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adjuncts

Please be certain to include a fair representation at the event itself from the adjuncts who make up such a large percentage of the cc faculties. Adjuncts bring not only cheap labor (at our cc about half the hourly rate of ft faculty w/o any benefits) but more significantly a wealth of experience and diversity.

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Submitted by Community Member 2 years ago

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Comments (4)

  1. dmilroy53

    Contingent Faculty, the word "adjunct" is most offensive and degrading, are the vast majority of community college faculty. While we provide high quality education to our students, we are treated and compensated at the lowest levels, with little if any institutional support. Contingent faculty are paid less than half what their full-time colleagues are paid for the same work and academic preparation. Few contingent faculty have office hours to help our students, nor do many of us have health benefits to stay healthy in order to continue teaching our students. It is wrong to build a first class educational system on the backs of exploited contingent faculty. Higher education is not a factory and the corporate model of exploitation of labor should not be our plan for educating America. Please address this issue in your White House Community College Summit

    2 years ago
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  2. jweir

    I have been a part time faculty in the California Community College system for 43 years and the hairs on the back of my neck still stand up when I hear the term "adjunct".

    Please allow me to quote from Brother Webster:

    "ADJUNCT: 1. a thing added to something else, but secondary or not essential. 2. A person connected in a relatively subordinate capacity with another person."

    PLEASE, part time, contingent, or any other term you like for we poor underpaid overworked slobs, but adjunct is NOT acceptable in my vocabulary.

    Jim

    2 years ago
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  3. Community Member

    Thanks, d and j. I would settle for part time. I concur that there needs to be a better name than "adjunct" but Webster's definition, alas, does accurately describe the relationship part-time faculty have to their institution. Even "not essential" would apply to the perspective some administrators have toward individual adjuncts.

    Check out definitions for contingent such as (my Webster is not handy, so maybe it has a more desirable definition):

    "1. dependent for existence, occurrence, character, etc., on something not yet certain; conditional (often fol. by on or upon ): Our plans are contingent on the weather.

    2. liable to happen or not; uncertain; possible: They had to plan for contingent expenses.

    3.happening by chance or without known cause; fortuitous; accidental: contingent occurrences.'

    http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/contingent

    Now, that seems more descriptive of the situation to be sure. In my state part time employees can not organize for representation! Full time unions negotiate and often concede raises to keep the benefits they have. It is a situation we need to seek to remedy by whatever name. A rose is....

    Let's stress the major issues and work to have part-timers represented not only at the Summit but at any worthwhile working groups that might grow out of it.

    2 years ago
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  4. sjmahoney

    The adjunct model is the future model for education in my humble opinion. Combine this with a performance-based, learning outcome management tracking and you have a compelling combination.

    2 years ago
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