Upcoming Online Events
The Agora Foundation is a nonsectarian 501(c)3 non-profit endeavor, providing great books seminars and other educational opportunities to those who are busy with careers, families, and daily responsibilities yet are seeking to further their education. The goal of these offerings is to provide an understanding of the ideas that shape civilizations and to promote civil discourse on complicated subjects. The Agora Foundation has facilitated over 1,000 great books seminars and teacher trainings, covering a wide variety of topics including literature, philosophy, political science, theology, history, art, psychology, and more, featuring ancient and modern texts from around the world. In addition to seminars, since 2014 Agora has produced 35 panels, gatherings, and video interviews, promoting civil discourse on controversial and complicated subjects. Hundreds of these events can be freely viewed and listened to on this website.
Generously funded by The Ahmanson Foundation, Southern California Edison, The Shanbrom Family Foundation, the Ventura County Community Foundation, the WRG Foundation, the Constance Eaton and William Hart Fund, the Ojai Valley Chamber of Commerce, Rotary Club of Ojai, CIty of Ojai, and private donations, the Teachers for Lifelong Learning Program provides training to high school teachers in this engaging approach to learning, and The Ojai Chautauqua provides panels promoting civil discourse on controversial and complicated subjects.
Upcoming Regular Events



Online Seminar Series
Silent Spring by Rachel Carson
Postponed to August 2
12:00-2:00PM PDT
Published in 1962 and named one of the 25 greatest science books of all time Silent Spring swayed public opinion and led to a reversal in U.S. pesticide policy, a nationwide ban on DDT, and an environmental movement that led to the creation of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
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August 2 Reading:
13. Through a Narrow Window, 14. one in Every Four, 15. Nature Fights Back, 16. The Rumblings of an Avalanche, 17. The Other Road (pages 199-297)
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Schedule:
12:00 - 2:00PM PDT
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Tutor:
Andy Gilman
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Location:
Online Seminar Series
Monday Night Poetry Group
Monday, June 30
5:00-6:00PM PDT
Join us as we explore what makes a poem. Each session will focus on a single poem or two shorter ones. We'll examine how language becomes art, taking note of everything from forms and sound patterns to imagery and word order. No preparation is required and join for any or all that interest you.
June 30 Reading:
Who Goes with Fergus
by William Butler Yeats
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Schedule:
5:00 - 6:00PM PDT
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Tutor:
Carol Seferi
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Location:
Online Seminar Series
Finnegans Wake by James Joyce
Wednesday, July 9
12:30-2:00PM PDT
A story with no real beginning or end, the work has come to assume a preeminent place in English literature. Published in 1939, the book would take Joyce two decades to complete. Join us as we read this text a few pages at a time, every other Wednesday afternoon.
July 9 Reading:
Book Two - Chapter Three of Finnegans Wake by Joyce (page 374, Line 1)
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Schedule:
12:30 - 2:00PM PDT
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Tutor:
Barry Rabe
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Location:
An Introduction to The Agora Foundation. What is liberal education?
An Introduction to The Agora Foundation's Ojai Chautauqua Panels.