Registration is open for the fall term of Miami University’s Institute for Learning in Retirement, offering an outlet for older adults wanting to explore new areas of learning.

Recognizing that learning is a lifelong process, the Institute for Learning in Retirement provides opportunities for individuals ages 50 and older to enrich their lives as they explore areas within science, arts, society, technology, literature, languages, business and economics, according to Judy Macke, senior program assistant.

The fall term runs from Oct. 8 to Nov. 16, and classes typically meet once a week for one to two hours, depending on the course. Offerings this fall include the 2012 Presidential Election, Water Tai Chi, Spanish for Beginners, Cincinnati History, History of Ragtime, two film series, the Best Apple iPad Apps, Islam and Monotheism, Edgar Allan Poe’s Five Best Short Stories, and Foundations of Genealogy.

Hands-on courses include Water Color Painting, Beginning Pottery, and Understanding Digital Photography. More details on the courses are available online at www.MiamiOH.edu/ilr.

“We don’t teach the same classes each term; we try to keep it fresh by looking at what’s going on around the world and in our community,” Macke said.

The Institute for Learning in Retirement offered its first classes in 1997. Enrollment each term usually reaches about 200 people.

A one-term membership fee of $95 allows members to take as many of the fall offerings as they wish, Macke said. A discounted introductory fee of $75 is offered to anyone who is registering for the first time. The Institute for Learning in Retirement also offers a spring term.

Macke said there are classes offered in Oxford, Hamilton, West Chester Twp. and at the Fairfield Community Arts Center. Courses are taught by current and retired Miami professors, local business owners and business professionals.

In addition to courses, the Institute has two special events this fall. Spots are still available for Thursday’s tour of the Wright-Dunbar Complex — including Paul Laurence Dunbar House — and Carillon Historical Park in Dayton. The cost is $45 for the charter bus, lunch and day-long activities.

A second special event in November — a tour of the Toyota Motor Manufacturing plant and Woodford Distillery in Kentucky — is sold out and a waiting list is available. To sign-up for either event, call (513) 529-8500.