SHAEC teacher Heather Morgan offers free computer/ tech help at hilltown senior centers one Wednesday a month in area towns.
Reminder Publishing submitted photo
CHESTER — The Southern Hilltowns Adult Education Center in Chester has released the September class offering schedule. SHAEC’s classes, which are funded by a Community Development Block Grant, are free and open to residents of Chester, Huntington, Russell and Middlefield.
The series Organizing your Digital Life, taught by Stephanie Stoudenmire, will be offered on Mondays in September from 3-4:30 p.m. at the SHAEC classroom in the Village Enterprise Center at 26 Main St. in Chester.
Part 1 of the series, “Too many emails? How to get them under control” was on Monday, Sept 8. Part 2, “Finding and Organizing Photos and Videos” is on Monday, Sept. 15. Part 3 is “Google Drive & Google Docs: Your personal file cabinet” on Monday, Sept. 22. The final class in the series is “Google Sheets: Spreadsheets at your fingertips,” offered Monday, Sept. 29.
Stoudenmire, who owns the Digital Consulting Business CodeForce, is also offering the class “Using AI tools for Fun and Everyday Tasks” at SHAEC’s 26 Main St. classroom. The first session is scheduled for Thursday, Sept. 18 from 2-3:30 p.m. The second offering of this class will be on Thursday evening, Sept. 25 at 6 p.m.
SHAEC will also offer a series of classes this fall by local aromatherapist Kay Judge, of Blue Skye Wellness. September’s class, “Intro To Aromatherapy: The Basics,” will provide a basic understanding of the use of essential oils, their beneficial properties and safe use practices.
Participants will have the opportunity to create a room spray to take home. There is a materials’ fee of $10 for this class. Two class times will be offered: An evening session on Friday, Sept. 19 at 6 p.m., and a daytime session on Friday, Sept. 26 at 2 p.m., and an evening session of this class will be Friday, Sept. 19 at 6 p.m., both at the Blue Skye Wellness classroom, also at 26 Main St. in Chester, adjacent to SHAEC’s classroom.
University of Massachusetts PHD candidate Katy Dieber is leading up SHAEC’s GED prep classes and tutoring for the fall, with “Mid-day Math” from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., Mondays and Wednesdays throughout the fall at the SHAEC classroom. Dieber, a creative teacher that focuses on hand-on teaching methods to enhance understanding, will start at whatever level her students are at, building up to GED math concepts.
Those interested in exploring GED topics are encouraged to reach out to SHAEC Program Director Michele Kenney at 413-354-1055 to discuss their academic goals.
SHAEC also offers free computer/tech help at the area’s local senior centers. SHAEC computer teacher Heather Morgan is at the Huntington Senior Center at Stanton Hall on the first Wednesday of every month from 1-2 p.m.; at the Chester Senior Center, located in the basement of the Chester Town Hall, on the second Wednesday of the month from 10:30 to noon, at the Russell Senior Center, located on the second floor of the Russell Town Hall, on the third Wednesday of the month from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., and at the Middlefield Senior Center from 12:45-1:30 p.m. on the fourth Wednesday of the month.
People can also call or email SHAEC to request individual computer assistance, either at the SHAEC classroom, or virtually.
SHAEC is an off-campus program of the University of Massachusetts Partnership for Worker Education program, serving the Southern Hilltowns since 1999.
Pre-registration for classes can be made by calling SHAEC at 413-354-1055, or by emailing Southernhilltownsaec@gmail.com with your name, class(es) you are interested in and contact information (phone number and email address.) Pre-registration can also be done on SHAEC’s website: Umass.edu/shaec.
Since its inception, SHAEC has provided free classes and tutoring for the GED/High School Equivalency Tests as well as computer and technology classes and assistance. Business assistance and sustainability classes were later added to SHAEC’s offerings.
