The Longboat Key Education Center Celebrates 35th Anniversary

January 29, 2021 – Longboat Key

For 35 years, area visitors and residents have cultivated their passion for learning at the Longboat Key Education Center. The Center offers a rich range of programs, including lecture series, performing arts series, film festivals, book clubs, concerts, theatrical performances, and more. It’s open from mid-October to mid-April and features fall, winter and spring terms.

These programs are presented by some of the region’s most accomplished academics, entrepreneurs, inventors, and authors from nearly every field of interest. 

“We tap the extraordinary expertise of the residents who live in the area,” says Susan Goldfarb, the center’s executive director. “We’re surrounded by world-class talent and many choose to share their knowledge to enrich the lives of our students.” 

Goldfarb has led the organization for the last 25 years, growing it to 175 classes taught by more than 135 teachers, performers, and lecturers. More than 500 members support the organization, and that support has never been more essential than during the yearlong pandemic.

“We had to move quickly, and we did,” says Goldfarb. “We now offer 95 percent of our classes online. It was an enormous and expensive endeavor, but we made it happen with the support of our membership and funding from the CARES Act and other pandemic-related funding. Our devoted students count on us every year—and they were always our first priority. While we miss the in-person camaraderie—and we used to see 500 students day before the pandemic—we don’t let that discourage us. We know these restrictions are only temporary, and still plan to celebrate our 35^th anniversary in high style!”

Although the pandemic significantly impacted The Center’s program delivery, it didn’t diminish the longstanding quality of its courses and events. Its 2021 winter lecture series still features intellectually compelling explorations of politics, sociological phenomenon, history, culture, religion, and philosophy. Winter offerings include “The 2020s — The Most Disruptive Decade in History,” “Presidential Abuse of Power is Not New,” “Intelligence and the Presidency,” and “Mark Twain’s Pandemics and Politics.” Explorations into the human condition include “How We Think: Exploring the Mechanisms of the Mind,” the Biblical Experience of Sickness and Healing,” and “What Makes Us Human?”

 “Friday at 5,” “In the Spotlight,” and “Theatre Showcase,” the Center’s popular performing arts series, showcases intimate performances by regionally based musicians, actors, playwrights, and entertainers, including Katherine Michelle Tanner (“Shakespeare’s Lovers” on February 5); Thomas Carabasi (“Samba Meets Jazz” on February 19); and David Polansky (“Fifty+ Years of Broadway” on March 5).

In celebration of its 35th anniversary, the Center is presenting two special performances. “Romance on  the Riviera,” on Friday, February 12, showcases soprano Joy Leitner and tenor Robert Lischetti performing some of the world’s most romantic music by Puccini, Faure, Debussy, Verdi, and other great composers. The Westcoast Black Theatre Troupe (WBTT) will present a custom performance written and directed by WBTT founder and artistic director Nate Jacobs on Friday, March 12. Tickets per event range from $20 for members and $30 for non-members. These programs will be offered both via Zoom and in-person with limited attendance and strict adherence to pandemic protocol. Register online at www.lbkeducationcenter.org; email info@lbkeducationcenter.org; or call (941) 383-8811.

The Center’s winter courses continue through April and program registration is ongoing. 

The Longboat Key Education Center, 5370 Gulf of Mexico Drive, Suite 212 at The Centre Shops in Longboat Key. For more information, visit www.lbkeducationcenter.org or call 941-383-8811.