We live between fences. We may hardly notice them, but they are dominant features in our lives and in our history. Built of hedge, concrete, wood and metal, the fence skirts our properties and is central to the American landscape. We use them to enclose our houses and neighborhoods.

The Odyssey Project is a college-level course in philosophy, literature, art history, and history for men and women living below 150% of the poverty level.

Its anchor program is the first-year course, which is offered in partnership with Bard College and for which students may receive six units of college credit.

Faculty members are largely from first-rate universities such as University of Chicago, the School of the Art Institute, and DePaul University.

Tuition is free, and the Illinois Humanities Council provides free childcare, free books, and transportation. The six units of credit are fully transferable to other colleges and universities.

This course meets on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
Admission is by application only. Refer to syllabus for changes in course schedule.

Back in the old days, your employer would pick up your pension tab. From auto industry assembly line plants to corporate offices filled with row-upon-row of white-collar workers, most anyone earning a paycheck was part of what was called a defined benefit pension plan.  That meant the employer, not the worker, paid for and managed the funds that would one day show up in a monthly pension check.

That changed in the late ‘70s and early '80s when the 401(k) came onto the employee benefits scene. The responsibility--and the risk--of saving for retirement were shifted to the worker. On the surface, it was not a terrible idea to give the individual a hand in preparing for retirement. But while fund managers and employers pushed 401(k) plans as a sure way to build million-dollar retirements nest eggs, they didn't always offer much information about the risks of investing. And today, millions of 401(k) plan participants are seeing a creeping erosion of their account balances as the stock market plunges.

In a recent column, commentator Marie Cocco points out the over-the-top gushing that was used to sell 40l(k)s as get-rich-quick schemes: