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



Free Onsite Community
Seminar Series
The Poetry of Rumi
Tuesday, May 27
12:00-1:00PM PDT
Online Seminar Series
Finnegans Wake by James Joyce
Wednesday, May 28
12:30-2:00PM PDT
Rumi was a 13th-century poet and Sufi mystic born during the Khwarazmian Empire. Like others in Persian literature, Rumi's poetry speaks of love which infuses the world. We invite you to join us once per month to explore his poetry together.
May 27 Reading:
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Schedule:
12:00 - 1:00PM PDT
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Tutor:
Andy Gilman
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Location:
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.
May 28 Reading:
Book Two - Chapter Three of Finnegans Wake by Joyce (page 358, Line 16)
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Schedule:
12:30 - 2:00PM PDT
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Tutor:
Barry Rabe
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Location:
Online Seminar Series
American Rhetoric: The Lincoln-Douglas Debates
Saturday, May 31
12:00-2:00PM PDT
There has never been anything like them, before or since. It is not the least part of the Lincoln-Douglas debates’ uniqueness that the texts of the debates were formed from what was a new phenomenon at the time, namely newspaper transcripts of entire speeches.In one of the greatest examples of the exercise of free speech in all our history, the burning issue at stake was freedom itself, and whether it could prevail against its hideous opposite.
May 31 Reading:
Jonesboro Debate
(September 15, 1858) - pages 83-126
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Schedule:
12:00 - 2:00PM PDT
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Tutor:
Eric Stull
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Location:
A Sand County Almanac by Aldo Leopold - Onsight Seminar and Panel
February 1, 2024
The Ojai Valley Land Conservancy partnered with the Agora Foundation for a one-day celebration of Aldo Leopold’s A Sand County Almanac, which took place at Oak Grove School on Saturday, February 1. The afternoon highlight featured Green Fire, the first full-length, high-definition documentary about legendary environmentalist Aldo Leopold, followed by a thought-provoking panel discussion on Leopold’s legacy and its relevance to Ojai’s conservation efforts today. The discussion was moderated by Jon Christensen (UCLA), Richard Knight (CSU), Roger Essick (OVLC), and Tom Maloney (OVLC).
An Introduction to The Agora Foundation. What is liberal education?
An Introduction to The Agora Foundation's Ojai Chautauqua Panels.