URBANA— The Odyssey Project, a program of the Illinois Humanities Council with the Clemente Course in the Humanities, has opened the application window for the 2013-14 session of classes that begin in the fall.

The program will accept applications through Aug. 1. Applications are available via the Odyssey Project page at http://www.prairie.org or by calling 312-422-5580.

Applicants must be at least 18 years old and live in a household with income at or below 150 percent of the federal poverty level.

The classes are free of charge and tuition and books are provided, along with on-site baby-sitting and transit cards. Classes take place from mid-September through May.

Classes are offered in literature, philosophy, history, art history, and critical thinking and writing. They are taught by faculty members from top institutions, among them the University of Illinois.

In partnership with the Bard College Clemente Course in the Humanities, students may receive up to 14 units of college credit over two years.

The courses in Champaign will be at the Champaign Public Library Douglass Branch Library, 504 E. Grove St., C.

The Odyssey Project is a free college-level introduction to the humanities, founded on the conviction that engagement with the humanities can offer individuals a way out of poverty by fostering habits of sustained reflection, critical thinking, and skilled communication. Since its inception, more than 500 students have graduated from the program.

The Illinois Humanities Council is an independent, nonprofit state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities and is dedicated to fostering a culture in which the humanities are a vital part of the lives of individuals and communities.