Beginning the 2026 fall semester, Ohio universities are requiring all syllabi for undergraduate classes to be posted online in an accessible format to comply with Senate Bill 1.
Most universities, such as Ohio State and Miami University, have implemented the Simple Syllabus template created by the company, Simple Higher Ed. Ohio State's website said the tool allows instructors "to quickly and easily create, duplicate and deploy syllabi."
For Theresa Kulbaga, English Professor at Miami University, the tool is far from convenient.
"I have no students who have seen anything that I've posted on Simple Syllabus," Kulbaga said. "What students actually care about is the syllabus that I hand out in class."
Kulbaga, also the president of the Faculty Alliance of Miami, said she and other faculty members have several privacy concerns, especially those teaching race, gender, climate change and other controversial subjects.
"Professors like me who have to publish our course content online for the public are open to being targeted, harassed, doxed and otherwise unfavorable negative public opinion by anybody in the public who has a problem with what we teach," Kulbaga said.
At Ohio State, the Simple Syllabus template is integrated into CarmenCanvas and requires all necessary information, including instructor name and qualifications, to be completed before the syllabus is published.
Senate Bill 1 did not provide universities with funding to implement the program. At Ohio State, the partnership with Simple Syllabus costs $45,000 a year with a $10,000 implementation fee, according to a contract Ohio State provided.
Kulbaga said for Miami University, the total cost for the service could be much higher than that.
"It's an enormous cost," Kulbaga said. "A cost that is not going into the educational mission of the university."
The current Ohio State contract with Simple Syllabus is in effect for three years.