The current use of part-time faculty and issues regarding this practice are addressed. Ways that part-time faculty affect the quality of academic programs are discussed, including the frequent characterization of them as "second-class citizens." Policies and practices are shaped by the diverse characteristics of part-timers,…

Although consulting has long been recognized as a legitimate faculty role in most colleges, concern has arisen about the appropriateness of "double dipping," and particularly whether consulting and other supplemental income activities result in shirking other university responsibilities. The debate centers on six basic issues: who…

An incentive early retirement program is an arrangement between employer and employee that provides tangible inducement or reward for voluntary early retirement. It may be a formal program or an ad hoc agreement negotiated with the institution. The most common incentives include severance pay, liberalized actuarial reduction, annuity enhancements,…

Recent Supreme Court rulings are motivating employers to take actions reflecting their compliance with federal laws protecting against sexual harassment. Three key steps employers can take to counter sexual harassment are as follows: develop a strong company policy specifying outlawed behaviors and penalties for their demonstration; establish…

The number of part-time faculty instructors at two-year colleges has grown steadily since the early 1960s, increasing from 38% in 1962 to 65% in 1993. Part-time faculty are employed in community colleges for four main reasons. First, they save an institution money in both salaries and benefits and are rarely promoted; second, the use of part-time…

Faced with scarce resources and environmental uncertainty in the past decade, colleges and universities have experimented with different modes of academic staffing, most of which are attempts to preserve or create more flexible policies and practices. In spite of tenure systems in operation at 94% of all four year colleges, institutions have at…

This digest examines the rural teacher shortage from a policy perspective and suggests strategies to address the problem. The rural teacher recruitment and retention problem varies across states. An adequate number of teachers are trained each year nationwide, but the problem is with distribution. Recent research on rural teacher recruitment and…

Factors that have led to post-tenure evaluation of faculty are considered, along with concerns that should be examined before designing a post-tenure review process. Post-tenure evaluation is not in opposition to the principle of tenure and to policy statements about tenure issued by the American Association of University Professors, provided that…

The obligations of colleges and universities under existing laws prohibiting sex discrimination against employees and students are summarized. Principal federal sources of legal obligation regarding employees are the equal protection clause of the Fourteenth Amendment, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Equal Pay Act of 1963, and…

Options for flexible work schedules such as job sharing, compressed work weeks, reduced hours, work at home, and flextime have provided employees with the means to realize a better balance between work and family and engage simultaneously in more than one endeavor (for example, school and work or two careers). The same options can also lead to…

A discussion of the faculty and administrator selection process looks at the function of search committees, the issue of confidentiality in records, and societal issues that need to be addressed. A number of factors in the effective use of search committees are outlined, including breadth of committee membership, quality of communication within…

This publication is a brief digest of a longer monograph on compensation policies for higher education faculty and the impact of these policies on the professoriate and the higher education enterprise. An early section describes the monograph's treatment of the current financial turbulence in higher education that has caused many institutions to…

With its definitions of individuals' and employers' rights and obligations, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is a mandate and a statement of our moral and ethical values as a culture. Persons with disabilities and employers must apply ADA's "triple standard" of reasonable accommodations for performing essential job functions…

The gold-collar worker has problem-solving abilities, creativity, talent, and intelligence; performs non-repetitive and complex work difficult to evaluate; and prefers self management. Gold-collar information technology workers learn continually from experience; recognize the synergy of teams; can demonstrate leadership; and are strategic thinkers…