Reflections on 50 Years as an #ADJUNCT

‘I make a difference every day’. That is a slogan of the American Federation of teachers (AFT), and that is my goal every of my life. Who am I? I am an adjunct, a proud a dedicated adjunct, who makes a difference in the lives of students every day. I spent seven years in College becoming educated in my field so I could go out and teach others how to make the world a better place and how to have a successful career. Fortunately I was able to go to College on merit scholarships and did not have to amass a large student loan debt, as most students do today. I studied and worked hard, I read a lot, I took part in student demonstrations, and I kept up on current events. I was very optimistic and felt I was on a crusade to help change the world with a career in academia

That was fifty years ago. Today, I am a realist, and the reality is scary. While in graduate school studying History and Political Science, I taught myself accounting, figuring it would come in handy doing taxes for me and my family and friends. I never thought that I would make a living and raise a family as a controller rather than a professor. For thirty-five years I worked in private industry, while teaching one or two courses at night in a local college. When my sons were grown and married, my wife and I decided that it was now time for me to follow my real goal and go into college teaching full time. Ha! 

#adjunct protest + a call for selfies

 …that would be Mary Faith Cerasoli's one-woman protest in Albany, the one Frank Reiser blogged, got activists (including but not limited to Keith Hoeller, Peter Brown and Anna Spiro), charged up on adj-l and involved getting coverage. That worked:"Without Tenure or a Home" by Cory Kilgannon, appeared in the NY Times. The story took off on social media. Then PBS showed up in Albany, filmed and wants more. So here's TL MackPico's Mary Faith update, with a call for selfies. In TL 's own write:

Mary Faith is on her way back to NYC. I just spoke to the PBS producer and told them how core activists were inspired by MF, live tweeting while she was doing her action and sending similar signs/selfies saying they support MF and where they teach from all over the country 

PBS now wants to pair MF's action/story with all of ours. I need more selfie signs to send them tonight! Can all of you get those? Please get this out everywhere ASAP. Send photos to tmackenglish@gmail.com 

Please reach out everywhere -- get your adjunct networks, groups, colleagues to make selfies and send them to my email As quickly as we can get them from as many as we can muster! This is a tremendous opportunity for the movement. 

Include these 3 pieces of info: I am Prof/Dr ...; I support MF; and location. Please make sure we get locations to stress how far apart we are. For example: "We are all Mary-Faith: exploited professors standing as One: Chicago, Illinois, Dr of English" + selfie (and similar variations) 

The producer is working with both of us. We have signed permissions, so if you can just get them to me that should work. I relayed the story of the movement's outpouring, pitching that folks  from all over countrywere sending signage supporting MF. That got all their interest, and they want to use it with what MF did today to show how widespread adjunct faculty exploitation is

Education International…March 2014 Newsletter

…@eduint (EI), the voice of educators worldwide, brings together 401 education unions. @IIEglobal, more admin-centric, is another resource. See their list of top twitter sources for international higher education. Consider this a call to higher ed casuals from around the world for links and information sources on and especially directly from precarious faculty globally.

Sylvain Marois, ULaval, is working on a report for COCAL XI on the global casualization of academic labor — I'm helping and ask you to join us. Aside from US, Canadian, UK and Australian sources, our collection is still short on less top down sources, e.g. directly from sessional faculty and groups representing their concerns, which are very much the same as ours. We are not alone.

March 2014

Ominvore #ReadingRoom: not your dad's academy

…waiting for the #Adjunct Town Hall witching hour to arrive, rummaging through the feed reader's daily (and older catch). Many we've read recently and were not new even then. 

Increasingly more stories make it out of the Ivory Silo™ niches of journals and higher ed media. Omnivore casts its nets widely: its briefly annotated, themed collections open a two-way window on academic culture in the media, lay bare higher ed "media creep." 


I'm still waiting for coverage to include adjunct generated media. Until then, we do that for ourselves.

David A. Reidy (Tennessee): Social Justice, the University, and the Temptation to Mission Creep. From Class, Race, and Corporate Power, Thomas Breslin (FIU): Race, Class and the Promise of the Public University; and Ronald W. Cox (FIU): The Corporatization of Higher Education. Noam Chomsky on the death of American universities: As universities move towards a corporate business model, precarity is being imposed by force....The Wal-Mart-ization of higher education: Keith Hoeller on how young professors are getting screwed.... 

Not your dad's academy: Nick Kristof is wrong — professors are more relevant, accessible, and tech-savvy than ever before.  

Read the rest of not your dad's academy at Book Forum's Omnivore

best continuing #adjunct story…#EqualPay4EqualWork

…Suzanne Hudson and Don Eron

…Colorado HB14-1154 introduced by Rep Randy Fischer, also instrumental, with Don Eron and Suzanne Hudson, in their other NTT equity campaign -- the one Don and Suzanne got that AAUP award for.

Yes, the bill at the hearings was HB1154 ~ same bill, out on the next round. Remember that Sesame Street video about Bills? Lots of steps so pay attention because you could be doing this in your state someday. 




March 2, Don wrote, 

CPR interviews Caprice Lawless

If you'd like to run a brief news item, I've attached a statement of support issued by the NFM, which we received yesterday. The statement is spot on--and very much appreciated. 

So: a warm thanks to our brothers and sisters in the New Faculty Majority! 

It's been a busy few days. 

Suzanne, Caprice, and I, along with seven eloquent adjuncts from Front Range CC, met with the Senate Majority Leader. On Tuesday a few of us are meeting with the Speaker of the House, to try to persuade him to prioritize HB14-1154. 

Thanks, as always.  Best, Don

NFM Letter of Support for Colorado HB1154