Oregon Humanities is now accepting registration for three Humanity in Perspective (HIP) courses taking place in the 2024-2025 academic year. HIP offers free community-centered courses to Oregon residents who do not have a four-year degree and are living on low incomes or otherwise facing barriers to continuing their education. Participants do not need a high school diploma, GED or proof of legal residence to qualify.
Students who participate in HIP can earn up to 12 transferable semester credits from Bard College. There are no tuition costs or fees and all readings are provided. Bus tickets, technological assistance, childcare reimbursements and mentorship are also available to support student success.
Course schedules vary, but classes generally take place two evenings each week. The fall 2024 and spring 2025 classes—What is Democracy? and Yesterday Was the Future: Modern Art, Futurisms and Artificial Intelligence—will meet in person at Oregon Humanities’ downtown Portland office, while the winter 2025 course—Worlds Within Words: A Cross-Cultural Exploration of Multimedia Memoir—is offered online via Zoom. What is Democracy? begins Monday, September 30.
For over 20 years, the HIP program has provided opportunities for hundreds of Oregonians to earn free college credit while participating in a supportive learning community. Experienced instructors center class exploration in core humanities subjects such as art, history, philosophy, literature, writing and critical thinking.
Rozzell Medina, HIP program manager and lead instructor, says, “Some people [join HIP] because they want to go to college and they see this as a good way to get a foot in the door and earn free credits while they’re at it. Other people join because they want to learn with other thoughtful people about the world we live in and what it means to be human. Whatever the case, there’s a lot of room in these courses for diverse interests, perspectives and motivations.”
Registration and additional course details at bit.ly/4cD4lRZ.