CE student Kirsten Wildauer refuses to coast on old information. In fact, she is determined to keep her pursuit of new ideas running in high gear until further notice. Following her BA in Fine Arts from Millikin University in Decatur, IL, Wildauer eventually found herself in Seattle, working at Voula’s Offshore Café in North Lake Union. She enjoys her job and the hearty rapport she shares with café regulars while daily looking forward to making a fresh connection with every new customer who walks through the door. However, pouring coffee and serving up hash browns are no match for the joy she receives from higher learning. “My hope is to learn something new every day,” she says. “So I would conclusively say that I am a lifelong learner.”
Exploring the many offerings of a Continuing Education program had not always been a preoccupation for Wildauer. Inspiration took some time to seep into her head. “A couple of years ago, I was living a very short distance from Seattle Central College on Capitol Hill, and had the ambition to get back into yoga,” she recalls. “I had glanced at the fliers in the mail without truly considering taking a class, but this time, I took the leap and signed up. I had such a wonderful experience, I decided to choose a class per quarter, and there was always one (or seven) that interested me.”
With Seattle Colleges located at three points on the Western Washington map, Wildauer could move residences about town and still be within a convenient distance from one of the schools. “Earlier this year, I moved to the Greenwood neighborhood, and decided to carry on my quest for knowledge at North Seattle College,” she says. “When I received my first course catalog, I found several (84-ish) options that intrigued me. The class that needed to be learned first picked me right out (8 Steps to Peace of Mind: A Journey Into Meditation), and now I've got my fingers crossed that the others will be available to be learned in the very near future (Finding the Work You Love, Finding the Life You Love).”
To date, between Central and North Seattle College Continuing Education programs Wildauer has enrolled in six classes and counting. Over that time, she has begun to assemble a new life plan. “While I truly do enjoy what I currently do for a living, I don't want to do it forever, nor will I likely be able to,” she says. “Therefore, I need to discover what else is out there. What else I might be able to turn into a hobby, or a passion, or even a career?”
Wildauer says she can think of few places where she has the freedom to stretch out her feelers and be supported and encouraged while doing so. “CE offers a way to expand my knowledge, challenge my thinking, and experiment with my ideas, in a very safe and nurturing environment,” she says. “Safe, but not basic, boring, or 
standardized. The classes I've taken don't just skim the surface—I really get to delve in and discover. Dig in and get my hands dirty. (I'm looking at you, Herbal Medicine.) There are myriad paths to getting through life, and CE gives me glimpses down a multitude more.”
Part of Wildauer’s self-discovery process includes sharing inspiration and insight with those around her, creating a positive sounding board for her goals. “I share a lot of what I'm learning with friends, family and coworkers,” she says. “And whether they want to hear about it or not, they can't avoid my enthusiasm for the subjects I'm studying or my excitement at a breakthrough I've had, or my delight in reaching an achievement I've set. So, I guess I'm encouraging by example? Hopefully, I'm inspiring others to pursue their interests and dreams as well.”
Having explored a bounty of Work for Yourself and Enrichment classes ranging from Professional Voiceover Workshop to 8 Steps to Peace of Mind: A Journey Into Meditation and Finding the Work You Love, Finding the Life You Love, one would surmise this indicates Wildauer was formulating a new life strategy. The truth is, she’s a little reluctant to put a pin in the map just yet. However, she did offer up a suggestion: “Maybe CE could offer a class in predicting the winning lottery numbers, or time traveling to get them, so I don't have to work, and I can just keep taking classes?”
Continuing Education is always open to class proposal suggestions.
Explore Continuing Education’s Winter Quarter 2019 course offerings.
Photo credit #1: Claire_cc_2.0
Photo credit #2: Courtesy of Kirsten Wildauer
Photo credit #3: Nicholai_cc_2.0