Programs & Events

This is an invitation to you to become a part of IU history.

Emeriti House has been video interviewing retired faculty, coaches, senior administrators, and other notable IU people since 2005. To date, just over 200 individuals have been interviewed.

Our interviews probe colleagues’ experiences at IU: how and why they came to Bloomington; their lives as teachers, researchers, and contributors to the greater good of the campus, the university, and beyond; their observations about changing times, the changing nature of the academy, of students, of their own fields of study; other aspects of their lives they wish to share.

For the last several years, we have partnered with the IU Bicentennial Committee. As such, our recorded interviews join those the Bicentennial group is conducting with IU students, current faculty, and alumni, and become a part of the IU Archives. (Of course, interviewees also receive a copy of their interview, along with a printed transcript.)

We’d like to encourage you to sit for an interview. We use the state-of-the-art Beckley Studio in the College of Arts and Sciences’ Media School, in Franklin Hall. Typical interviews last about an hour to an hour and a quarter.

We will be glad to tell you more and hope you will decide to become a part of IU’s historical record.

Bruce Jaffee jaffee@indiana.edu

Bonnie Brownlee brownlee@indiana.edu

Each spring, the Art Exhibit Committee is responsible for organizing and installing an annual juried exhibition. Retirees and their spouses and partners from IU Emeriti House and IU Retirees Association members, including those from other universities who now live in the Bloomington area, are invited to submit art for the annual exhibition. The committee welcomes work in all the visual arts.

Exhibitions have included collage, digital art, painting, photography, pottery, sculpture in various media, printmaking, textiles (including weaving, needlepoint, knitting, and embroidery), and woodwork. All art remains on exhibit until the next year’s show is installed so that visitors to the Emeriti House may enjoy seeing this exhibit throughout the year. In celebration of this event, an opening reception is held on the first Friday after the show’s installation. Wine and light refreshments are provided.

During each semester, Emeriti House sponsors a special presentation bi-weekly.  Programs are generally held every other Monday from 3:30 pm - 4:30 pm.  These events provide a vibrant environment where IU’s retired community can gather and explore issues of mutual interest.  Emeriti House programs showcase the talents of Indiana University’s retired faculty, and they also highlight the expertise of scholars and artists on campus.  Program topics include current issues and trends in the humanities, social sciences, sciences and professional schools; in addition, programs feature a wide variety of creative activities.  Many distinguished visitors to the Bloomington campus share their experiences with the Emeriti.  Each semester we also provide a few tours of campus and area highlights.  Wine and light refreshments are provided.

Nonpartisan, moderated discussions of the great issues and news of the day. Bi-weekly meetings are held in Emeriti House on Monday afternoons, starting at 3:30 p.m. with snacks and drinks.

Rules and procedures

Because the program creates a forum for discussing events about which intelligent and reasonable people can disagree, a moderator system organizes the meetings based on rules defining the respective roles of moderator and participant.

The Moderator: Current events discussions are meetings of participating equals who have informed opinions and ideas to share. The moderator facilitates discussion by setting an agenda that includes the following:

• Defines and introduces each topic with brief defining remarks and pose a fundamental question for participants to discuss from different points of view.
• Ensures that everyone has a chance to participate.
• Limit respondent speaking time and enforce decorum regarding partisan posturing, arguments, jeers, and applause.

Volunteer moderators may sign up as either General Moderator, responsible for the day’s entire meeting agenda, or Special Moderator, who leads discussions of limited and specialized topics.

Participants: Participants are any friends of Emeriti House who attend Current Events meetings. They set the terms of participation by agreeing to:

• Accept the rules of moderation.
• Read about current events, using authoritative and valid sources.
• Participate on a regular basis in the meeting schedule established by the membership.
• Respond to the questions posed by the moderator.

No record or report of proceedings will be kept.

The Life-Writing Workshop is a friendly and constructive group of colleagues that meets monthly on the second Thursday, from 2:30 pm - 4:30 pm.  Anyone in the Emeriti House community who has a biographical or autobiographical project, at whatever stage, is welcome to attend.  Most participants read from their project and invite responses from the group, but those who mainly want to absorb inspiration or ask questions are also welcome to attend. Reservations are not necessary, and attendance at earlier sessions is not a prerequisite.

The poetry reading group is dedicated to the critical and appreciative reading of poems recommended by the membership. They may be drawn from the universe of poetry in print, or selected by members from their own work. Texts in a language other than English will be discussed in translation. For practical reasons, shorter poems (up to perhaps 100 lines) are usually chosen. There is no restriction regarding country or milieu of origin. (The discussion of members’ poems may lead them to revision, but this is not a workshop in writing poetry.) This group meets once a month generally on a Tuesday.

Kitchen Explorers is an Emeriti House interest group focused on the history and culture of food prepared and served in the world’s kitchens. A Kitchen Explorers Committee (KEC) plans occasional culinary-themed events at which a dish or a meal is prepared and served to Emeriti House friends. Kitchen Explorers is a flexible program operating in a number of locations, including people’s homes, restaurants where space and an appropriate chef are available, and even the Emeriti House itself.

Kitchen Explorers Committee: Bill McGregor (O’Neill SPEA Emeritus), Christine Ogan (Media School and Informatics Emerita), Jean Robinson (Political Science Emerita), Rick Wilk (Anthropology Emeritus)

Each December, Emeriti House opens its doors for a gala holiday party. Join us as we share news of recent events and holiday plans over hors d’oeuvres and wine. Music lovers take note, the piano in our living room usually gets a good workout!

Each fall, the Vice Provost for Faculty and Academic Affairs hosts a reception at Emeriti House to welcome newly retired faculty, librarians, and their spouses and partners to the Emeriti House family. This is an opportunity to meet new retirees and to learn about their professional and personal interests AS WELL AS specific goals they have for their retirement. Hors d’oeuvres and wine are served.