American higher education is in the midst of a staffing crisis. More than three quarters of faculty members work off the tenure track, often with no job security, low wages, and few prospects for advancement. While the contingent labor force is diversified--including highly qualified but part-time laborers piecing together positions at multiple…

This article presents the outcomes from a case at Marquette University (USA), brought by seven Ph.D. adjuncts who had completed their doctoral programs and were currently teaching part-time as they sought full-time positions elsewhere. The case identified a disparity that is happening at many U.S. colleges and universities that increasing rely…

As anyone who has ever defended a thesis or been on a tenure track must know, American institutions of higher education have rigorous and finely calibrated ways of according respect to those who work in them. What they do not have enough of is respect from those beyond their gates. The author argues that the system that created the two-tiered…

There is a growing concern among faculty and administrators in higher education institutions that shared governance is being diminished, primarily due to the decline of tenure-track faculty and growth of contingent faculty who have been historically excluded from formal participation in university governance. Although the role of faculty in…

Explores the often difficult but ultimately rewarding experience of being a tenure-seeking film professor at California State University. Describes a brutal workload, balancing the demands of motherhood and career advancement, and making a documentary film about the earthquake that destroyed the campus. (EV)