About Us

At SSILL, it’s about enlightenment and community.  It’s no surprise that several of our board members are retired educators as are many of our members.

SSILL is especially proud of its programs which we  believe are diverse, informative, educational and entertaining.   The fall semester programs run from just after Labor Day to mid-December and the spring semester begins the first week in March ending mid-June.

We offer programs that appeal to a wide variety of interests from art and music to history and science.  And in a variety of formats: large and small lectures, small discussion groups, films, concerts and trips.  We’re guided for the most part by members’ evaluations of existing programs, by their suggestions and by a 15-member program committee.  The amazing thing is that we never run out of ideas, topics, or speakers who are all, equally amazingly, volunteers. The speakers are university professors, both active and retired, physicians, authors, scientists, musicians, documentary filmmakers, experts in the fields of economics, history, art, opera, and the natural world.  AND many return to us semester after semester, telling us that they really enjoy the interaction with our intellectually curious and engaged audience.  Many stay to talk with our members long after their talk is over.

Programs are presented largely at the Guilford Community Center as well as at the Madison Senior Center, St. George Church Hall and the Guilford Library with whom we have a long collaborative history.  We offer some joint programs with the library each semester (most recently a zoom art history talks by the art expert, Bob Potter) and we also use their community room for some of our programs during the semester.  

SSILL Weekly Spotlight