Since she began taking Si Beagle Learning Center classes two years ago, retired paraprofessional Lisa Donlon has taken courses and seminars on a wide range of topics including healthy eating, decluttering, doo-wop and meditation.

She particularly likes the online book club she recently joined. “I look forward every week to this book club because I have read books that I never thought in a million years that I would read and fallen in love with them,” said Donlon, who retired in 2020 from PS 329 in Coney Island and still substitutes there.

There are three Si Beagle sessions each year: September through November (fall), January and February (intersession), and March through May (spring). Retirees can take classes, seminars or trips in the New York metropolitan area, Florida or online.

Each year, thousands of retirees take advantage of Si Beagle Learning Center in-person and online courses, seminars, trips, and dining and theater experiences. The program is named for the late Si Beagle, who pushed the union to offer continuing education for retirees when he retired in 1968.

More than 3,000 UFT retirees and their spouses registered for fall classes, and more than 1,000 had registered for classes during intersession as of Oct. 29. Some of the most popular courses and seminars include stained glass, pickleball, ukulele, ChatGPT and artificial intelligence, Latin dance and nutrition, said Lynn Lospenuso, the director of the UFT Welfare Fund Retiree Programs.

The Si Beagle Learning Center in Florida also has seven “Day at the University” seminars in January, February and March. That program has a separate registration form.

Sylvia Lochansky, who began taking Si Beagle classes after retiring in 2007 from her job as a school secretary at Walton HS in the Bronx, took a glass mosaics course this fall at the Bronx Learning Center, where she used cutting tools and a grinder to create designs she glued to a birdfeeder. Previously, she has taken watercolor and acrylic painting, exercise classes, and trips to the theater and historical sites such as Gracie Mansion.

“We’re very lucky to have that place,” she said of the Bronx Learning Center.

The Si Beagle spring semester runs from March 10 through May 23, 2025. Beginning on Jan. 13, retirees can view the online catalog, register and pay class fees with a credit card. To register by mail, send your form and a separate check for each course, seminar and trip to UFTWF Retiree Programs, Si Beagle Learning Centers, 52 Broadway, 17th floor, New York, NY 10004.

Spouses, domestic partners and AFT, NYSUT and Professional Staff Congress members can take courses if spots are available.

Joyce Solivan, a retired school payroll secretary, has been taking Si Beagle courses, including Latin and Bollywood dancing, since retiring in 2009 from MS 131 in Chinatown. This past November, she went on a tour of art galleries in Chelsea.

Si Beagle is a great program for retirees and the instructors are terrific, she said. “I’ve made so many friends,” Solivan said. “I guess that’s the best part of it.”

For more information, call the UFT Welfare Fund Retiree Programs office at 212-510-6310.