Lunch & Learns

Feb 10 

Alvin Ridley was a TV repairman who shuttered his business in 1984, started a flurry of accusations and civil litigation against local officials, and otherwise became a malcontent in Ringgold, Georgia. When accused of keeping his wife captive in their basement for decades and then killing her, Ridley turned to McCracken Poston Jr. to help. Autism advocates and true crime enthusiasts have praised Poston’s account of managing a mysterious and difficult client. Ridley was first diagnosed as neurodivergent over two decades after his trial. Poston calls for better testing of suspects and better training of police, lawyers, and judges. Books will be available after the event for purchase and signing by the author.

McCracken Poston
McCracken King Poston Jr. is a former member of the Georgia House of Representatives and current criminal defense lawyer in Ringgold, Georgia. His account of representing Alvin Ridley in a 1990s murder trial is told in his book Zenith Man: Death, Love, and Redemption in a Georgia Courtroom (Citadel, Hardcover, 2024).

Mar 3

Harriet Powers, born enslaved in 1837 in Madison County, GA, died and was buried in Athens in 1910. What is known of her life story, her quilting, her Athens and Madison County locations, and her legacy deserves to be widely shared. Learn where to find her points of interest in Athens.

Jacqueline Elsner
Jacqueline Elsner retired in 2014 from a career as a public librarian with libraries in Maine and Georgia, serving her final 26 years with the Athens Regional Library System. She is a storyteller, an a cappella singer of Appalachian ballads and the poems of Byron Herbert Reece set to music, and a fan of Harriet Powers. She has been a program volunteer for decades at the Len Foote Hike Inn.

Mar 31

Hundreds of President George Washington’s (1732-1799) likenesses were produced in paint, marble, engravings, and decorative arts during and after his lifetime, more than any other president of the 18th and 19th centuries. Images of Washington were not just portraits but testaments to his heroic virtues, especially the concept of him as America’s Cincinnatus. Like that Roman statesman and military leader, Washington willingly relinquished military and presidential powers to return to his farm at Mount Vernon. We will analyze how portraits and images of Washington by Charles Willson Peale, Gilbert Stuart, Jean-Antoine Houdon and others emphasized his virtues and greatness as the leader of the Continental Army and the nation’s first president. We will see, too, how he was turned into a deity after death.

Janice Simon
Dr. Janice Simon is Josiah Meigs Distinguished Teaching Professor Emerita of the University of Georgia, where she taught art history for 35 years. A specialist in American art and culture, she taught a range of courses in American and modern art.

Apr 21

Volcanoes have always given rise to powerful emotions. They simultaneously fascinate and frighten those who live on their slopes when they erupt. Approximately 1.1 billion people live or lived within 100 km of active volcanoes that erupted in the last 10,000 years. Many eruptions, especially explosive ones, might occur without giving a clue of upcoming disaster. Volcanologists still strive to accurately forecast the likelihood, magnitude, and style of eruptions. This presentation offers cases of cohabitation between people and active volcanoes, the related pros and cons, and how modern volcanology offers information to thriving 21st-century societies facing the impact of climate change on a regional to global scale. In-class demonstrations, rocks, and slides will be presented.

Mattia Pistone
Mattia Pistone was awarded BSc in Geological Sciences at Università G. D’Annunzio in Chieti and MSc in Geodynamics, Geophysics, and Volcanology at University of Rome La Sapienza (Italy). He obtained a PhD in Earth Science at ETH-Zurich (Switzerland). Mattia is currently a tenured Associate Professor and director of the MAGMA MIA research group at UGA, and he conducts research on active volcanoes in Italy, Ecuador, and Alaska-Aleutians.

May 12

This class will cover how humans invented and reinvented money- originating from the barter system to the evolution of coins and paper money, to electronic and digital money. It will provide an introduction to cryptocurrency (e.g., Bitcoin), how blockchain works, and the future direction of money.

Manoj Saxena
Manoj Saxena’s career has taken him across continents and through a range of industries. After earning his graduate degree from UGA, he spent 35 years working across banking, financial services, consulting, and academia in the United States, India and Singapore. Now retired, he continues to share insights gained from a lifetime of experiences and cross-cultural perspective.