6/15/2023 0 Comments Olli at dukeBut the most interest tends to be in the arts.Įssentially, people seem to be interested in exploring what maybe they didn’t have a chance to explore when they were in school. They also have a pretty robust science offering. They do see a lot of hunger for humanities, among both men and women. But are there other commonalities you see among the types of people who tend to be attracted to your programming?Ĭhris points out there’s no prerequisites, people just need to come with a spirit of curiosity. – You mentioned your students tend be engaged, ask questions, and let you know what they want. It’s noted the Durham area in particular has an advantage because it’s located in the Research Triangle with about five or six nearby universities so there’s a generous pool of faculty. They teach about 400 classes a year and it is all done by volunteers in response to what members ask for. They also have a 30-member curriculum committee that is completely responsible for sourcing all of their instructors and navigating them through the course proposal process. She says the best part about what’s offered is they don’t have to guess what they want-their members let them know (very clearly) the types of classes they want. They have about 3-4 instructors who teach at the university level but who also teach for them for free, simply because they love their students. The feedback Chris says they get from instructors is that they love their students because of their level of enthusiasm, level of engagement, and the questions they ask in class. Aside from dropping the usual emphasis on tests and grades, how do you find teaching and engaging with learners in this age group to be different from teaching and engaging with younger learners? – You said you don’t have an age restriction on your learners but OLLI in general tends to focus on older learners, over the age of fifty. Whereas Duke and UNC Asheville are recognized for having longer courses (9-12 weeks). She notes it’s important to understand that each institute is very different when it comes to culture, course offerings, and programs.įor example, NC State has a very robust program but they tend to have more a la carte single presentation programs with some 3-6 week long courses. Is that correct?Ĭhris says that is correct and in NC they’re fortunate to have four. – It’s my understanding there are more than 120 of these institutes across the US, with one in every state, including the District of Columbia. She says they’ve been at capacity in terms of enrollment for several years so their intention is to locate a new facility and expand their classroom offerings. They are usually affiliated in continuing education programs of colleges and universities.Ĭhris shares she joined OLLI at Duke in June 2018 with a prior background in fundraising and development. OLLIs offer non-credit courses, mostly to mature learners, although at Duke, they do not have an age restriction around that-anybody of any age can take their courses. She says Duke ranks seven or eight in terms of the top ten largest with about 2,400 members. Most of the OLLIs have an endowment of $1-$2 million, which is a key cornerstone of the financial pro forma of these programs. Be sure to also check out “Lifelong Learning Through COVID with Chris McLeod.” Listen to the Showīernard Osher and Barbro Osher (image from Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at UConn Waterbury)Ĭhris shares that there’s a network of 123 OLLIs in the country and they were each endowed by philanthropist and lifelong learning advocate, Bernard Osher with the Bernard Osher Foundation. Note: Chris McLeod has been back on the Leading Learning Podcast since this interview aired. And, if you like the podcast, be sure to give it a tweet! To make sure you catch all of the future episodes, be sure to subscribe by RSS, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher Radio, iHeartRadio, PodBean, or any podcatcher service you may use (e.g., Overcast). They also talk about the role of membership in OLLI’s business model and the factors that tend to underpin the success of the most successful programs. In this episode of the Leading Learning podcast, Jeff talks with Chris about the general commonalities of the learners they serve and the opportunities and challenges that come with serving them. And as the director of the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at Duke University, Chris McLeod leads one the top ten largest Institutes in the country (there are over 120 nationally), which are all associated with universities and colleges. With a mission of improving quality of life and engaging minds, the Osher Lifelong Learning Institutes (OLLI) provide a distinctive array of lifelong learning opportunities and activities specifically developed for seasoned adults who are interested in learning simply for the joy of learning.
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