EMSITY
Experimentation and creat
ivity are the catchwords of
ASUN's Free University which be
gins Oct 5.
Organized nearly four years
ago, Free U is "a place where stu
dents can experiment with a dif
ferent style education," said Steve
Fowler, coordinating chairman,
The curriculum is flexible
and varied to allow a maximum
student involvement.
Courses are initiated by stu
dents and range "from the highly
relevant to the highly irrelevant,"
said Ron Kurtenbach, graduate
student and acting chairman last
summer.
Free U doesn't operate on
the semester system. If interest
dies or all the material has been
covered, the course is dropped.
Additional courses can be
added throughout the school year
as new ideas are submitted to
ASUN.
Anyone can be a course lea
der, regardless of academic back
ground. The leader can handle the
group in a traditional lecture sit
uation or become a "non-leader"
in a discussion group.
Free U offers about 45 courses
ranging from cooking to draft
counseling. Some are action-oriented
or study groups, while others
will complete a specific project.
An ASUN resource fund is avail
able if course leaders arrange for
outside speakers and films.
Kurtenbach regards Free U
as a means of changing society.
He said it "provides the opportun
ity for people to share interesting
ideas with other, people and to try
to create an open society through
free discussion."
As a testing ground for ed
ucation, Fowler hopes Free U can
change the structure of NU in the
direction of smaller classes
formed by student interest rather
than course requirements.
Students are encouraged to
initiate courses within the Univ
ersity similar to those at Free U,
Kurtenbach said.
University credit for Free U
courses was proposed by the
Academic Planning Committee
but no decision has been reached.
Registration dates are Sept.
30, Oct. 1 and 2 in the Union,
although most courses will have
open registration throughout the
school year. Total enrollment last
year was about 1000, Fowler said.
Still looking
The ASUN Free University is
looking for more course leaders
and more course suggestions for
this fall. If you ar interested, call
472-2581 or 472-2593, or write
ASUN Free University, Student
Union.
The following are courses for
which the committee is seeking
course leaders. If you or someone
you know is interested in running
one of these courses please con
tact Free U.
Utopias
Alternate Life-styles
Black Magic
Multi-media Techniques
Hermann Hesse
Chicano Studies
Black Studies
Broadcasting
Motorcycle Mechanics
Kurt Vonnegut
Mountain Climbing
Contemporary Drama
Skiing
Subsistence Farming
Cheap Means of Travel
Student Power
Arts and Crafts
Camping and Hiking
Herbert Marcuse
Modern Dance
Foreign Cultures
Applied Music
Foreign Languages
Encounter Groups
People who want to lead
these or other courses should con
tact the Free U. committee
through ASUN: 472-2593.
THE NEBRASKAN
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