"A lot of adult learners have been harassed by the humanities," said Warren Scheideman, who has been on the faculty of DePaul University's School for New Learning (SNL) for the past 15 years. "They have nibbled at the edges of literature."

Scheideman's students may have wrestled with literature unsuccessfully at an earlier time, but now they have begun to stick a toe in the literary waters to feel complete, he said.

Each year Scheideman teaches a class using Arthur Conan Doyle's "Sherlock Holmes" mysteries as the hook to engage students in literature, and he says it works.

In addition to teaching the Holmes course, Scheideman will teach a class this spring entitled "Fantasy and the Imagination." This course will examine the work of C.S. Lewis, J.R.R. Tolkien and will integrate fantasy illustrations by watching the "Splash" and "Roger Rabbit" movies.

Scheideman, who teaches and is an SNL advisor, knows these courses fill a void for the adult student.

"They come back to school because they find something is missing in their lives," said Scheideman of his students. "Some have had their imaginations totally dry up.

"A number of people come from the corporate business world," he said. "They can't use their imagination or their creativity anymore. They haven't fed the inner soul that needs nurturing.

"They come back because they want to engage their imaginations and find something with spiritual values, and the values of humanity," said Scheideman.

One SNL student, a city engineer from the northern suburbs, became so intrigued by Holmes' appeal that he currently is interviewing members of several Chicago area Sherlock Holmes groups as part of a study project to see why members are fascinated by the Arthur Conan Doyle stories.

Although that's not unusual research, according to Scheideman, the courses are not designed as entertainment, but to engage the students.

"These guys are great," said Scheideman patting a large Sherlock Holmes collector's book with original illustrations.

"Holmes and Watson are like friends, and they don't bite back," he said. "They are comfortable. They are a good reading experience. They can restore that poetic of soul that can be burned out of us."

The Holmes stories are also a great educational tool. Studying the Holmes cases help the students with communication, research and critical thinking skills, he said.

"A lot of people come to DePaul looking for something," Scheideman said. "At the start of the stories, Holmes and Watson are looking for a solution in their cases. They find themselves lost. As the story ends, they are maturing, and so are the students."

DePaul's School for New Learning was founded in 1972 to serve adult students. Students work with faculty and advisors to design independent programs of study. Integral to the services of the School for New Learning is the mentoring and advising students receive throughout their course of study.

For more information contact Schneideman at 312/362-5330.