All Harrisburg Courses   

This course can help you learn to crochet in three sessions. It’s a great brain activity! You will need to bring a crochet hook and yarn to practice.

Special note: Bring a US size G or H crochet hook and worsted weight (number 4) yarn. If you need help, please contact Eileen at ebeasom75@gmail.com.

Curious about Mah Jongg? Come join the fun! In this beginner course, you'll learn the basics of this classic tile game in a relaxed social setting. Attendees are encouraged to purchase A Beginner's Guide to American Mah Jongg by Elaine Sandberg before the course.

Course fee includes purchase of Official National Mah Jongg League cards ($15).

The funeral train carrying the remains of the slain President Abraham Lincoln passed through the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania on April 21–22, 1865, on its way to New York City and again on April 28 as it headed west from Buffalo to Cleveland and passed through the Erie region. Tens of thousands of Pennsylvanians passed by the coffin as Lincoln lay in state in Harrisburg and Philadelphia. Massive, untold numbers of residents watched the funeral train slowly steam past their farms, small towns, communities, and whistle stops. Many left personal reminiscences.

Book reference: A Carnival of Grief: The Lincoln Funeral Train in Pennsylvania by Scott Mingus

Experience the joy of movement! Silver Swans® ballet classes are specifically designed for learners over 55 to improve mobility, posture, strength, coordination, and memory. The course curriculum was developed through comprehensive research conducted by the Royal Academy of Dance (UK). Each class in this 5-session course promotes social connection, creativity, and cultural appreciation. No experience necessary.

Special notes: Participants may wear comfortable, fitted clothing (i.e., leggings and a t-shirt, fitness apparel) or formal ballet attire (leotard, tights, ballet skirt). Soft, fitted ballet shoes or jazz shoes can be worn. You may even take class with bare feet. Instructor can provide recommendations for purchases.

Angered by scam calls invading your privacy? Disgusted with emails and texts from criminals filling your inbox or junk files? Concerned about your older family members being fleeced? Most of us are beyond annoyed with the ways our lives are being bombarded by scammers, and we feel we have no control. The FTC and FBI say that it is only going to get worse! Join Mary Bach for this educational and informative session about many of the latest scams, the red flags, what to do, and where to complain. You are your own first line of defense. Remember, if you can spot a scam, you can stop a scam!

This course will provide resources and care options for helping an aging loved one. We will discuss costs, advantages, and disadvantages of different options as well as the process of touring and moving a loved one to a care facility. The instructor will explain the differences in the various levels of care and support options available to seniors.

This course highlights the work of American artists collectively known as the Red Rose Girls. They lived and worked together for many years, challenging the gender norms of the early 1900s by remaining single and supporting themselves with their artwork. Violet Oakley went on to paint many of the murals in the Pennsylvania State Capitol building in Harrisburg, many done before women had the right to vote. This program shows how these talented and educated women provided for themselves and each other during a time when it was expected that women would marry and have children.

There are many articles and books about the Red Rose Girls that would provide some insight into this topic. Violet Oakley's murals can also be seen in person at the Pennsylvania State Capitol.

You will learn watercolor techniques and then apply those techniques to a traditional beach scene. Additionally, you will be doing an exercise the instructor likes to call “watercolor chaos” to create a piece of abstract art on a canvas board.

Special notes: Please wear comfortable clothes. Feel free to bring an apron, there is a possibility of paint splatter.

Course fee includes $5 for supplies.

This course will begin by introducing and highlighting the bloodhound. We'll compare the physiology of the canine nose to that of a human and explain how this marvelous nose can benefit humanity. We'll look at the attributes of the bloodhound, including the often-comical abundance of skin. From puppy beginnings to intensive adult dog training, learn how it all comes to be. Science again comes into play as we learn about the uniqueness of the scent of each of us and how the bloodhound uses that to “find his person.” Safety lessons are shared along the way. The course will conclude with a demonstration.

Be ready to enjoy the presence of the K9 as you learn both the science and the magic of the K9 nose as it is utilized to locate the missing and the wanted.

Ever dreamed of bringing a classic car back to life? In this beginner-friendly course, you’ll learn how to select the right project car, source parts, and find the right people to work with you. Led by an experienced hobbyist, this course breaks down the restoration journey into approachable steps, from mild to wild. Participants are encouraged to bring photos to share their own projects and operating classic cars, regardless of stage—started or completed.

Learn about the history and purpose of the State Library of Pennsylvania. As a statewide resource center and law library, the State Library provides residents with Pennsylvania state and US government documents, print materials, a digitized collection, online reference services, and automated resources. The Rare Collections Library includes the Provincial Assembly Collection, a collection of pre-1865 Pennsylvania imprints, rare books, maps, manuscripts, and the largest collection of Pennsylvania newspapers in the world.

Stress can leave us anxious, irritable, and overwhelmed. If it feels especially hard to overcome these habitual reactions, it’s not that we’re broken, but rather how our nervous system is wired for survival and connection.

In this course, we’ll explore how our vagus nerve and our body's built-in survival instincts of fight, flight, and freeze shape how we think, feel, and function—often without our awareness. We’ll learn to recognize when we are stuck in a reactive state. And we’ll discover how to thrive using five simple, sustainable practices to calm and regulate our nervous systems.

Want to make a difference in the world and flourish while doing it? Join us for a unique intergenerational project where Penn State students and OLLI members team up to tackle real-world issues. Together, you will share your life experiences, brainstorm solutions, and design a 7-day challenge to inspire community action. Whether you are passionate about the UN Sustainable Development Goals or a local community issue, this is your chance to connect across generations, get creative, and build a legacy of positive change.

This course will explain how genetic genealogy uses consumer DNA tests, plus historic records, to identify relatives and solve mysteries from family puzzles to historic cold cases. Participants will be able to learn what genetic genealogy is, how it can be applied to their own family mysteries, the standard techniques of the field, and how it is being used in our community outside of genealogy. This course will marry a traditional genealogy course with the cutting-edge of new science that all can enjoy.

Bring a laptop or notebook, if possible.

Mary Shelley's Frankenstein has been a key text in English literature since its first publication in 1818. At its 200th anniversary seven years ago, The New York Times identified it as “the rare story to pass from literature into common myth.” This course will focus on the texts, intertexts, and adaptations of Frankenstein, its role in British Romanticism, and why we obsessively return again and again to its central questions: what is the responsibility of a creator toward their creation, of a parent toward their child, of a human toward another human? This course includes a short lecture followed by discussion.

Special notes: Participants should read Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, preferably the 1818 first edition, available on Project Gutenberg or Penguin Classics. ISBN#: 978-0143131847

In summer 2025, three good friends signed up for a winter-break, warm-weather trip to Cuba with Road Scholar, scheduled for February 2026. The trip proved more than we expected as we encountered a country in crisis due to the US-imposed oil embargo. Yet Cuba was spectacular in terms of beauty, the warmth of the people, and exposure to a culture and society we knew little about. The contours of legal travel to Cuba meant that our program focused on meaningful interaction with private entrepreneurs, private farms, and non-governmental cultural and social projects. Much to discuss!

OLLI at Penn State is pleased to partner with the Pennsylvania Bar Association and the PA Supreme Court's Commission on Judicial Independence to present an informative conversation with Pennsylvania judges. This 90-minute, moderator-led panel will detail the career path to the judicial role, managing the courtroom and caseload, and the behind-the-scenes details for court operations and how cases are decided. Panelists will discuss current challenges and efforts to ensure public trust in a fair and secure judicial system and will also share personal perspectives on the realities of life as a judge.

Learn how to knit with wire. You will learn how to form the beginning of your project, the process of the knit stitch, and how to repeat this stitch until the desired length has been reached. The second session of the course will focus on refining the stitch and learning how to take lengths of the wire to create wire jewelry by using a thicker wire to finish the ends and create the clasps.

Special notes: Each participant will need to bring jewelry wire, 24- or 26-gauge wire, and some 20-gauge wire for the finishing of the wire ends. You will need to bring a few jewelry tools to the second session. Jewelry wire cutters, needle nose pliers, and round nose pliers.

The audience will be engaged by a vitally important historical figure still relevant in the present world of ceaseless wars and costs in both blood and treasure. The instructor will encourage participation and critical thinking by asking questions and using verified facts of General Butler's life and his relevance today, citing his documented experience and the hardships he faced while educating the public on the tragedy of world conflict. No requirements but an open mind.

Book reference: War Is a Racket by Smedley Butler

Passionate collecting of everything from books to jewelry, sports memorabilia, toys, dolls, toy trains, and more can be fulfilling and enriching. The same passion can be used to organize your collections for your own sense of balance, and organizing today will save family members or friends if you are unable to manage your collections in the future or as an appendage to your will, trust, or letter to your survivors.

In this course, you will learn tools, applications, and strategies to organize your stuff. Please bring pictures or an example of your passion.

Participants will enjoy an exclusive private tour of the historic Fulton Theatre, offering a behind-the-scenes look at one of the nation’s oldest continuously operating theatres. During the experience, participants will learn about the theatre’s rich history, architectural significance, and important role in the local arts community. The tour will also provide insight into the creative and operational processes that bring each production to life, highlighting the collaboration between performers, directors, designers, technicians, and administrative staff. Participants will have the opportunity to explore several areas of the theatre, including the stage, rehearsal spaces, costume and set areas, and backstage facilities, when available. This unique experience offers an engaging look into both the history and day-to-day operations of a working professional theatre.

Course fee includes cost of admission.