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Princeton NJ Back to School Announcements

Registration Under Way for Spring 2010 Semester at the Princeton Adult School

Registration is under way for the spring 2010 semester at the Princeton Adult School.  Offerings this year range from outdoor activities such as hiking, canoeing and rock-climbing to a timely lecture series in which experts from Princeton’s School of Engineering talk about   how they turn scientific knowledge into practical solutions to pressing problems facing society. Course listings also include several  new literature courses: among the , Children’s Books for Adult Readers, and  Contemporary Arabic Fiction in Translation. In addition, there are more than one hundred non-credit on-line courses ranging from web page design to genealogy basics. Students may register on-line or by mail. In-person registration is required for English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) on Thursday evening, January 21, from 7 to 8 pm, at Princeton High School.

Highlights this semester include the movie  series, “Second Chance Cinema: Thirteen Films You Should Have Seen but Didn’t.,” “How to Start a Home-Based Business,” and “Self-Defense for Women.”  Among the new courses are “Utopia, New Jersey,” an examination of early 20^th-century Utopian Communities in this state, and a course  co-sponsored with  Opera New Jersey that will explore the three operas in their upcoming summer season. There are also seven culinary arts  classes including “Wines of Europe, Old and New.” On-line offerings include courses in technology, as well as business, and personal and professional development. The Adult School also continues to offer such old favorites as “Computacion in Espanol,” two courses in digital photography and  a photography workshop, several yoga courses including Yoga for Strength and Flexibility, ballroom, swing, and Latin  dancing, guitar,  and  a fiction writing workshop.

“Every year we offer a mix of tried-and true-favorite courses as well as new ones,” said Princeton Adult School President Barbara Lee, "and I think everyone can find something that will interest them. We have more than a dozen new courses ranging from cerebral to recreational. We’re really excited about the course that will explore key contemporary constitutional issues as seen by then Supreme Court. And our financial planning classes address a variety of  current concerns. Our course listings give students so many things to choose from.” 

"For people on the go we have two special one-semester language courses, 'Italian for Travelers’ and ‘Spanish for Travelers.’ In addition, we continue to offer our very popular foreign language program, which includes the Romance languages plus Arabic, Chinese, Japanese, Latin, and Russian. Our ESOL program includes advanced courses in pronunciation and conversation. And our expanded exercise and fitness program includes several daytime and weekend classes at the CAN DO Fitness Center in Forrestal Village, with child care included.”

             The diverse course listing for the upcoming semester includes eleven lecture courses, the movie series, 32 foreign language courses including Introduction to Business Spanish,, 13 studio arts workshops, 37  exercise, fitness and recreation activities, five  studio music classes, 16 courses listed under hobbies and  special skills, eight computer courses including an introduction to video production ,  and seven   business and professional courses.

            Subjects range from professional-level instruction such as ‘How to Patent and Profit from Your Invention,” to courses tailored to individual needs including: how to build a website   or write a blog,  tai-chi, and piano for adults.

             Most classes, are held Tuesday and Thursday evenings at Princeton High School beginning February 2 and 4. ESOL registration will be on Thursday, January 21, from 7 to 8:00 pm at Princeton High School. In-person registration is required for ESOL students. In-person registration is also available on January 21 for foreign language students who are unsure about what class level is appropriate. Students should use the front entrance to the High School on Moore Street.

             Registration online and by mail is already in progress. Students can register online at www.princetonadultschool.org or by mail using forms in the back of the adult school catalog. Those who have not received a catalog can obtain a copy at any area public library. Registration forms and the entire catalog are also available on the adult school Web site.

            The Princeton Adult School has been offering classes for 70 years. Beginning with 20 classes in 1939, the school offered over 100 different courses in each of two terms last year with a total enrollment of some 4,500 students.

            Over the years Adult School courses have ranged from bird watching and gourmet cooking to lectures on the universe by leading astrophysicists. PAS teachers, who are professionals in their fields and often nationally noted authorities include faculty from Princeton and Rutgers Universities. Recent speakers have included such notables as Kwame Anthony Appiah, the noted philosopher; James McPherson, Pulitzer Prize-winning Civil War historian; Emily Mann, Artistic Director of McCarter Theater; and Harold Shapiro, President Emeritus of Princeton University.

             "We are especially pleased with the public's response to the adult school," said Ms. Lee. "Last year's enrollment was very gratifying. In fact, enrollment has recently been so strong that there are always several courses that fill the first week. We always have to turn people away from popular classes with space limitations — courses such as the one exploring the special collections at the Princeton University Library, wine tasting, and some of the studio courses ."

  For more information, call (609) 683-1101.