New year, new classes! Copiah Lincoln Community College is welcoming back faculty, staff, and students after the holidays and we would like to welcome you to join the long line of people that have benefited from our special interest program. There is a wide variety of classes available this spring that could aid you in your personal and/or professional life.

We will kick off the semester with a long-awaited class from Jim Wiggins.  “The Prehistory and History of Climate Change” (7 weeks) will start on Jan. 16 in the theatre room at the Natchez Visitor Reception Center on Canal Street. This course will cover the natural reasons for climate change, its influence on human cultural evolution, its impact on the rise and fall of civilizations, the successes and failures of human societies to adapt, and much more!

If you are looking to de-stress and be healthier in mind and body after the chaos of the holidays, you will have two opportunities to hit the mat with yoga (4 weeks). There will be a session starting on Jan. 17 and another session starting March 28. I am also excited to announce a new class on Zentangle (4 weeks) starting on Feb. 8.  Zentangle is an artful form of drawing, often referred to as “yoga for the brain.” Calm you mind one pen stroke at a time.

Back by popular demand, QuickBooks (6 weeks) will be offered again on Jan. 22. This workshop will take you from installation to tracking your payables, receivables, and inventory. Then we will follow this up with QuickBooks Advanced (4 weeks), starting on April 9.

As always, we try to keep courses on the schedule that give people the skills and tools that need to further their professional goals and better give back to the community. Tuwanna Williams will be offering several such classes this semester. You will have three opportunities to take the “Effective Communication: Win the War with Words” workshop, the first one being on Feb. 7. “Grant-Writing Basics” (2 weeks) will start on March 22, followed by “Grant-Writing Advanced” (2 weeks) on April 12.

Along the same lines, there will be four different computer classes covering a variety of the Microsoft Office programs. “Office Ready” using Word will be on Feb. 19 – 21. Then we will offer “Excel for Beginners” on Feb. 26-27, and “Intermediate Excel”will follow that up March 5–7. Lastly, we will hold the “PowerPoint Presentation” class on April 16-17.

We will offer two different types of wreath making this semester. Learn to make beautiful grapevine wreaths on March 1 or learn to make the popular deco-mesh wreaths on March 8, or both. These spring wreaths will look great on your door or a friends door!

Finally, I am thrilled to announce a new, fun, and different sort of course! “Emergency Outdoor Survival: Because You Just Never Know” (4 weeks) begins on April 5. In the event of a natural or man-made disaster, would you know sort of essential things you should have at your disposal? If you were lost in the woods, would you be OK? Although you might have seen survival skills demonstrated on TV, watching them and doing them is a world apart. In this class, you will learn basic emergency survival skills. This will be a very useful and hands-on workshop. Because you just never know…

All classes are offered at lowest possible cost and are designed to be stress-free.  Our aim is to provide an avenue for life-long learners in our community striving toward new skills, hobbies, or personal enrichment. This program is created with you in mind so as always; I welcome any and all feedback. Continuing Education Units (CEUs) are available for some classes.

For more details on classes available, please contact Emily Edwards at 601-446-1103 or email emily.edwards@colin.edu.  You may also register at the Willie Mae Dunn Library on the Co-Lin Natchez campus and don’t forget to keep an eye on our Facebook page (Co-Lin N-Sights). Pre-registration is required for all courses!  Class sizes are limited so sign up today and give yourself the gift of life-long learning!
Emily Edwards is the Learning Resources Coordinator at the Copiah-Lincoln Community College Natchez campus.