By admin “Wisdom comes not from learning, but from a lifetime of trying to acquire it.” — Albert Einstein
We sincerely hope that each of you has recovered from the devastation in Helene, that your electricity is on, you have water again, you were able to refuel your car, and that your nearby grocery store is (at least almost) fully stocked. These everyday conveniences that we generally take for granted certainly seemed extremely high in our minds just a few days ago. But despite the challenges and fears we all experienced – downed trees on almost every road and many driveways, downed power lines hanging in neighborhoods, lack of necessities, disruptions to phone and internet service, etc. Despite it all, it was uplifting seeing neighbors reaching out to neighbors, helping clean driveways, offering food, working chainsaws to clean up fallen trees, and helping in any way they can.
I was without electricity and water for six days. I finally found gas at a nearby station and on the eighth day I was able to go shopping. There are many trees down in my yard, and many more will need to be cut down once the tree removal company gets there. But I fully realize how lucky I am when I see all the homes destroyed by the storm and hear how others have had to adapt to the lack of utilities and necessities much longer than I have. A few days after the storm first hit, I learned that many people had died and many homes had been completely destroyed. I am very fortunate to have emerged from such a disaster relatively unscathed.
As you can imagine, the Center for Continuing Education, like all of our educational institutions, suffered damage and closed classes due to the storm. About 20 classes were closed at the center, and rescheduling most of them to another date required a lot of effort. some could not be rescheduled due to the instructor’s unavailability on the new dates. If your classroom has been impacted by the storm, please visit aikenlearning.org to find new dates/times if they can be rescheduled.
The fall semester isn’t over yet. As of October 16, there are approximately 30 classes remaining that have not yet started, as well as several field trips. So if you want to take a break from the stress and tension that Helene brought, come to the informative lectures or practical classes about communication devices (phones, computers, watches, applications, etc.). Registrations are accepted almost until the start of classes. For more information, call 803-641-3741.
Classes that are still available are:
History: Understanding the Savannah River Site; How old Europe died; Year 1774; What is PIT; William C. Whitney Family; Railroad and Aiken; Conversations with the Colonials; Taking power.
General interest: A cat lover’s dream; Warthog Wisdom; Ballet – then and now; Aiken’s leading ladies; Microbiome Overview; My life as a policeman; Health and well-being.
Technology: Applied artificial intelligence; Television broadcast; Using iCloud; What is digital; Amazon Fire tablets; Apple Support Labs; Edit photos in Google Picasa.
We hope to see you in class soon. In the meantime, stay safe, continue to help your neighbors, and remember to count your blessings. Have faith that this too will pass.
Registration:
The Center for Continuing Education’s catalog is available online at aikenlearning.org.
To register in person, visit Room 104 in the Business & Education building on the USC Aiken campus, 471 University Parkway, or register online at aikenlearning.org.
Parking stickers can also be collected from the B&E building. Stickers are required when parking on campus. To apply for a parking sticker, please bring your car registration and driving license.
Additionally, it is possible to complete and send the registration form from the catalog. (For shipping registration, payment is by CREDIT CARD ONLY.)