IMPORTANT  

When you are checking out, please make sure that you select the option “My SSC Membership is Current” when answering the question about your membership status - otherwise you will be overcharged for this.

                                                           MEMBERSHIP POLICY

This membership covers June 1st, 2025, to May 31st, 2026. SSC Members must have a valid membership entry on your file to enjoy the full benefits of our Summer-Fall 2025 and Winter-Spring 2026 programs that take place during this period. You should select your 2025- 2026 membership one time as part of registering for your first class in this new year. If you need to apply for a scholarship to cover your membership fees, this is done using a separate application which is located on the SSC website. Your request must be reviewed and processed by the Scholarship Committee before registering for any classes.

If you are not sure what your current membership status is, before registering for this please contact SSC at sunriseseniorcollege@maine.edu or call 207-255-1384 and leave a message – we will get back to you.

The underwater seaweed (rockweed) forests of Maine support commercial fisheries and wildlife (otters, shorebirds, puffins, eider ducks, etc.). How much do you know about rockweed forests? Rockweed, Ascophyllum nodosum, is a foundational coastal species and an ecosystem engineer. Yet it is also targeted by an industry removing millions of tons of rockweed for agricultural products such as fertilizers and cow feed additives. This sets up a conflict between landowners, who own the rockweed, and the rockweed removal industry.  In this classroom session with our instructor Dr. Robin Hadlock Seeley, we will get to know much more about rockweed as she discusses its value in the structure and functioning of the marine food web, including species such as scallops, lobster, cod, alewives, otters and sandpipers. Attendees will also get a good introduction to Maine law affecting rockweed and its commercial harvesting, as well as an outline of the commercial harvest controversy that surrounds it.  

For those who find this session fascinating and wish to learn more, Robin is offering us a second session – an early morning field trip to Pembroke’s Reversing Falls Town Park - to see firsthand the undisturbed rockweed forest there, with “trees” over 4 feet long, at low tide. You may also see some of the different species covered in the lecture session, as well as seals playing just off the shore. This walk involves a very short walk from a nearby parking lot 100 feet from the shore. The surface is a gentle slope to the water, and we will take our time, but rockweed is slippery, and the intertidal area is not considered accessible to those with mobility concerns. This special event will occur this Thursday, Sept. 11th, and the event is limited to just 15 participants. You must sign up for this separately.         

Instructor: Dr. Robin Hadlock Seeley Ph.D., is the Executive Director of the Maine Rockweed Coalition and a Certified Senior Ecologist (certified by the Ecological Society of America). She is a retired Senior Research Associate, Dept. of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at Cornell University, and an 8th generation Mainer and Bowdoin College graduate. She lives in Pembroke, Maine.

Class Information: This is a hybrid class - held in-person in UM@M’s room SCI 102 and via Zoom with the instructor in person at UM@M.

All facilities at the University of Maine at Machias (UM@M) are fully handicap compliant.  The facilities used by Sunrise Senior College (SSC) at the college have ramps, elevators and handicap accessible bathrooms.  Our offsite functions and activities have various limitations and restrictions and may not be fully handicap accessible.  SSC will endeavor to identify limitations at these to you in advance.

                                                   IMPORTANT:  See Below

“Sunrise Senior College does not endorse any appeal or representation made by a presenter, non-profit organization or business during an SSC presentation.  SSC members attending the presentations may wish to pursue additional involvement with the organization or presenter based on the material that was presented and in doing so, they are acting on their own and not as part of SSC.”

This class is available to all current Maine Senior College (MSCN) Members. The general public not wishing to join Sunrise Senior College at this time may attend this class for a $15.00 fee.

Important: If at this time you are not a current member of Sunrise Senior College (SSC) but are planning to join as a member today, make sure you answer that “Your SSC membership is current” when checking out so that we can properly bill you for this class.

Sunrise Senior College (SSC) is a membership-based organization. Our SSC members receive special benefits as current members when they register for this course. Any member of another MSCN college is also able to enjoy this course, but may incur some additional charges. If you are a member of the general public, you can take this course but will have to pay additional fees associated with being a non-member. For any attendee that is not a current member of Sunrise Senior College, any materials required for the course are your responsibility. When checking out, please carefully read and answer the questions asked associated with this specific course so that you are charged appropriately for this class. Failure to do this may result in your being cancelled from the course. We hope you enjoy this offering.

Location: Reversing Falls Park, Mahar Point (DIRECTIONS link)

In today’s session, we will meet with Dr. Robin Hadlock Seeley at Pembroke’s Reversing Falls Town Park, where we will walk on the shore at low tide and walk through the low tide rockweed “forest”, learning about the species that live within its branches and canopy, its growth and growth forms, and ways the forest is affected by different harvest methods in Maine. This session will further explain why and how the Rockweed is so important to the ecological well-being of Maine’s marine commercial fisheries and wildlife. It starts in the western parking area near the historic Mahar cemetery.  You will see some of the different species covered in the lecture session, as well as seals playing in the Falls just off the shore. This session involves a very short walk from a nearby parking lot 100 feet from the shore. The walking surface is a gentle slope to the water, and we will take our time, but rockweed is slippery, and the intertidal area is not considered accessible to those with mobility concerns. After the session ends, participants will have the option to have a morning snack or breakfast on picnic tables and explore for themselves the adjacent shoreline trails (moderate hiking difficulty: trails are not level or smooth) of the Downeast Coastal Conservancy’s Reversing Falls Preserve, where Dr. Seeley serves as a volunteer steward. This field trip is limited to 15 people. Water appropriate, sturdy foot wear and all participants must sign a liability wavier that day. 

It is not necessary for you to have taken Dr. Seeley’s Sept. 9th lecture class on Rockweed to participate in this walk; however, places are limited and those who signed up for the lecture class will have first priority for the field trip.  For those students who are taking the Sept. 9 class, please answer “Yes” at checkout when you are asked if you are taking the class and this field trip will be reduced by $5.00.

Trailhead Directions: Take Route 1 to West Pembroke. Turn south onto the extension of Route 214 next to the Pembroke Post Office. Turn right at the next stop sign and then an immediate left up a very small hill onto the Leighton Point Road (also called Leighton Neck Road). Continue 3.3 miles; then turn right onto Clarkside or Cemetery Road for 1.2 miles. At the end of Clarkside Road (you will see the Bay!), turn left onto Reversing Falls Road (not marked by a street sign). Go 1.5 miles to the Town of Pembroke Reversing Falls Park, and when you arrive, bear right and go down the hill towards the water and a parking area. Or use this link to create your own directions: DIRECTIONS VIA GOOGLE MAP. https://www.google.com/maps/dir//44.8820789,-67.1322421/@44.8820715,-67.1406114,659m/data=!3m1!1e3?entry=ttu&g_ep=EgoyMDI1MDQyOC4wIKXMDSoASAFQAw%3D%3D

Instructor: Dr. Robin Hadlock Seeley Ph.D., is the Executive Director of the Maine Rockweed Coalition and a Certified Senior Ecologist (certified by the Ecological Society of America). She is a retired Senior Research Associate, Dept. of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at Cornell University, and an 8th generation Mainer and Bowdoin College graduate. She lives in Pembroke, Maine.

Class Information: This is an in-person only class - held at Pembroke’s Reversing Falls Town Park with the instructor in person.

All facilities at the University of Maine at Machias (UM@M) are fully handicap compliant.  The facilities used by Sunrise Senior College (SSC) at the college have ramps, elevators and handicap accessible bathrooms.  Our offsite functions and activities have various limitations and restrictions and may not be fully handicap accessible.  SSC will endeavor to identify limitations at these to you in advance.

                                                   IMPORTANT:  See Below

“Sunrise Senior College does not endorse any appeal or representation made by a presenter, non-profit organization or business during an SSC presentation.  SSC members attending the presentations may wish to pursue additional involvement with the organization or presenter based on the material that was presented and in doing so, they are acting on their own and not as part of SSC.”

This class is available to all current Maine Senior College (MSCN) Members. The general public not wishing to join Sunrise Senior College at this time may attend this class for a $15.00 fee.

Important: If at this time you are not a current member of Sunrise Senior College (SSC) but are planning to join as a member today, make sure you answer that “Your SSC membership is current” when checking out so that we can properly bill you for this class.

Sunrise Senior College (SSC) is a membership-based organization. Our SSC members receive special benefits as current members when they register for this course. Any member of another MSCN college is also able to enjoy this course, but may incur some additional charges. If you are a member of the general public, you can take this course but will have to pay additional fees associated with being a non-member. For any attendee that is not a current member of Sunrise Senior College, any materials required for the course are your responsibility. When checking out, please carefully read and answer the questions asked associated with this specific course so that you are charged appropriately for this class. Failure to do this may result in your being cancelled from the course. We hope you enjoy this offering.

Please join Maritime Historian and folk singer Stephen Sanfilippo on his continued seafaring adventure of song and the maritime history of Maine. In this 3-session offering, Stephen will continue presenting Maine history and songs covering such topics as:

– Pirates & Stereotypes

– The Romance of the Sea: Sweethearts & Lovers: Patriarchs: Mothers

– A Supernatural Conclusion – Is the Sea Still A Magic Place?

Each of the three classes will cover different material and songs from “BYGONE BALLADS of MAINE, volume 1: Songs of Ships & Sailors.” Stephen loves participation and singing in in his classes but it is not mandatory. If you’re not inclined to sing, just come to listen to the wonderful songs and learn more about Maine’s sea lore and history. Attendance at Stephen’s first class in July is not required in order to attend this class.

Stephen is requiring the following book for this class:

     Title: BYGONE BALLADS of MAINE, volume 1: Songs of Ships & Sailors

     Author: Julia Lane & Fred Gosbee, compilers & editors

     ISBN: 978-1-935243-79-3 (paperback)

This book is available on Amazon or from the author at Castlebay.net.

                                               !!! IMPORTANT !!!

At this time, it is too late for SSC to order the book. If you wish to take this class you must purchase the book yourself.

Presenter: Stephen Sanfilippo, a United States Navy veteran, has a Ph.D. in History. He has been researching and performing historic songs of the maritime trades since 1973. Stephen is a retired assistant professor, Maine Maritime Academy, teaching “Maritime History through Historic Songs of the Sea.” He has led the monthly Chantey Sing at Pembroke (Maine) Library since 2006, and has performed from Prince Edward Island to Saint Vincent in the Caribbean.

Class Information: This is an in person only class - held in-person in UM@M’s room TORR 226 with the presenter being in person at UM@M.

All facilities at the University of Maine at Machias (UM@M) are fully handicap compliant. The facilities used by Sunrise Senior College (SSC) at the college have ramps, elevators and handicap accessible bathrooms. Our offsite functions and activities have various limitations and restrictions and may not be fully handicap accessible. SSC will endeavor to identify limitations at these to you in advance.

                                                   IMPORTANT: See Below

“Sunrise Senior College does not endorse any appeal or representation made by a presenter, non-profit organization or business during an SSC presentation. SSC members attending the presentations may wish to pursue additional involvement with the organization or presenter based on the material that was presented and in doing so, they are acting on their own and not as part of SSC.”

This class is available to all current Maine Senior College (MSCN) Members. The general public not wishing to join Sunrise Senior College at this time may attend this class for a $20.00 fee.

Important: If at this time you are not a current member of Sunrise Senior College (SSC) but are planning to join as a member today, make sure you answer that “Your SSC membership is current” when checking out so that we can properly bill you for this class.

Sunrise Senior College (SSC) is a membership-based organization. Our SSC members receive special benefits as current members when they register for this course. Any member of another MSCN college is also able to enjoy this course, but may incur some additional charges. If you are a member of the general public, you can take this course but will have to pay additional fees associated with being a non-member. For any attendee that is not a current member of Sunrise Senior College, any materials required for the course are your responsibility. When checking out, please carefully read and answer the questions asked associated with this specific course so that you are charged appropriately for this class. Failure to do this may result in your being cancelled from the course. We hope you enjoy this offering.

With all the concerns and red flags coming out of Washington DC, SSC is pleased to offer this single-session presentation on the current status of climate action and clean energy for Maine.

The Natural Resources Council of Maine (NRCM) is the state’s leading environmental advocacy organization. It works across multiple issue areas to improve the cleanliness of Maine’s air and water, ensure the efficacy of recycling and sustainability programs, and facilitate climate action in Maine. Our presenter Josh Caldwell is NRCM’s Climate and Clean Energy Policy Advocate and Outreach Manager and he works on NRCM’s Climate and Clean Energy team.

In this presentation Josh will provide us an overview of Maine’s climate and clean energy goals alongside the opportunities that are available for you in which to engage in climate action. He will tell us how NRCM works with other organizations, businesses, and individuals across Maine to implement effective climate solutions. We will also learn that much of NRCM’s work takes place with legislators at the State House, but the real key to making positive change is to connect decision-makers with the people they represent.

Presenter: Josh Caldwell grew up in West Gardiner and attended Bates College where he majored in Environmental Studies. Josh is NRCM’s Climate and Clean Energy Policy Advocate and Outreach Manager.

Class Information: This is a hybrid class - held in-person in UM@M’s room SCI 102 and via Zoom with the instructor being on Zoom.

All facilities at the University of Maine at Machias (UM@M) are fully handicap compliant.  The facilities used by Sunrise Senior College (SSC) at the college have ramps, elevators and handicap accessible bathrooms.  Our offsite functions and activities have various limitations and restrictions and may not be fully handicap accessible.  SSC will endeavor to identify limitations at these to you in advance.

                                                  IMPORTANT:  See Below

“Sunrise Senior College does not endorse any appeal or representation made by a presenter, non-profit organization or business during an SSC presentation.  SSC members attending the presentations may wish to pursue additional involvement with the organization or presenter based on the material that was presented and in doing so, they are acting on their own and not as part of SSC.”

This class is available to all current Maine Senior College (MSCN) Members. The general public not wishing to join Sunrise Senior College at this time may attend this class for a $15.00 fee.

Important: if at this time you are not a current member of Sunrise Senior College (SSC) but are planning to join as a member today, make sure you answer that “Your SSC membership is current” when checking out so that we can properly bill you for this class.

Sunrise Senior College (SSC) is a membership-based organization. Our SSC members receive special benefits as current members when they register for this course. Any member of another MSCN college is also able to enjoy this course, but may incur some additional charges. If you are a member of the general public, you can take this course but will have to pay additional fees associated with being a non-member. For any attendee that is not a current member of Sunrise Senior College, any materials required for the course are your responsibility. When checking out, please carefully read and answer the questions asked associated with this specific course so that you are charged appropriately for this class. Failure to do this may result in your being cancelled from the course. We hope you enjoy this offering.

From bee bombs in Mesopotamia 100,000 years ago to insect robots, insects have been used as weapons. As vectors of disease, agricultural pests, and human pests, insects can cause harm to large numbers of people. In this course we will discuss how insects have been used in war intentionally or otherwise to change the course of wars. Did you know Napoleon was defeated by insects, not his human enemies? He was defeated in Haiti due to yellow fever transmitted by mosquitoes, defeated in war with the Ottoman Empire in Syria by bubonic plague transmitted by fleas, and defeated in Russia by typhus transmitted by lice. Insects have affected war plans such as Britain deciding not to invade Cuba in the 1650’s when the British fleet mistook lightning beetles on shore as the torches of a large Spanish army.

In more recent times, Japan had a special army unit developing ways to use insects as weapons in World War II. The U.S. had its own military working on biological warfare in Frederick, Maryland, looking at ways to use insects in war. During the Korean War both North Korea and the USA blamed each other for using insects as weapons. Current research is being done in the U.S., and quite likely in other countries, to use insects, insect toxins, and robotic insects in warfare. So, beware of the black fly, it may be a Chinese weapon!

Instructor: Dr. Mark Brown has a Ph.D. in entomology from Penn State and worked for the US Dept. of Agriculture for 28 years working on uses of beneficial insects to control insect pests, nothing that could be used in warfare. He also has an interest in history. His first course he taught for the Sunrise Senior College was on the role insects have had in world history.

Class Information:  This is a hybrid class - held in-person in UM@M’s room SCI 102 and via Zoom. Dr. Brown will be presenting sessions in-person.

All facilities at the University of Maine at Machias (UM@M) are fully handicap compliant.  The facilities used by Sunrise Senior College (SSC) at the college have ramps, elevators and handicap accessible bathrooms.  Our offsite functions and activities have various limitations and restrictions and may not be fully handicap accessible.  SSC will endeavor to identify limitations at these to you in advance.

                                                   IMPORTANT:  See Below

“Sunrise Senior College does not endorse any appeal or representation made by a presenter, non-profit organization or business during an SSC presentation.  SSC members attending the presentations may wish to pursue additional involvement with the organization or presenter based on the material that was presented and in doing so, they are acting on their own and not as part of SSC.”

This class is available to all current Maine Senior College (MSCN) Members. The general public not wishing to join Sunrise Senior College at this time may attend this class for a $20.00 fee.

Important: If at this time you are not a current member of Sunrise Senior College (SSC) but are planning to join as a member today, make sure you answer that “Your SSC membership is current” when checking out so that we can properly bill you for this class.

Sunrise Senior College (SSC) is a membership-based organization. Our SSC members receive special benefits as current members when they register for this course. Any member of another MSCN college is also able to enjoy this course, but may incur some additional charges. If you are a member of the general public, you can take this course but will have to pay additional fees associated with being a non-member. For any attendee that is not a current member of Sunrise Senior College, any materials required for the course are your responsibility. When checking out, please carefully read and answer the questions asked associated with this specific course so that you are charged appropriately for this class. Failure to do this may result in your being cancelled from the course. We hope you enjoy this offering.

The literary fans wait is over for our loyal Sunrise Senior College members who look forward to looking at the classics. Our resident scholar, Dr. Gerard NeCastro, is with us once again as he presents his unique insights into Shakespeare’s King Lear.  This masterpiece is widely considered his most complex and thought-provoking play. It is a tale of a man, retiring from his duties and hoping for a comfortable life in his senior years, who soon finds that these hopes are destroyed. Over this six-session class we will watch him deal with cruelty, disloyalty, madness, and injustice.

Shakespeare’s handling of all of this is not only masterful but also controversial, as his historical—or unhistorical--portrayal of this early British king so disturbed the generations to come that several playwrights rewrote the play. This may be Shakespeare’s most challenging play, but it is probably his most rewarding as well.

Instructor: Gerard NeCastro, Ph.D. - for the past thirty years Gerard has been a scholar of Medieval and Renaissance drama and has been fortunate enough to teach many courses in Shakespeare, including several of them for Sunrise Senior College.  He served on the board for the Medieval and Renaissance Drama Society for over twenty years, presented a host of papers, and edited two volumes of drama. He has even directed a couple plays and acted in a few small roles.

Class Information:  This is a hybrid class - held in-person in UM@M’s room SCI 102 and via Zoom. Dr. NeCastro will be presenting sessions both in-person and on Zoom over the 6-week period. Classes are scheduled for Mondays, October 6th, 20th, 27th, November 3rd, 10th & 17th from 2:00 to 4:00 PM (no class October 13th). 

Required Book*

          Title:       King Lear

          Author:  William Shakespeare, Edited by Paul Werstine and Barbara A. Mowat

          ISBN:      978-0743482769

*Active Sunrise Senior College members (2025-26 membership year) - SSC will provide you with a copy of book if you register by September 2nd, 2025.

For non-Sunrise Senior college members this book is available on Amazon. 

All facilities at the University of Maine at Machias (UM@M) are fully handicap compliant.  The facilities used by Sunrise Senior College (SSC) at the college have ramps, elevators and handicap accessible bathrooms.  Our offsite functions and activities have various limitations and restrictions and may not be fully handicap accessible.  SSC will endeavor to identify limitations at these to you in advance.

                                                  IMPORTANT:  See Below

“Sunrise Senior College does not endorse any appeal or representation made by a presenter, non-profit organization or business during an SSC presentation.  SSC members attending the presentations may wish to pursue additional involvement with the organization or presenter based on the material that was presented and in doing so, they are acting on their own and not as part of SSC.”

This class is available to all current Maine Senior College (MSCN) Members. The general public not wishing to join Sunrise Senior College at this time may attend this class for a $20.00 fee.

Important: If at this time you are not a current member of Sunrise Senior College (SSC) but are planning to join as a member today, make sure you answer that “Your SSC membership is current” when checking out so that we can properly bill you for this class.

Sunrise Senior College (SSC) is a membership-based organization. Our SSC members receive special benefits as current members when they register for this course. Any member of another MSCN college is also able to enjoy this course, but may incur some additional charges. If you are a member of the general public, you can take this course but will have to pay additional fees associated with being a non-member. For any attendee that is not a current member of Sunrise Senior College, any materials required for the course are your responsibility. When checking out, please carefully read and answer the questions asked associated with this specific course so that you are charged appropriately for this class. Failure to do this may result in your being cancelled from the course. We hope you enjoy this offering.

Sunrise Senior College is pleased to offer this class in conjunction with Lewiston-Auburn Senior College.  We have a limited number of 7 seats available so sign up now!

“What is Philosophy?” is a discussion and self-examining class. The first class will examine the origins of Greek philosophy with the Pre-Socratic philosophers and determine how they would define philosophy. The second class would examine the thoughts and life of Socrates and how he would define philosophy and compare him to the Pre-Socratic Philosophers. In the third class, we would examine the definitions of some contemporary philosophers and finally have each student define philosophy for their lives.

Instructor: Anita Denis was brought up in Lewiston, attended St. Dominic's High School, got her B.A. from Rivier College in Nashua, NH and her Master’s degree from Rhode Island College. She taught Social Studies in several overseas international schools, the last of which was Seoul Foreign School where she taught philosophy courses.

Class Information:  This is a Zoom only class being held in conjunction with Lewiston-Auburn Senior College.  The instructor will be on Zoom.

All facilities at the University of Maine at Machias (UM@M) are fully handicap compliant.  The facilities used by Sunrise Senior College (SSC) at the college have ramps, elevators and handicap accessible bathrooms.  Our offsite functions and activities have various limitations and restrictions and may not be fully handicap accessible.  SSC will endeavor to identify limitations at these to you in advance.

                                                  IMPORTANT:  See Below

“Sunrise Senior College does not endorse any appeal or representation made by a presenter, non-profit organization or business during an SSC presentation.  SSC members attending the presentations may wish to pursue additional involvement with the organization or presenter based on the material that was presented and in doing so, they are acting on their own and not as part of SSC.”

This class is available to all current Maine Senior College (MSCN) Members. The general public not wishing to join Sunrise Senior College at this time may attend this class for a $20.00 fee.

Important: If at this time you are not a current member of Sunrise Senior College (SSC) but are planning to join as a member today, make sure you answer that “Your SSC membership is current” when checking out so that we can properly bill you for this class.

Sunrise Senior College (SSC) is a membership-based organization. Our SSC members receive special benefits as current members when they register for this course. Any member of another MSCN college is also able to enjoy this course, but may incur some additional charges. If you are a member of the general public, you can take this course but will have to pay additional fees associated with being a non-member. For any attendee that is not a current member of Sunrise Senior College, any materials required for the course are your responsibility. When checking out, please carefully read and answer the questions asked associated with this specific course so that you are charged appropriately for this class. Failure to do this may result in your being cancelled from the course. We hope you enjoy this offering.