Corey Olsen is a professor and podcaster known as the Tolkien Professor best known for his work innew media promoting the works of J.R.R. Tolkien and Anglo Saxon literature. Formerly a professor at Washington College, Olsen now dedicates his time to Signum University, an online learning facility he founded in 2012.
Upon graduation from Columbia University, Olsen obtained teaching positions at Temple University, Columbia University, and Nyack College. He then proceeded to his longest standing position to date, Assistant Professor of English at Washington College with a specialty on J.R.R. Tolkien, Arthurian Literature, Chaucer, and Sir Thomas Malory. It was at Washington College that Olsen was first able to teach a literary class on Tolkien. In 2013 Professor Olsen left Washington College to focus on Signum University and the Mythgard Institute, online learning websites offering classes in the work of J.R.R. Tolkien, Fantasy Literature, Latin and Creative Writing.
Online Education
With the success of his podcasts, Olsen founded the Mythgard Institute and Signum University, where he is now President. These institutes offer a range of classes on Latin, the world of J.R.R. Tolkien, Creative Writing, and fantasy and science fiction literature. Olsen founded Signum University and the Mythgard Institute because:
"We at Signum University believe that this kind of academic experience should be available to 'everyone, everywhere'."
Several of the courses that are offered at the Mythgard Institute have also been offered as free downloads through iTunes U; the first of these courses was "The Lord of the Rings 1: The Road Goes Ever On". On 8 April 2018, Corey announced that Signum University was to be formally entered for New Hampshire state certification via the New Hampshire Department of Education. Following some days of crowdfunding they raised the $23,720 required, and later in 2018, Signum University began the ascension process. On 24 April 2018, Signum University announced that the New HampshireDepartment of Education had accepted the request for Signum University to do business in New Hampshire, but had yet to receive permission to grant degrees. However, a Bill passed in the Senate, which was yet to go to the house, proposing that "Signum University to grant degrees in this state".
Podcasting
In June 2009 Olsen launched the Tolkien Professor podcast. The Podcast was originally created to explore the works of J.R.R. Tolkien, primarily The Hobbit, with latter episodes focusing on The Silmarillion. The podcast achieved over a quarter of a million downloads in its first year alone. It expanded to cover the history of fairy stories and their influence on modern fantasy along with supplementary podcasts on the movie adaptations of the works of Tolkien. The supplementary podcasts, often co-hosted by former students, were recorded under the title Riddles in the Dark. Another infrequent aspect of the Tolkien Professor podcasts was the Tolkien Chat call-in shows. These shows were hosted through Skype where listeners could call in and ask Olsen questions directly. The shows were then edited and published as podcasts. Olsen also published several of his Washington College courses, including Faerie and Fantasy that covered some of the well known works of Middle English such as Sir Orfeo, Sir Launfal, and The Wedding of Sir Gawain and Dame Ragnelle. To go along with his book Exploring J.R.R. Tolkien's "The Hobbit", Olsen published a series of lectures on The Hobbit that gave chapter reviews and interpretation of the story, poetry, and prose of The Hobbit.
