoir Packets of Hope, inviting participants to travel alongside her through the ports she visited, the people she met, and the reflections that transformed personal adversity into strength and global impact. Jill demonstrates how one person’s courage can create ripples that span continents. Participants are encouraged to read her memoir, available free at www.packetsofhope.com, before the presentation.

Jill Chalsty, founder of Overcoming Obstacles, has empowered over 180 million young people worldwide through life skills education. Her journey of loss and cancer inspired Packets of Hope, illuminating the power of love and service.

OLLI at BCC is sponsored in part by Berkshire Health Systems

Jill Chalsty,founder of Overcoming Obstacles, has empowered over 180 million young people worldwide through life skills education. Her journey of loss and cancer inspired Packets of Hope, illuminating the power of love and service.

06/02/2026

The OLLI Distinguished Speakers Series presents: Making Sense of Grape Scents with Prof. Cynthia Holland of Williams College
June 10 at 7:00 p.m. ET
Online via Zoom
Learn more and register: https://berkshireolli.org/event-6599451

Plants produce a wide array of airborne molecules, or volatiles, that function in attracting pollinators, deterring herbivores, and communicating with their surroundings. The volatile methyl anthranilate, which is responsible for the characteristic grape aroma, is emitted by grapes, citrus, maize, and other flowering plants. This talk will highlight the Holland lab’s discovery of how methyl anthranilate is synthesized in grapes and will preview current experimental evidence on plant detection and response to volatiles.

Cynthia Holland is an Assistant Professor in the Biology department at Williams College, where she teaches courses on molecular biology and biochemistry. Before starting at Williams in 2020, she pursued her PhD in Plant and Microbial Biosciences at Washington University in St. Louis, followed by a postdoctoral fellowship at the Boyce Thompson Institute in Ithaca, NY. Cynthia’s research lab investigates the enzymes that plants use to produce molecules with commercial and pharmaceutical relevance. Recently, the Holland lab has identified the enzymes from grapes that are used to produce the volatile responsible for grape aroma. Current experiments focus on how plants may perceive airborne aromas and the implications for plant-to-plant communication. This project has been funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation through a five-year CAREER award.

Ticket information:

Admission is $10 for OLLI at BCC members and $15 for the general public.

Admission is free for students, staff and faculty from Berkshire Community College, MCLA, and Williams; youth 17 and under, and those holding WIC, EBT/SNAP, or ConnectorCare cards.

Sponsored by Kimball Farms Life Care

Cynthia Hollandis an Assistant Professor in the Biology department at Williams College, where she teaches courses on molecular biology and biochemistry. Before starting at Williams in 2020, she pursued her PhD in Plant and Microbial Biosciences at Washington University in St. Louis, followed by a po...

06/02/2026

The OLLI Distinguished Speakers Series presents: Beautiful Particulars: How AI’s attention to the smallest of differences is re-shaping our biggest ideas

June 11 at 4:00 p.m. ET
In-person at Berkshire Community College and Online via Zoom

Learn more and register: https://berkshireolli.org/event-6703097

Join us for a talk by and with David Weinberger of his upcoming book, Beautiful Particulars: How AI’s attention to the smallest of differences is re-shaping our biggest ideas.

The talk's premise is that we tend to understand ourselves and our world in terms of the dominant tech of our age: The universe looked like a clockwork when clockworks were the most sophisticated technology. Likewise for computers, the Internet, and now AI. So how might AI be affecting our most basic ideas? Dr. Weinberger begins by explaining in simple terms how AI works: It pays attention to the particular details of a situation rather than examining it in terms of universal laws and principles. And that, he says, changes everything.

He will explore this by seeing what basic concepts such as fairness and knowledge look like in AI's light. In that light, he finds things look much closer to our actual, lived experience. While acknowledging the appropriate alarm about the dangers AI poses, Dr. Weinberger's assessment of the new world we are entering is distinctively positive.

With an extensive background in Web and AI companies, and a Ph.D. in philosophy, David Weinberger writes and speaks about the effect of technology on our ideas.

He has long been affiliated with Harvard as a researcher and fellow at that university's Berkman Klein Center, Shorenstein Journalism Center, the Library Innovation Lab, and metaLAB. He recently was embedded in Google AI humanities and ethics teams for four years as a writer-in-residence. He has been an adviser to three presidential campaigns, and was a Franklin Fellow at the U.S. State Department.

David has written six books and countless articles about tech and philosophy in publications such as Scientific American, the Atlantic, Wired, Harvard Business Review, and many more. His latest book, Beautiful Particulars: How AI's attention to the smallest of differences is reshaping our biggest ideas, will be published by MIT Press in November 2026.

Ticket information:
Admission is $10 for OLLI at BCC members and $15 for the general public.
Admission is free for students, staff and faculty from Berkshire Community College, MCLA, and Williams; youth 17 and under, and those holding WIC, EBT/SNAP, or ConnectorCare cards.

Sponsored by Kimball Farms Life Care

David WeinbergerBeautiful Particulars: How AI’s attention to the smallest of differences is re-shaping our biggest ideas

05/22/2026

Ornamental Alternatives: Replacing Invasives with Beautiful Natives that Restore a Healthy Home Landscape with Chris Ferrero

Learn more and register: https://berkshireolli.org/event-6603477

June 2 and 3, 2026 - 10:00 - 11:30 a.m.
Hybrid: Online and in-person at Berkshire Community College

Official invasive plant lists have unmasked the "bad actors" in home landscapes, but some of these culprits are beloved for their blooms, shade performance or fall foliage. This program highlights common trees, shrubs, vines, and perennials from MA's "prohibited" lists, and offers native alternatives with superior flowers, fragrance, fruits & fall color, plus value to pollinators and birds.

Chris Ferrero trained as a Cornell Master Gardener in New York where she led demonstration garden teams, plant propagation workshops, and alternatives-to-invasives work groups. She regularly consults on challenges like shade gardening, deer deterrence, and pollinator gardening with native perennials and flowering shrubs, and her 20 talks keep her busy speaking to garden clubs and master gardener symposiums. Formerly a corporate marketing director, she has retired to Stockbridge, MA near the Berkshire Botanical Garden, where she serves on the faculty and also sits on the Horticulture Advisory Committee.

This lecture will be recorded and available for viewing at the convenience of registrants.

Program Cost:
OLLI at BCC Members: $30
Non-members: $40