The first day of pumpkin month began with a cool breeze streaming through Charles Village beneath a delicious summer-like sun. The hilltop residential neighborhood pursued its regular Saturday lackadaisical pace as people enjoyed the cool winds and warm rays by biking, walking their dogs, volunteering, polishing off chores, stopping by cafes, and other sundry weekend sports. A rhythm festival was held at St. Johns Church on 27th and St. Paul and so a spoon-like bong of African drums could be heard mingling with the susurrus of lightly tossed, green leaves. Also, The Village Learning Place on St. Paul held open registration from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. for Baltimore Free University.

Baltimore Free University is a free program for all Baltimore residents in which professors and community leaders conduct courses on topics ranging from “Financial Fitness 101” to “Some Essays on Emerson” to a class on beer history. The Free University has been offering short-duration, free classes since 1968 when it was founded by Johns Hopkins University. Since spring 2004, Hopkins' Center for Social Concern has partnered with the non-profit The Village Learning Place to co-host the program.

Classes typically begin mid-October and last through November, meet either at J.H.U. or The Village Learning Place, and are free beyond the $10 registration fee.

Open registration lasts through this Wednesday, October 5, and is in-person only at The Village Learning Place. It is open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday and Tuesday and until 8 p.m. on Wednesday, and is located at 2521 St. Paul Street, between 25th and 26th streets on St. Paul.

Brochures listing the various class are available there. For questions, The Village Learning Place can be reached at 1-410-235-2210.

One class is "The Nature of Prejudice" by Social Anarchism magazine editor and Baltimore Indymedia elder statesman Howard Ehrlich. The class meets on Thursday nights from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. from Oct. 20 to Dec. 1. Another is "Envisioning the End of Worldwide Poverty" by Baltimore local John DeSantis, who in his own words "would like to present these workshops based on his 25-year quest for a better world." His class starts on Oct. 22 and runs from 9 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. on Saturday. Wake-up early, both DeSantis and Benjamin Franklin would agree.

There are many classes focusing on business and recreational affairs, affairs of the heart, or pocketbook, or both—however you want to look at it. "Dynamic Public Speaking: Taking Away The Fear" is being offered by Delores Rich, who holds a master’s degree from Johns Hopkins. "The No Baloney Guide to Buying Real Estate” is a one-day class on Saturday, Nov. 5 led by Mike Tumbarello and Amanda Thomas.

For organizations and individuals looking to develop Web sites, Internet-marketer Julieta Stack Page hosts an all-day class specifically for those looking to "develop a Web site without knowing a computer language" on Saturday, November 19. Her course declares, "You will develop a free ten day trial Web site which you can then purchase for an annual fee of $300 or $34.95 per month."

Free service is the "mission" of The Village Learning Place, notes Christy Rather, director of Education there. Baltimore Free University therefore is a good fit. Rather says between 40-50 people registered for classes on Saturday.

The Village Learning Place offers free library and computer resources to the public, and also runs an after-school program in Charles Village. Two Americorp volunteers work there alongside paid staff. One focuses on arts programs while another is developing technology classes. The Americorps volunteers are there in partnership with MICA and the statewide Volunteer Maryland Program. Technology courses will include how-tos in Microsoft Word and Excel courses, among other things, and for more information one should contact The Village Learning Place directly.

A class such as "Garden Lecture by Master Gardeners" led by Allan DeGary and Larry Kloze is one example of the range of classes Rather's organization has been able to bring to the table, she says. Whether interested in "A Jazz Study" or a class on “the Separation of Church and State," the fall line-up offers a cornucopia.