History of the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at UM (MOLLI)
It began with an article on Osher Lifelong Learning Institutes that University of Montana President George Dennison read on an airplane in 2005. He was intrigued by the innovation of offering noncredit academic experiences to adults over age 50. No tests. No grades. Just learning for the love of it.
Touching down in Missoula, President Dennison lost no time in pursuing the idea. He sent the article to Sharon Alexander, then Dean of the UM’s School of Continuing Education, with the terse notation: “Shouldn’t we be doing this?”
It was not a rhetorical question. Alexander got right on it. She formed an exploratory group blending two professors — Rustem Medora and Herb Swick — with two of Missoula’s community leaders — Dan Kemmis and Susan Talbot. They rolled up their sleeves and got to work.
In Fall 2005, they offered two “appetizer” courses - short, one-time-only lectures featuring university faculty: Dr. Mehrdad Kia, an expert on the Mideast, particularly Iran, and Dr. Rafael Chacon, an art critic and historian. The over-50 community reveled in them.
In January 2006, they offered five 6-week classes to 125 members. That fall, both their offerings and their enrollments expanded. Given the clear interest, the exploratory group applied for a three-year start-up grant from the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute. The Montana Lifelong Learning Institute (now “MOLLI”) was born.
“It was an idea whose time had come,” Dean Alexander, now retired, mused recently. “It took off like it did because we had the right community, the right faculty, and the right resources.”
Looking back over two decades, MOLLI’s success can be attributed to two guiding principles: excellence and innovation.
From the outset, MOLLI was successful in attracting engaging, knowledgeable faculty. Dr. Kia and Dr. Chacon still teach MOLLI classes, joined over the years by over 100 UM professors and other experts in fields ranging from wildlife biology to Irish history and from writing workshops to brain science and much, much more. Ratings from MOLLI students consistently confirm the excellence of their learning experiences.
MOLLI has also innovated right from the start. From courses offered only on campus, MOLLI expanded to offer courses at the Daly Mansion in Hamilton for a time. In response to COVID, MOLLI began offering courses online as well as on campus — now a standard practice.
Rather than 90-minute courses for six weeks, some offerings are one-time-only lectures by distinguished experts. Others are experiential, immersing students in Native American games or a butterfly house or an intergenerational book discussion. Still others offer field trips and foreign travel. Once open only to adults over 50, now any adult can take a MOLLI class.
Lively discussion. International perspectives. Deepened understanding. New friendships. Fun! These are the gifts MOLLI faculty and staff have been giving Montanans since 2006.
Article credit: Mary Moe, March 11, 2026
MOLLI Celebrates 20th Anniversary
From the outset, MOLLI was successful in attracting engaging, knowledgeable faculty. Dr Kia and Dr Chacon still teach MOLLI classes, joined over the years by over 100 UM professors and other experts in fields ranging from wildlife biology to Irish history and from writing workshops to brain science and much, much more. Ratings from MOLLI students consistently confirm the excellence of their learning experiences.
On May 6, 2026, the University of Montana hosted a celebration for MOLLI’s 20th birthday in its University Center Ballroom. The event included a brief program to honor MOLLI's milestones and the pioneers behind them, but primarily it served as a chance for MOLLI alumni to come together as they have in the past, reminiscing about their experiences, enjoying the moment, and envisioning an even more promising future.
