Study Discussion Groups (SDGs)
are the heart of what PLATO offers

Interaction. Dialogue. Questioning. Inquiry. No lecturing here. This is the basis of learning at PLATO.

Member Created & Led,
Small Group, Courses

Each week a different member is responsible for leading the discussion. Our courses, no matter the subject, are discussion, not lecture-based, and depend on the active participation of all.

We Offer
Four Categories

  • Arts & Literature
  • Social Science
  • History
  • Science & Technology

Course Details

Three presentation formats: In-Person, Zoom and Hybrid (In-Person and Zoom)

Three terms : Winter, Spring/Summer, Fall

Twenty plus SDGs per term, each running between 7 to 14 weeks.

Our Current SDGs - Spring 2026

Monday

10AM - 12PM

24 Fascinating Episodes of PBS Nova Series

Monday

10AM - 12PM

The Films and Legacy of Robert Redford

Monday

1PM - 3PM

Between Dublin and Bloomsbury: Short Fiction with Joyce and Woolf

Monday

1PM - 3PM

Art on the Screen: 10 Movies about Artists Worth Seeing

Monday

1PM - 3PM

Arthur Miller

Tuesday

10AM - 12PM

The Works and Tempestuous Life of Oscar Wilde

Tuesday

10AM - 12PM

The Rise and Spectacular Fall of the Real Knights Templar

Tuesday

1PM - 3PM

We the People: A History of the U.S. Constitution

Tuesday

1PM - 3PM

We the People: A History of the U.S. Constitution

Tuesday

1PM - 3PM

Computing Power Drives the Future

Tuesday

1PM - 3PM

Henry James Goes To The Movies

Tuesday

1PM - 3PM

An African History of Africa

Wednesday

10AM - 12PM

How Collaboration and Curiosity Shaped Humankind

Wednesday

10AM - 12PM

The Best TED Talks 2.0

Wednesday

10AM - 12PM

The Modern Jewish Experience in World Cinema

Wednesday

10AM - 12PM

The Art of Memoir

Wednesday

1PM - 3PM

Stateless: The Roma and the Kurds

Wednesday

1PM - 3PM

Stateless: The Roma and the Kurds

Thursday

10AM - 12PM

American Foreign Policy and the CIA in the 21st Century

Thursday

10AM - 12PM

Russians Among Us

Thursday

10AM - 12PM

Trees: Our future and theirs. Plus, a practicum on how to identify trees

Thursday

10AM - 12PM

A History of California

Thursday

1PM - 3PM

Science under Siege

Thursday

1PM - 3PM

The Dead Sea Scrolls

Thursday

1PM - 3PM

The Dead Sea Scrolls