Instructor FAQs

Where are OLLI courses taught?

In-person OLLI courses are held at various venues, including the Campbell Center on the SOU campus in Ashland, located at 655 Frances Lane, and at the Higher Education Center in Medford. Other venues can be arranged for courses that have requirements beyond what is available at these locations.

Click here for detailed directions and parking information for the Campbell Center.

Click here for detailed directions and parking information for the Higher Education Center.

Online OLLI courses are offered using the Zoom platform. OLLI instructors schedule Zoom sessions through an SOU Zoom account or their own Zoom Pro account. OLLI offers training and support materials to help instructors in using the Zoom platform. OLLI also encourages online instructors to partner with a co-host for Zoom courses.

How do I contact OLLI?

The office phone number is 541-552-6048, and the email address is olli@sou.edu. See also: Contact Us page.

What are the office hours?

For OLLI's office hours, please visit the Office Support page.

What if I have to cancel a class?

If you need to cancel a class session, you must notify the OLLI Office staff in advance at olli@sou.edu or 541-552-6048. Announce the change at the preceding class, if possible, and/or email your students.

What do I do if there is an emergency during class?

If there is any kind of medical emergency during a class -- for example, if someone has a heart attack, or a seizure, or any other kind of serious medical problem -- call 911 immediately. When in doubt whether or not to call 911, play it safe and make the call. Then, notify the OLLI office right away. 

If a fire alarm goes off during class, please vacate the building immediately and await instructions from the fire department or the police department before re-entering the building.

How do I become an instructor at OLLI?

We welcome and appreciate new and returning instructors, and invite course proposals that range from academic subjects to skills and activities. We also encourage a variety of teaching formats, including facilitated discussions of books, films or ideas; informational lectures; and hands-on instruction in the form of online demonstrations. Click here for information about teaching at OLLI.

How do I submit a course proposal?

Please visit the Course Proposal page for more information.

What is the deadline for course proposals?

The instructional year at OLLI has three terms of 10 weeks duration each: fall, winter and spring. Proposals for Fall Term courses are due in May; for Winter Term in August, and for Spring Term in December. Click here for the current year’s OLLI calendar.

What happens after I submit my course proposal?

After you submit your proposal, you will receive an automatic acknowledgement of receipt. Your proposal will then go to the Curriculum Committee, and it will be assigned to a liaison who is working within your chosen course category. Your liaison will contact you and offer any needed support, especially if you are a first-time instructor.

How will I know if my course has been accepted?

It takes four to five weeks (after the deadline for course proposals) for the Curriculum Committee to review and schedule courses for a term. If there are any questions or concerns about a proposed course, someone from the Curriculum Committee will contact you during this process. You will be notified if your course has been accepted, and you will get a final version of the catalog description for review before publication. The OLLI office will confirm all time, date, and venue arrangements. All new to OLLI instructors are strongly encouraged to attend the New to OLLI Instructor Orientation which is offered before the beginning of each term.

If your course has not been accepted, you will also be notified. Note that not all proposals are accepted as initially presented. You may be asked to refine the proposal to meet OLLI guidelines.

Can my class take field trips?

Yes, where appropriate, OLLI classes do go on field trips. If you are interested in a class field trip, please contact the OLLI office to learn about the requirements and discuss the details. Activity Waivers must be signed by all students participating in an OLLI field trip.

Do courses ever meet off campus?

Walking, hiking classes and dancing courses are examples of OLLI classes that meet off-campus. If you are interested in teaching a course that cannot be held in the Campbell Center or the Higher Education Center, please contact the OLLI office to learn about alternative venues and discuss the details.

What are OLLI’s rules about self-promotion?

OLLI courses are intended to educate OLLI students, not to facilitate financial gain of the instructors, either directly or by increasing business opportunities. Instructors must disclose current business affiliations in the biography section of their course proposals and should reiterate this at the first class session. The instructor may provide other business information and website references at the first session only. Subsequent classes should focus exclusively on principles and practices to enhance students’ knowledge of the material. The email addresses of OLLI members are available to instructors but only for OLLI purposes.

Is training available for teaching online at OLLI?

OLLI offers training and support materials to help instructors in using the Zoom platform. All new to OLLI instructors who will be teaching online must attend the Teaching on Zoom Orientation that is offered before each term. To further support online instructors, the OLLI office can connect an instructor with a volunteer Zoom mentor. OLLI has also created Zoom Reference Guide.

Download the "OLLI at SOU Teaching on Zoom Reference Guide." [PDF - Version 12/9/22]

All new to OLLI instructors are strongly encouraged to attend the New to OLLI Instructor Orientation which is offered before the beginning of each term.

Is there tech training for teaching in-person courses?

You will be contacted prior to the start of the term and scheduled for an in-person, hands-on training with a tech-savvy OLLI volunteer. You will receive training on the equipment you will be using to teach your course. Ideally this training will take place in your assigned classroom.

All new to OLLI instructors are also strongly encouraged to attend the New to OLLI Instructor Orientation which is offered before the beginning of each term.

Do you pay your instructors or offer a discount?

While OLLI does not pay its instructors, they do receive a credit voucher based on the number of courses they teach in an academic year. The credit voucher is non-transferrable and can be used for the following academic year to offset the OLLI membership fee.that can be used to offset the OLLI membership fee. The credit voucher expires after one year and is non-transferrable. 

There are four levels of instructor memberships and each level is based on the number of courses taught in the prior academic year: one course earns a $100 membership; two courses earn a $75 membership; three courses a $50 membership, and four or more courses earn a complimentary membership.

How do I see my course roster?

Before the term begins, instructors receive an email from the OLLI office which will include detailed instructions for accessing your course roster online. Your online course roster includes phone and email contact information for your students. Note that your course roster may change daily, due to members dropping and adding classes.

What is the wait list and how does the waiting list process work?

If the enrollment is greater than the maximum number of students specified, a wait list is kept. If a student contacts the office to drop the course, the next person on the wait list is enrolled in the course and then notified by email or telephone that they are now registered in that course.

My course has a wait list. What should I do if some students are not showing up?

Instructors of a course with a wait list are encouraged to contact the office whenever you want the office to let a student(s) at the top of the priority wait list into your course. (If you need instructions on how to log into CampusCE to see whether or not your course has a wait list, please contact the office.) For example, if you notice that there are five fewer students than you expected to show up the first week of your course, you are encouraged to contact the office to request that the five students at the top of the wait list are registered in the course. Another example: Let's say you originally planned to teach to 30 students maximum, and there are 30 students registered, and 10 more on the wait list. But after teaching your first class, you decide you could handle 40 students maximum. In such a case, please contact the office and we'll use the wait list to add 10 more students to your course.

Are guests allowed at OLLI courses?

OLLI at SOU policy states that members and instructors may invite a guest to one class, if there are seats available and if there is no waiting list. No one can attend on a regular basis without being a member. Students who wish to bring a guest are to ask for the instructor’s approval first.

How do I send my students an email?

Instructions on how to email your students are sent to all instructors about a month in advance of the start of classes. You may also obtain a copy of the instructions by contacting the OLLI office.

If you send your students a mass email, please use the BCC feature of your email program to prevent students from seeing each other’s email addresses when they get your email. This helps preserve students’ privacy. Click here for more information on how to use the BCC feature to send out a mass email

How do I distribute class materials to my students?

Instructions on how to email your students are sent to all instructors about a month in advance of the start of classes. You may also obtain a copy of the instructions by contacting the OLLI office.

There are a number of platforms to share materials electronically, of which OLLI supports two: LearnerNotes and SOU Raider Moodle. For additional help or information, please contact the OLLI office.

Can I use copyrighted material to teach a course?

To help you sort through what is and isn’t permissible, click here to visit the Know Your Copyrights website . The website is an educational initiative of the Association of Research Libraries, a well-respected authority on the topic. The short version: At a nonprofit educational institution like OLLI at SOU, whenever a book, article, movie, etc. is used for educational purposes, and the teacher receives no monetary compensation, the law allows a very liberal use of copyrighted materials for teaching purposes.

What are the course feedback forms and where do I get them?

The Curriculum Committee provides a template for course feedback to the instructor from students; the form can be modified by the
Instructor. Click here for more information about course feedback forms. 

Additionally, the Committee will be surveying all students in classes taught by new to OLLI instructors with a simple form; the feedback will be provided to the instructor after review by the Committee. All student feedback is for OLLI use only, not personal promotion.

What is a co-host and will my class have one?

Co-hosts help you manage your class by performing tasks like checking students in on the roster if you have a waitlist, admitting them to a Zoom class session, tracking questions submitted via the "Chat" feature, and recording the number of attendees at each session for transmittal to the Curriculum Committee.

Finding a co-host: you can identify someone you know from your class roster, ask for a volunteer from the roster, or use a member of your household or a friend who is willing to help.