At its monthly meeting on Thursday 23 February, your Committee of Management reluctantly took the decision to close our U3A to new members from the end of February. This cap on membership will be reviewed at the end of Term 2.
With classes back for Term 1, there is certainly a buzz around the place with new and returning members enjoying our huge range of fabulous classes.
Welcome back to all from the Course Admin team, Elsie, Ken, Skip and Mary. The first week of term was very busy for our volunteer team as we did our best to settle members into their requested classes.
With over 80 classes on offer, January’s Summer School attracted over 1650 attendances, more than twice the previous year’s attendance figures.
The planning, which commenced last August, certainly paid off with the biggest Summer School program ever and the highest number of members on record enrolling in at least one class.
Over 60 new and returning volunteers were welcomed and thanked by President Gary Walker for working on the U3A Nunawading Reception Desk at an Information Session held at the Hub before classes commenced.
Reception Desk Coordinator, Athalie Edis, also thanked the volunteers for being the friendly and helpful first point of call for U3A members, and recognised the importance the volunteers play in the operation of our organisation.
Our Four O’clock Forums on the last Wednesday of the month have been very popular. They reflect the ‘U’ in U3A.
We invite qualified outside speakers who are specialists in their field. There is something different each month to cater for our members’ varied interests and thirst for new knowledge. Here is an overview of the next three sessions. Enrolment is obligatory. Enrol online here
February’s Snippets includes a call-out for volunteer book sorters; March celebrations for International Women’s Day and the Victorian Cultural Diversity Week; and an opportunity to sign-up for a free wellness and healthy ageing course.
In January, we held the annual Leaders Information Session where Class Leaders received their class contact lists and information relevant to operating a class at the Hub.
The Summer School classes were led by some of our regular Class Leaders who kindly offered one-off sessions on different topics to their normal classes, or ‘taster’ classes for members who may be interested in enrolling in their year-long courses. Other leaders included members who had a particular interest they wished to share in a short course format, plus there was a wide range of excellent outside presenters.
Lectures by professionals on health issues and estate planning proved to be particularly popular, as were the creative workshops. It was great to see the hats, bags, self-portraits, and paper cut-out works produced by members in the holiday atmosphere of Summer School.
A highlight of this year’s Summer School was the extensive range of cooking demonstrations held in the Hub kitchen/dining area. Summer School Committee Member Kim Ngoc Tu, sourced all of the presenters from within our own membership to create a most successful and popular program over the six days that classes were held at the Hub.