My Time as a UCR Osher Instructor–

Time Flies When You’re Having Fun

The Fall 2025 quarter marked the beginning of my tenth academic year as an instructor with the University of California, Riverside, Osher Lifelong Learning Institute. Here at UCR, my last course, “In the Footsteps of Vichy France: Lessons for Contemporary America” was my 37th offering in 23 different subject areas.  For me, it has been a rewarding experience in many ways. First and foremost, it has afforded me the opportunity to do one of the things I truly enjoy; present and interact with students in the classroom. It must be so, since my time at Osher is in addition to more than 14 years as an adjunct professor, teaching 54 courses to over 1,000 graduate students of public policy and administration at four universities.  Collectively, my time at the lectern has been an avocation turned vocation. In line with the majority of “OLLIs” across the country, it has become a volunteer effort. Regardless, it was always my intention to continue to contribute while staying relevant.

Secondly, Osher has provided me the opportunity to develop courses of my own liking, one’s that have their genesis back to my own academic interests as an undergraduate. Unlike the narrow course offerings of a traditional graduate degree curriculum, Osher provides instructors the latitude to develop classes predicated on individual academic interest. Over the years, this variety has garnered the continued engagement of Osher lifelong learners. Before the pandemic and split between two UCR venues, my classrooms were collectively filled with nearly 100 students. The post COVID environment is generating just a little more than half of what was, but enrollments are beginning to grow once again. It is a challenge experienced by every Osher program across the country.

Still, the creative freedom afforded the faculty provides a plethora of courses across a variety of subject matters. For me, I’ve been able to continue with my own academic interests in political history, governance, and comparative politics, while keeping my research and instruction skills current. As Osher students know, I utilize a multitude of sources, some primary, but mostly secondary in nature. Even courses that are predicated on a single text, I make sure to augment the assumptions of the author by cross referencing with supplemental information. I did not leave my former academic skill sets as a graduate school adjunct instructor at the door.

As great as it is to have the ability to create new courses, it takes a lot of time and effort to do so. Although with some minor variations, graduate school instruction for me mostly pertained to updating existing core and elective subject areas especially courses pertaining to pragmatic applications, e.g., urban management, public policy analysis, fundamentals of public administration, economic development, managing sustainable communities, and trends in global metropolitan economics and demography. However, since Osher programs do not require exams or papers, the time spent in course development is much less than the time spent grading the great, and the not so great, efforts of graduate students.  It’s been an acceptable tradeoff.

Link to Current UCR Course offerings:

https://olli.ucr.edu/ucrolli/course/course.aspx?catId=4

If it doesn’t interrupt my on-going travel plans, it is time to prepare a course proposal for Spring 2026. I’m still pondering whether to revisit and update an old course or once again, create something new. For now, I’ll just continue to prep for my current offering. We’ll see where the next thought takes us. Since I’m coming up on my 92nd opportunity as a university instructor, I’m sure I’ll come up with something. 

UCR Course Offerings by Title–Stephen G. Harding

Fall 2016

California – Peering into the Crystal Ball: Where Have We Been? Where are We Today? Where are We Going?

Winter 2017

Cities and Globalization: The Local/Global Environment

Fall 2017

The Great War—The World Before

Winter 2018

The Path to the Great War—How WWI Created the Contemporary World and Modern America

Spring 2018

The Great War, the Paris Peace Conference, and the Aftermath

Winter 2019

American Nations: A History of the Eleven Rival Regional Cultures of North America (2)

Spring 2019

American Character: A History of the Epic Struggle Between Individual Liberty and the Common Good (2)

Fall 2019

Upheaval: Turning Points for Nations in Crisis (2)

Winter 2020

Accidental Presidents – Eight Men Who Changed America –Due to COVID finished as a online course

Fall 2020

IGOs 1945 to Now—A survey of the Where, What, and How of International Governmental Organizations, Treaties, and Agreements (Remote)

Winter 2021

Snapshots of the Politics, Players and Projects That Made LA a Megalopolis (Remote)

Fall 2021

Metropolis in the Making: LA in the 1920s (Remote)

Winter 2022

How the South Won the Heart, and Maybe the Soul, of the West (2)

Spring 2022

Lessons from the Weimar—The Rise and Fall of a Democratic Republic (2)

Fall 2022

Ukraine – A Troubled Past (2)

Winter 2023

The History of Central and Eastern Europe—1918 To the Present (2)

Spring 2023

Coveting Crimea – A Russian Obsession (2)

Fall 2023

Let’s Talk Fascism – (Along with a Little Authoritarianism and Totalitarianism for Good Measure) (2)

Let’s Talk Dictators of the 21st Century (2)

Winter 2024

Let’s Talk About Democracy in Retreat (2)

Spring 2024

American Nations/American Character Revisited (2)

Spring 2025

Let’s Talk–The Illiberal, If Not, Anti-Liberal Face of America (2)

Fall 2025

In the Footsteps of Vichy France–Lessons for Contemporary America (2)

*(2) Presented at both the Riverside and Palm Desert venues