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Room for thought. Room for you. A program catalogue for the lifelong learner. Pull up a chair.
W W W .T H E S T U D Y N D . O R G
Welcome in
A
particular kind of contentment settles over anyone learning for its own sake, asking a big question with no deadline attached, and finding a room full of people eager to turn that question over together. That contentment is what we tend here, year after year.
You may have known us for fifty years as Humanities North Dakota. We're the same people, with the same mission, now gathered under a name that says what we've always been: a study. Founded in 1973, we've spent five decades carrying the humanities out of the lecture hall and into everyday life. Today we carry that work forward as The Study ND, a room with the door open, a lamp left on, a chair pulled out. Inside you'll find scholar-led classes, living-history performances, author talks, a statewide documentary tour, and our In Pursuit partnership lectures on the American presidency. Because cost should never keep anyone from the chance to think deeply, most are free, and the rest are kept within reach through grants and the generosity of donors. Come in. There's room for you here.
Much heart and light, Brenna Gerhardt Executive Director · The Study ND
W H AT A R E T H E H U M A N I T I E S ?
W H AT W E B E L I E V E I N
History, literature, philosophy, ethics, civics, languages, religion, the disciplines that help us
Kindness, humility, good-faith engagement, intellectual curiosity, the free exchange of
understand one another and ourselves.
ideas, nonpartisan and open to everyone.
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Dorothy Lick
Julie Blehm
Dave Ehlis
Harry Hagel
Chair · Bismarck
Vice Chair · Fargo
Bismarck
Wishek
Michael Tomanek Bismarck
Melinda Goodman Minot
Marianna Malm Fargo
Jerod Tufte Robinson
Larry Skogen
Angela S. Gorder
Shari Veil
Amy Cleary
Mandan
Bottineau
Fargo
Bismarck
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T H E S E M E S T E R AT A G L A N C E
Ways to wonder Living History
History brought to life, then a conversation
p. 5
In Pursuit
Essays & lectures on leadership from the American presidency
p. 6
Classes
Multi-week courses you can take from home
p. 8
Documentary Film
A statewide screening tour of Expedition: Greenland
p. 12
We the People
Civic education, plus a special 250th lecture with Kwame Anthony Appiah
p. 13
Book Talks
Meet the authors everyone's talking about
p. 14
Knowledge on Tap
Big ideas and good company at a favorite local spot
p. 15
Study Clubs
Gather in person, year-round
p. 16
The Library
Watch & listen anytime, a growing archive of recorded talks
p. 17
The Podcast
Learning for your commute, your walk, your kitchen
p. 18
Substack
Essays, creative writing & photography, the conversation continues
p. 19
What sets us apart Every Study ND program is led by a humanities scholar, someone with a master's degree or higher in a humanities discipline. That standard is our promise to you: genuine expertise, made affordable, accessible, and meaningful, rooted in North Dakota and open to anyone who wants to join us. We open the door to local and national scholars alike, in service of the timeless search for truth.
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FINDING YOUR PLACE
How to take part First, register Every program needs a quick sign-up. Visit thestudynd.org, look for Upcoming Classes & Events, find the event by name, and save your seat by registering.
Second, pay what you wish Most programs are free. Some are pay-what-you-wish, and a few carry a small set price.
Third, join online or in person Many sessions run live over Zoom and are recorded to watch later. Others gather in a room together, in Bismarck, Fargo, Minot, Grand Forks, and across the state.
Fourth, come as you are No prerequisites, no exams, and no experience required. Bring your curiosity; we'll bring the rest. All times are Central.
Lifelong learning, by the numbers.
IN 2025 ALONE
245
8,700+
128
776
Class sessions & events
Registrations
Engaging scholars
Hours of education
Those numbers add up to a lot of good company. N O W, T H I S FA L L
Watch Frederick Douglass or Thomas Paine step out of history and into the room, take an eleven-week journey through 250 years of the American story, meet an author everyone's talking about, or trade ideas over a drink at Knowledge on Tap. Whatever pulls you in, there's a seat for you.
Questions? Email roomforyou@thestudynd.org or call 701.255.3360, and a real person will help you find your place.
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T H E PA S T, I N T H E R O O M W I T H Y O U
Living History Acclaimed scholars step fully into the shoes of the people who shaped our world, then step out of character to take your questions.
Venturing with the Vanguard: Sarah Campbell & York Joyce Jefferson & Marvin Jefferson Two Black figures from the early West step forward to tell their stories in their own voices: York, the enslaved man whose labor and courage helped the Lewis & Clark expedition survive, and Sarah
Sept 8 Tue · 6:30 pm Bismarck State College
Campbell, who arrived a generation later by steamboat to become the first known African American woman in the Dakota country.
Gellhorn v. Hemingway: In Love and War Dr. John Dennis Anderson & Jarice Hanson Ernest Hemingway and Martha Gellhorn, two of the boldest writers of their age, come back to life across three unforgettable evenings of love, war, and rival typewriters. Every performance takes place at Bismarck State College and is livestreamed.
Sept 16–18 Wed–Fri Bismarck State College Virtual
Wed, Sept 16 · 7:30 pm Ernest Hemingway Thu, Sept 17 · 7:30 pm Gellhorn v. Hemingway: In Love and War Fri, Sept 18 · 3 pm Martha Gellhorn
Thomas Paine: Liberty's Firebrand
Sept 17
Dr. Doug Mishler
Thu · 7 pm
The pamphleteer whose words lit the fuse of revolution returns to make his case, fiery, funny, and startlingly current. Thomas Paine
Virtual
reminds us that common sense was once a radical act, and may be again.
Frederick Douglass Speaks on American Democracy
Oct 6
Nathan Richardson
Tue · 7 pm
Hear the words that shook a nation, delivered with the force they were first meant to carry. Frederick Douglass steps from history to speak of freedom, justice, and the unfinished promise of America.
Virtual
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LEADERSHIP LESSONS FROM THE PRESIDENCY
In Pursuit · The Essays In Pursuit is a national essay series from More Perfect, a nonpartisan, not-forprofit initiative that mines American history for what it can teach us about leadership. This fall, The Study brings its historians straight to North Dakota.
Here's how it works. In Pursuit publishes a series of short, free online essays, each pairing one president or first lady with one of the country's finest historians, who distills a single, durable lesson in leadership, character, or civic
An initiative of MORE PERFECT
responsibility that speaks to our moment. The series is led by Dr. Colleen Shogan, the former Archivist of the United States.
Where The Study comes in We've partnered with In Pursuit to bring a select group of those historians live to North Dakota, in interactive webinars created just for our audiences. You won't only read the lesson. You'll meet the scholar who wrote it and ask your own questions, in real time, wherever you are in the state.
A national essay series
One leader, one lesson
Live, just for ND
Short, free essays online, one for each president and select first ladies, written by leading
Not a timeline to memorize, but a single, useful insight on leadership drawn from
The Study hosts these historians in interactive webinars made exclusively for
historians and journalists.
each life.
North Dakota audiences.
Read the full series free at inpursuit.org. This fall, seven In Pursuit historians join The Study live.
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M E E T T H I S F A L L' S H I S T O R I A N S
In Pursuit · Lecture Series Our In Pursuit partnership series pairs a leading historian with moderator Dr. Colleen Shogan for an evening of real conversation. Free, virtual, and unforgettable.
James Madison and the Constitution: Ideas That Built a Republic
Tue · 7 pm
Dr. Jack Rakove
Virtual
Sept 15
How did a shy, five-foot-four scholar become the architect of the Constitution? A Pulitzer winner takes us inside Madison's restless mind.
William Henry Harrison: The Power of Presidential Storytelling
Tue · 7 pm
Sharon McMahon
Virtual
Sept 22
The internet's favorite history teacher on how a 31-day presidency became a lasting lesson in the stories we tell about power.
John F. Kennedy: Rethinking the Camelot Myth
Oct 13
Alexis Coe
Tue · 7 pm
Coe pulls back the curtain on Camelot to ask what we get wrong about the Kennedy we only think we know.
Virtual
John Quincy Adams & Louisa Adams: A Partnership That Shaped a Nation
Oct 27 Tue · 7 pm
Dr. Lindsay Chervinsky & Louisa Thomas
Virtual
Two celebrated biographers trade the story of early America's most fascinating marriage, a president and a first lady, in their own words.
Sarah & James K. Polk: Power, Partnership, and Politics in the 1840s
Tue · 7 pm
Dr. Amy Greenberg & Dr. Matt Costello
Virtual
Nov 10
Behind one of the most consequential presidencies stood a political partnership ahead of its time. Meet the power couple of the 1840s.
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LEARN FOR THE LOVE OF IT
Classes Multi-week, scholar-led courses you can take from your own kitchen table. Most meet weekly over Zoom, and every class is recorded, so you can take a course asynchronously at your own pace, or simply catch up on any session you miss.
Peacebuilding Starts at Home
Wednesdays
Dr. Chip Hauss
Sept 9 – Oct 14 6:30–8 pm 6 sessions
A renowned conflict-resolution scholar shows how the skills that calm a kitchen-table argument can help mend a divided world.
Virtual
250 Years of the Great American Story Dr. Kevin Walker Eleven weeks, two and a half centuries, one unforgettable throughline, trace the American story from revolution to right now.
Thursdays Sept 10 – Nov 19 6–7:30 pm 11 sessions Virtual
What the Imagination Knows Dr. Cassie Fielding What if imagination isn't escape, but a way of knowing? Four weeks to rediscover the quiet wisdom of the creative mind.
Sundays Sept 13 – Oct 4 1–2 pm 4 sessions Virtual
1776: NOT the Musical! Dr. Ty Reese · University of North Dakota Everything the musical left out. A UND historian tells the real, messier, more astonishing story of the year it all began.
Thursdays Sept 24 – Oct 15 6–7:30 pm 4 sessions Virtual
When Science Meets Religion: Friend or Foe? Dr. Ernest Simmons Must faith and reason be at war? A theologian referees one of humanity's oldest, and most misunderstood, conversations.
Mondays Oct 5 – Oct 26 6–8 pm 4 sessions Virtual
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Flash Fiction: Engaging Writing in Four Easy Steps Dr. Bill Macauley Tell a whole story on a single page. In four friendly steps, discover how much you can say in just a few hundred words.
Mondays Oct 12 – Nov 2 6–7:30 pm 4 sessions Virtual
The Victorian Era in 10 Poems Dr. Sarah Faulkner Ten poems, one extraordinary century. Read the Victorians slowly and watch a whole world open up between the lines.
Tuesdays Oct 13 – Nov 17 7–8:30 pm 6 sessions Virtual
Humanities-Informed Business Writing Dr. Bill Macauley Write like a human, not a memo. Bring the clarity and soul of the humanities to the words your work depends on.
Defining Moments in Presidential Leadership: From Washington to Reagan Rick Collin From Washington to Reagan, five weeks inside the decisions, crises, and choices that defined the office and the nation.
Tuesdays Oct 13 – Nov 3 6–7 pm 4 sessions Virtual
Thursdays Oct 22 – Nov 19 6:30–8 pm 5 sessions Virtual
Pay What You Wish We set a modest minimum price so a class can fit any budget. The true cost runs far higher, with grants and donors making up the difference. If you're able to give above the minimum, your gift keeps these courses within reach for everyone.
Ask Your Library for a Free Class Pass Want to take a class on us? Visit your local library and check out a Class Pass, free admission to any Study ND course this season. Libraries across North Dakota partner with The Study to offer Class Passes to their patrons. Librarians: become a Class Pass partner at thestudynd.org/libraries.
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KEEP THE LAMP ON
You belong to something bigger Somewhere in North Dakota, a retired plumber is reading Plato for the first time. A young mother is finding her voice in a Study Club. A whole town is gathering to watch a film and talk late into the evening. None of it happens by accident, and almost all of it is free. It's free or low-cost because people like you decide it should be. When you give to The Study, you aren't funding a program. You're keeping a light on for the curious, the lonely, the searching, and saying to every one of them: there's room for you here.
Grants open doors. Neighbors like you keep them open.
Drop warm lamplit reading-room photo
How to give
or browse files
Online: www.thestudynd.org/donate By mail: send a check to The Study ND, PO Box 2191, Bismarck, ND 58502. Your gift is tax-deductible.
Give from your IRA (QCD) If you're 70½ or older, a Qualified Charitable Distribution lets you give directly from your IRA, up to $111,000 (2026) per year. It isn't counted as taxable income, and if you're 73+, it can count toward your Required Minimum Distribution. Ask your IRA administrator to send your gift to The Study ND. Our tax ID (EIN) is 45-0318487. Please consult your advisor.
M O R E W AY S T O M A K E A D I F F E R E N C E Employer match
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Honor & memorial gifts
Gift of stock
It starts with you Before a single grant is written or a partner signs on, there are the people who simply decide this matters, the monthly $10 gifts, the checks tucked into holiday cards, the neighbor who quietly covers a stranger's Class Pass. Your donation matters. Your gift does double duty. Every federal and foundation grant we receive must be matched, dollar for dollar, by gifts from individuals. Your generosity is literally what brings everyone else to the table. MAJOR FUNDING
S U S TA I N I N G S U P P O R T
S U P P O R T I N G PA R T N E R S
COMMUNITY FUNDERS
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T O R E A C H T H E U N K N O W N , YO U M U S T B R AV E T H E I C E .
D O C U M E N TA R Y F I L M · A L E A D E R S H I P S E S S I O N
In the spring of 2018, seven men set out to do what no one had done before: cross the Greenland Ice Sheet by vehicle, south to north, through more than 1,400 miles of frozen, roadless wilderness. Expedition: Greenland is the raw, breathtaking record of that journey, and of the trust it took to survive it. Among the crew was North Dakota's own Dr. Jon Solberg, who served as the team's physician. We're bringing it home for four free screenings. After the film, each opens into a leadership session: a scholar-led conversation with Dr. Solberg on what a humanities education teaches us about leading through extreme circumstances, the judgment, humility, and resolve the hardest moments demand, whether on the ice or closer to home.
Bismarck
Advanced Technology Center, BSC with Brian Jackson
Sat, Sept 12 · 2 pm
Minot
Ann Nicole Nelson Hall, MSU with Brian Jackson
Sun, Sept 13 · 1 pm
Grand Forks
Chester Fritz Auditorium, UND with Dr. Marjorie Jenkins
Sat, Oct 10 · 2 pm
Fargo
Festival Concert Hall, NDSU with Dr. Ann Burnett
Sun, Oct 11 · 1 pm
Free & open to all, registration required. Visit thestudynd.org.
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D E M O C R A C Y, TA U G H T F R O M T H E G R O U N D U P
We the People We the People: The Citizen & the Constitution is a school program that teaches students how American government actually works, where the Constitution came from, what the Bill of Rights protects, and how a free people govern themselves. The Study brings this nationally recognized curriculum to classrooms across North Dakota, free of charge.
82%
2×
of We the People alumni vote, against just 48% of their peers
more likely to follow politics and public affairs closely as adults
Stanford research finds students gain a deeper, lifelong commitment to democracy
In the classroom
For teachers
Over six units, students master the ideas
Our Summer Teacher Institute gives North
behind the Constitution, then prove it in a simulated congressional hearing, testifying as experts before a panel of judges and defending their positions in real time.
Dakota educators the training and textbooks to bring it to life, free to join. Your gift keeps it free, statewide. thestudynd.org/civic-education
A S P E C I A L L E C T U R E · A M E R I C A' S 2 5 0 T H
The Democratic Spirit at 250 I N PA RT N E R S H I P W I T H P H I K A P PA P H I
Dr. Kwame Anthony Appiah · with Dr. Dennis Cooley
Kwame Anthony Appiah, the philosopher and the New York Times' "The Ethicist," asks what 250 years of American democracy still asks of us, a landmark talk on how a free people argue, belong, and live together across deep difference.
Thu, Sept 17 · Noon–1 pm
Virtual
Free · Register at thestudynd.org
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MEET THE MINDS BEHIND THE BOOKS
Book Talks An author, an idea, and an hour to dig in. Hear directly from the writers and thinkers behind the books everyone's talking about.
Grandma Joy and Me
Sept 1
Brad Ryan & Grandma Joy · with Josh Boschee
Tue · 6:30 pm
A veterinarian and his 85-year-old grandmother set out to visit all 63 national parks, and, mile by mile, mend an eight-year rift. From Denali's peaks to the Everglades' wilderness, a memoir of forgiveness, resilience, and
Fargo Public Library
intergenerational healing.
Inside Roosevelt's Tennis Cabinet
Sept 20
Dr. Michael Cullinane · with Ed O'Keefe
Sun · 4 pm
Deals, friendships, and power games on the White House
Virtual
lawn. The surprising inner circle of athletes, boxers, and diplomats who shaped Theodore Roosevelt's presidency, and the modern idea of the strenuous life.
The Other Madisons
Sept 27
Dr. Bettye Kearse · with Dr. Larry Skogen
Sun · 4 pm
A descendant of an enslaved family and a president traces a
Virtual
story America tried to forget. A searching memoir of memory, lineage, and hard-won truth, carried across generations of oral history.
For Small Creatures Such as We Sasha Sagan · with Dr. Ernest Simmons
Thu · 6:30 pm
Carl Sagan's daughter on finding wonder, ritual, and
The Sanctuary, Fargo
meaning in a scientific world, an intimate evening in Fargo. Moderated by Dr. Ernest Simmons, it's the perfect companion to his class on whether science and faith must be at war (see Classes).
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Oct 8
O F F T H E PA G E , I N T O T H E R O O M
Knowledge on Tap In partnership with NDSU's University Distinguished Professors Knowledge on Tap sparks provocative conversations about big ideas. Enjoy a drink at the pub while engaging in a facilitated discussion with your neighbors and leading scholars who bring deep expertise to the subject. Each evening pairs a short research talk with a community conversation, no lecture hall required, just good company and better questions.
W H E R E Junkyard Brewing Co., West Fargo
C O S T $5 in advance
R E G I S T E R thestudynd.org
The Fall lineup Sept 8
Soil and Oil are Related in More Ways than Their Spelling!
Tue · 6 pm
Dr. Tom DeSutter · Soil Science Discover the surprising connections between the ground beneath our feet and the energy that powers our lives, and why bringing damaged soil back to life matters for all of us.
Oct 13 Tue · 6 pm
Food is Medicine: Nutrition, Aging, and Chronic Disease Prevention Dr. Yeong Rhee · Health, Nutrition & Exercise Sciences What if your next meal could help protect your brain, slow aging, and ward off disease? Find out how everyday food choices become powerful medicine.
Nov 10
Tales of Bringing Innovation to Market
Tue · 6 pm
Dr. Chad Ulven · Mechanical Engineering Go behind the scenes of turning big ideas into real products, including where AI helps, where it gets in the way, and what our region still needs to compete.
Dec 8
Metaphor and the Body: Explorations of Head–Heart Dualism
Tue · 6 pm
Dr. Michael Robinson · Psychology Why do we "follow our heart" or "use our head"? Explore how these everyday metaphors quietly shape the way we think, feel, and move through the world.
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S TA R T O N E . H O S T O N E . B E LO N G .
Study Clubs We were never meant to think alone. The best ideas come alive around a table, in good company, when one honest question opens into a whole evening. A Study Club is a small circle of curious people who gather to read and talk and wonder together, a handful of neighbors in a living room, a corner of the library, a quiet table at your favorite cafe, all leaning in over a single big idea. That's the kind of belonging people are longing for, and it takes just one person to create it. That person could be you.
Become a host. We'll be right beside you. You don't need to be an expert, just willing to open the door. We bring the readings, the discussion guides, and the support; you bring the people and the curiosity. Gather monthly or weekly, around any theme you love. Learn more and sign up to host at thestudynd.org/study-clubs.
A CLUB CAN STUDY ALMOST ANYTHING
Take a class
Tune in to a lecture
Read an essay
Press play
Enroll in a virtual class
Watch a live talk, then
Share an In Pursuit
Start with a pre-
together and discuss it
unpack the big
essay over coffee and
recorded talk from The
as a group.
questions afterward.
talk it through.
Study's Library.
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L E A R N AT Y O U R O W N PA C E
The Library Step into a world of ideas, whenever the mood strikes. The Library is The Study's growing collection of pre-recorded talks, lectures, and conversations for curious minds. No schedule, no pressure, just the joy of discovery, at your own pace. Dive into history, philosophy, literature, civic life, and the questions shaping our world, guided by engaging scholars who make learning feel alive.
01
02
03
Sign up free
Browse the collection
Watch anytime
One account, full access, no cost.
History, philosophy, literature, and civic life.
New recordings added all season long.
And here's a quiet secret for would-be hosts: recorded lectures and conversations in The Study's Library make the perfect spark for a Study Club. Gather a few friends, press play, and let the conversation carry from there.
Sign up today at thestudynd.org/library.
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LEARNING ON THE GO
The Study Podcast A virtual room for thought, where there's always room for you. Hosted by Tayo Basquiat, a former teacher of philosophy and religion turned wilderness ranger, The Study Podcast brings you ongoing conversations with writers, scholars, and fellow seekers. Listen & subscribe free on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or stream at thestudynd.org/podcast.
The Virtual Study Club TA K E T H E C O N V E R S AT I O N L I V E
A few times a season, Tayo opens a select episode into a live, small-group conversation. Listen ahead, then join online to talk it through together. U P N E X T T H I S FA L L
The Death of H. L. Hix With Dr. H. L. Hix · writer & philosopher
September 25 Fri · 12:00 pm
Taking Tolstoy's The Death of Ivan Ilyich as his prompt, H. L. Hix wrote the story of his own death, and why it matters that we consider our own mortality.
Stoicism as a Warrior Philosophy With Commander William C. Spears · U.S. Navy
October 23 Fri · 12:00 pm
A career Navy submariner on his book about Stoic thought and the life of service, and how this ancient philosophy helps any of us weigh our competing duties.
The Garden of Forking Paths With Ari King · research-based artist, Detroit Ari King and Tayo read Jorge Luis Borges' dazzling short story, a conversation about fate, free will, and the reward of wrestling with a brilliant, difficult writer. Free to join. Reserve your spot at thestudynd.org/podcast.
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November 20 Fri · 12:00 pm
W H E R E T H E C O N V E R S AT I O N C O N T I N U E S
The Study on Substack Essays, creative writing, photography, and civic reflection, all in one place. We invite you to read, reflect, respond, and even share your own work. W H AT W E P U B L I S H
The conversation is already happening.
THESTUDYND.SUBSTACK.COM
Read, subscribe, and submit your own work, free on Substack.
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Room for thought. Room for you. One of the best ways to support The Study is to invite others in. If lifelong learning in the humanities moves you, pass this catalogue along to someone who would love it too. There's room for them here, and the door is always open. T H E S T U DY N D . O R G
The Study ND, formerly Humanities North Dakota, is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit. © 2026 The Study ND. Programs are funded in part by the National Endowment for the Humanities. Any views, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed do not necessarily represent those of the NEH or The Study ND.