Published in OLLILIFE, 2018

 

By James T. Hammond

For more than a century, Furman University anchored downtown Greenville, growing to cover a vast area still known as University Ridge. But when the university broke ground in 1953 for a new campus north of the city on 750 acres, many saw the move as abandonment of the city.

Former President David Shi told me once that when he first came to Furman as a student, the college gave him directions to avoid passing through downtown Greenville.

Not only did the move leave a large void on University Ridge; the consolidation with Greenville Women’s College took away another institution of higher learning on College Street.

But Furman has come a long way in its community outreach in 65 years since its move to the country. The relocation provided room to expand, growth impossible at the downtown location. And the university’s institutions have become more outwardly focused since it declared its independence from the South Carolina Baptist Convention in 1992.

About that time, a small group of Furman faculty, alumni and other Greenville citizens were organizing the Furman University Learning in Retirement program. In 1993, it offered seven classes to 62 members, operating in one classroom in Furman Hall under founder and Director Sarah Fletcher.

As then President David Shi began to realize the potential of the program to bind Furman to the community, a string of milestones followed.

In 2008, FULIR received the first installment of what would grow to a $1 million endowment from the Bernard Osher Foundation, securing operational funding for the program’s future. In 2009, membership reached 500 and FULIR became the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at Furman, or OLLI.

As enrollment in OLLI soared, the leadership faced the realization that the program would need more, preferably its own, space. A $6 million, 22,000 square foot facility was conceived. As, membership climbed to 1,100, OLLI members raised $3 million. Several major gifts followed, including a “significant gift” from Furman trustee Gordon Herring that earned him naming rights for the new Herring Center.

Since 2012, when OLLI moved into its new home, membership more than doubled, to 2,350 from 1,200.

“There may be a day when we have more OLLI members than Furman students,” said OLLI Director Nancy Kennedy, who took over direction of the OLLI program from Lucy Woodhouse in 2014. “It is very important for Furman to have a presence in the community.”

This year is the 25^th anniversary of the founding of FULIR, now OLLI. A 2016 survey of members showed a profile of a geographically diverse group: 46 percent of members had moved here within the past 9 years.

Some 60 percent of members are women. Ages of participants range 55-101; the largest cohort being 55-74.

Just 4 percent of members are minorities, and Kennedy added, “We’re working on that,” with presentations to groups with large minorities memberships.

The new building had a major impact on membership growth, Kennedy said, with improved parking, space for more and larger classes, and increased social opportunities such as card games and special interest groups.

“Members are proud to have their own place,” Kennedy said.

Motives vary for joining OLLI. Aside from the myriad classes, “Some people join for bonus events, some to play bridge, and some just to go to the dining hall,” she said. “And that’s all good.

“We’ve had some romances start here,” Kennedy said with a smile, “But I don’t think we’ve had anyone meet and marry here.”