TBI Education Center launches inaugural season

The newly rebuilt education center on Longboat Key is bringing back old favorites and new classes.

By Nat Kaemmerer
| 12:34 p.m. October 18, 2021

Susan Goldfarb and Isaac Azerad. File photo.

Longboat Key
Neighbors

Although classes don’t start until Nov. 4, the Education Center at Temple Beth Israel is open. Class sign-ups began when members received their schedules, and interested nonmembers have been signing up in the past week as the inaugural season of the newly rebuilt education center draws near.

New offerings

Classes start on Nov. 4 with a bevy of four- and six-week programs, as well as workshops and one-off lectures. The Education Center at Temple Beth Israel is located at 567 Bay Isles Road. Call 383-8222 or email [email protected] for information.

Among the new offerings:

Art Thieves — Nazi Art Theft in World War II France: From 3-4:30 p.m. Feb. 16-23, author Helen Schwartz will discuss the heaps of art theft that occurred in France during World War II. The class will be in two parts — "How to Steal Priceless French Art" and "Renoir's Three Sisters." Class is $40 for members and $45 for non-members.

Functional Fitness: From 9-10 a.m. on Thursdays Nov. 4 to Dec. 16, this new fitness class focuses on strengthening muscles that aid everyday movement. Brandi Johnson will take students through movements that mimic getting out of a car, going up and down stairs and walking on uneven ground. Class is $66 for members and $78 for non-members.

Welcome to the CIA: From 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Feb. 4-11, John Rixse will teach students about the Central Intelligence Agency, going deeper than what's typically available. Rixse was a former member of the U.S.'s national intelligence community and will share his personal experiences. Class is $40 for members and $45 for non-members.

“I tried to replicate basically what I've been doing for the last 30-odd years since I took over,” program director Susan Goldfarb said. “Some of the popular classes that we had at the (former Longboat Key) Education Center will definitely be back, because the teachers want to come back and the students want to hear what they have to say year after year.”

Now that the reimagined education center is settled into its new home, most of Longboat Key’s potential in-person students are vaccinated and others are accustomed to Zoom, Goldfarb is looking forward to a strong season. About 95% of the former Longboat Key Education Center’s teachers came to the temple with Goldfarb, and there are 15 new ones speaking to a variety of subjects like how to love your dog and an inside look at the CIA.

“We're doing very, very well with memberships,” Goldfarb said. “People are supporting us. They're sending their memberships, and they're just thrilled to think that they can come back to a place that's still going to be there for them. I think that the gratitude is showing up in the membership, because they're just thinking, ‘Wow, we're just so happy that the Education Center is being restructured and being everything we had enjoyed in the past.’ Hopefully there will be a lot more too, because I now have Isaac Azerad and the temple guys to help me and now we've got a lot more input people.”

There are a lot of class topics carrying over from the past Education Center, but the teachers are bringing the usual new spin to them like they have for years — American history courses change every year so students can keep taking classes with their favorite teachers. Old favorites are returning, such as Gus Mollasis’ movie discussion courses, fitness classes, and watercolor painting. Ringling College futurist David Houle will return, along with poetry and literature teacher David de Dwyer.

The switch to Zoom crippled the Education Center on Longboat Key during its final season. Goldfarb used to see hundreds of students pass through the halls every day during season, while in 2020 she saw about five live people a week. The classes at the Education Center at Temple Beth Israel will be both in-person and virtual, and the lecture hall is bigger and can accommodate more students safely.

“If you were to count all the classes, there would be 700 or 800 in a season, but there are about 175 different programs,” Goldfarb said. “We don't know from registrations whether people are going to mostly take Zoom or mostly be in person, but we have provided a hybrid for about 90% of our programming, except for the concerts.”