Making A CFU Connection
The Quick Facts About Creating a CFU Class

Become an adult educator at Colorado Free University, Colorado's largest learning network offering non-credit, enrichment opportunities for adults. The Free University is based on the idea that each community has within it the knowledge and resources needed to solve its own problems. Teachers come from the community; they are people like you--eager to share their passion, experience, and expertise. We connect people with an appetite for learning to teachers who are willing and able to share their knowledge and skills. Courses are held days, evenings, and weekends all over town.

Teachers design their own courses, workshops, field trips, and social events. They submit their ideas in the form of proposals to the Colorado Free University programming staff. Programmers then help them organize and prepare courses for publication in the CFU catalog.

The Free University spends nearly $400,000 per year to market its programs. Our primary outreach is our course catalog, which is published nine times per year with a press run of 110,000 to 130,000 per issue. We work hard to expose our class offerings to the widest possible audience throughout the Front Range. The students we attract are curious and eager to feed their minds.

Educators are not hired as employees of CFU, but rather contract with CFU. This adds flexibility, but also some red tape. Teachers promise to design and conduct quality courses, and they are responsible for being in legal compliance with all requirements for credentials, licenses, permits, and copyright laws germane to the conduct of their classes/events. CFU makes it easy for the teachers: we handle publicity, student registration, and (when needed) classroom facilities.

In a learning network like CFU, teachers choose their own material and are not burdened by an institution's curriculum. Students sign up voluntarily, so they are motivated and inquisitive. The learning network usually provides a better fit between the student and the teacher.

Learn What You Need to Be a Pro...

There are risks inherent in operating a learning network like CFU. It is difficult for the organization to know exactly what's going on in the classroom. There is a large amount of trust put in the hands of the teachers. There are a number of things we trust teachers not to do, such as self-promoting during class in a heavy-handed way, misrepresenting themselves to the administration with regard to their competence and qualifications, and failing to prepare extensively enough for class.

There are also a number of things we trust teachers to do. We trust them to have visual aids, the right balance of student involvement with content delivery, and a friendly demeanor. We trust them to be adept at teaching students with different skill levels, and to provide appropriate bathroom and lunch breaks. They should also know how to take admission tickets without delaying the class, how to deal with late-comers, and how to acquaint the class without wasting twenty minutes. We also trust teachers to consider ways of teaching actively, such as surveying students' opinions before and after topics (to gauge any changes), letting students debate, allowing class brainstorming on difficult questions, and (yes, it has worked before) using props in class.

CFU strives to offer the best deal for our community, so our courses are reasonably priced. Most instructors teach for a modest percentage of the tuition; they value full classrooms over high fees. Students can also be viewed as potential clients of private practices (home buying, financial planning, counseling, etc.). Another benefit for teachers is free, mass marketing--hundreds of thousands of potential students see their names in our catalog, as do the other CFU instructors. CFU can lead you to local (and even national) prominence. Plus, its a heck of a lot of fun!

Teachers interested in teaching at CFU should consider how to design a course that will succeed. There is no foolproof formula which leads to enrollment hits, but there are principles which help. The class should:

• offer the answer to a genuine student need
• be clear as to what skills or knowledge the student will walk out with
• have a defined target audience

It should also focus on something a teacher is passionate and knowledgeable about. It is normal for a teacher to model classes after ones that have succeeded in the past, so scour a recent CFU catalog for good ideas and examples.

If you are interested in teaching at CFU, you should study the section on how to fill out the course proposal. You will also need to do the following:

• Let us know if we can give your phone number to prospective students
• Provide us with graphics or photos (photos sell classes!)--if available--that we can use in our catalog
• Be sure to take care of any details surrounding your class presentation in a timely manner (the catalog production schedule is tight).

Teachers automatically become CFU members and are able to take any of our 100 "Free List" classes without charge. Teaching in the learning network is a great way to broaden your knowledge and to meet other educators.

CFU is here for the community. We support practical education for inquisitive minds. We handle the details so that learning can take place with as little hassle as possible. But it is you, the community, that makes this great network possible!