Alumni Life Long Learning Opportunities
Consistent with the mission and core values of Westmont the Alumni office is dedicated to continuing to cultivate our alumni as Thoughtful scholars through life-long learning opportunities. We aim to do this through lectures, workshops, and webinars. In addition, we will strive to provide alumni book clubs for our alumni to connect, learn, and flourish together. Lastly, we hope to provide travel opportunities for our alumni to explore, experience, and grow.
Below you will find upcoming Life Long Learning Events as well as past events...
Recent Lectures for our Thoughtful Scholars
The Westmont Foundation sponsors Westmont Downtown: Conversations about Things that Matter.
A Human Approach to AI: Understanding its Promises and Perils by computer science faculty Guang Song and Mike Ryu. This talk establishes a framework for critically evaluating the impact of AI on human lives — as both a tool of empowerment for extraordinary achievements and a force that risks undermining human dignity through its underlying biases and resulting harms. We’ll discuss how to best engage ethically with its accelerating influence. The talk explores AI’s deep roots in the 75-year history of computing, demystifing the mechanisms behind its seemingly incomprehensible abilities, and examines key breakthroughs that have fueled the explosion of generative AI innovations. Click HERE to watch this Spring 2025 talk.
"The Crucibles That Shape Us: Navigating the Defining Challenges of Leadership" is Westmont President Dr. Gayle D. Beebe's most recent book. Entering his 18th year as president at Westmont, Beebe has responded to several local natural disasters: The Tea Fire, Thomas Fire and Montecito debris flow. “Though every leader faces enormous challenges that require response, it’s still difficult to anticipate the severity of unfolding events and the length of time it will take to resolve them,” Beebe says. “Each situation demands a vision that exceeds inconvenience and a commitment to strategies and tactics that help us persevere.” Beebe identifies seven crucibles — powerful catalysts for transformation — that profoundly shape us when we embrace them. Each chapter of the book delves into a challenge that Beebe has personally faced and intimately understands. As a seasoned college president, he brings a unique perspective, blending academic expertise with heartfelt storytelling to create a book that’s both intellectually stimulating and deeply inspiring. Click HERE to watch this Spring 2025 talk.
Maternity Care Deserts is a lecture by Stephanie Curtis, a certified nurse midwife and Westmont instructor of nursing. Curtis unpacks the reality that hospitals have increasingly been closing maternity departments around the country creating "maternity care deserts." “This growing problem is a symptom of major issues in health care delivery affecting several facilities that provide maternity services,” she says. “It contributes to health care disparities and often leaves those in marginalized communities with even less access to care — some having to drive 30-40 miles to get to a safe place to deliver their babies.” Click HERE to watch this Fall 2024 talk.
Faith-Based Principles for Pluralist Democracy by professor Jesse Covington whose research explores the interrelation of religion and government. The talk draws on a book by Covington, Bryan McGraw and Micah Watson that explores how the Christian intellectual tradition can help with this tension. “Hopeful Realism: Evangelical Natural Law and Democratic Politics,” shows how the insights of St. Augustine of Hippo, in concert with the Christian natural law tradition, can provide vital guidance for Christians in politics today. Click HERE to watch this Fall 2024 talk,
Aging and Mobility: Fundamentals and Frontiers by kinesiology professor Adam Goodworth and alumnus Maury Hayashida ’95 who owns Hayashida & Associates Physical Therapy. This lecture examined how aging affects balance and mobility and provided practical tips, key research data, and information about the latest technology and future directions. Click HERE to watch the April 2024 talk.
The Transformative Power of Storytelling by theater arts professor Wendy Eley Jackson . This lecture resonated with every demographic as it explored the importance of harnessing the influence of storytelling to make a positive impact in communities. Jackson serves as the CEO of Auburn Avenue Films, a production company specializing in entertainment that brings social awareness and engages audiences to participate in social change. At Westmont, she teaches documentary filmmaking, screenwriting, and creative writing. Click HERE to watch the February 2024 talk.
The Changing Geopolitical Landscape and Role of Foreign Aid by political science professor Katherine Bryant . Foreign aid is one of the most commonly used tools of foreign policy, but the landscape in which states are operating is rapidly changing. This talk explored how these major shifts in the geopolitical landscape affect foreign aid spending, particularly in the United States. Click HERE to watch the November 2023 talk.
Asteroids and Exoplanets: How Scientists Are Exploring Our Universe by physics professor Jennifer Ito . Scientists are actively studying our own solar system through recent asteroid missions as well as distant planets with data from the Hubble Space Telescope and James Webb Space Telescope. Fascinating results from these studies continue to develop our understanding of our complex universe. Click HERE to watch October 2023 talk.
Heinmiller Lectures on Spiritual Formation by Steve Porter , senior research associate and executive director of the Martin Institute for Christianity and Culture. Established in 2011, the Martin Institute assists Christian individuals and organizations in deeply understanding, intelligently communicating, and effectively implementing reliable and psychologically realistic pathways of becoming more like Jesus for the sake of the world. Click HERE to watch the February 2024 talk.
The Spiritual Life in the Secular World: The Alternative Augustine by Stan Rosenberg . The Martin Institute sponsored this event. Rosenberg founded and directs Scholarship and Christianity in Oxford (SCIO). He is an academic member of Wycliffe Hall and a member of the faculty of theology and religion at the University of Oxford, teaching early Christian history and doctrine and science and religion. Click HERE to watch the March 2024 talk.
Care in Times of Crisis: Suicide and Emotions in Medieval England by Rebecca McNamara. Click HERE to watch the April 2023 talk.
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WESTMONT COURSES
If any alumni would be interested in auditing classes, the fee to audit a course for a non-matriculated student is $50 per unit.
Audit Registration: An audit registration is a non-credit registration for the student who wishes to attend the lectures in a course or take advantage of learning experiences in musical ensembles or private lessons without examinations, homework, papers, record of practice hours, or evaluation. Required course fees will be charged for all audits.
The instructor's signature must be obtained on an add/drop form for audit registration. This typically does not occur prior to the first day of the semester so that the instructor can determine whether or not there is space in the class.
A course may not be changed from credit to audit after the last day to drop classes.
An audit may be dropped at any time until the last day of classes without penalty or record by submitting an add/drop form to the Student Records Office.
A grade of "AU" will appear on the student's transcript only if the instructor indicates that the student adequately participated as an auditor. A student who does not complete the audit and has not dropped it prior to the last day of classes will receive a "WX" grade for an unofficial withdrawal. A student who wishes to remove the course from the transcript must submit a request to the Registrar. A $40 late processing fee will be charged to the student’s account.