This study addresses methodological problems surrounding existing research on exposure to contingent instructors and student outcomes. By applying non-aggregated and aggregated measures of exposure to contingent instructors to the same data, this analysis demonstrates that effects of commonly used measures of exposure to contingent instructors…

The important concern surrounding growing reliance on part-time faculty is its effect on student retention. Existing studies explored the relationship between part-time faculty utilization and retention of entering cohorts. The study herein assesses retention of the entire population of degree-seeking undergraduates at a single institution. The…

The relationship between the use of part-time faculty and student retention was studied at a comprehensive Midwestern university. Of particular interest was the degree to which first-time full-time freshmen were exposed to part-time faculty and whether there are ways to determine if faculty status, defined as part-time versus full-time, have a…

The use of adjunct faculty members is largely dictated and controlled by institutional needs and policies that exist outside academic departments. Within those institutional frameworks, however, there exist substantial opportunities for departments to improve the working conditions of adjunct faculty members. Through the judicious use of…

Describes the development, format, and content of a new faculty orientation and mentoring program. The orientation program targets immediate information concerning employment and getting started in the classroom, while the mentoring program provides peer support for the duration of the employee's first years of service. The initiative is divided…

Using the 1993 National Survey of Postsecondary Faculty (NSOPF:93), examined the employment, earnings, and satisfaction of faculty. Found that demand-side factors explained most of the gender difference in part-time employment, part-timers earned more per hour from all work than full-timers, and part-time and full-time faculty were equally…

For the last several decades the academic discipline of rhetoric and composition has been trying to re-imagine itself, in part in response to the process of professionalization. Unfortunately, the yearning for recognition in a system that does not respect disciplines that are practical or applied has led to some consequences. First, as a…

Responding to the mandates of the Educational Reform Bill in Texas, new emphasis has been placed on the role and responsibilities of substitute teachers. This paper describes a 5-hour substitute teacher seminar that all substitute teachers and aide applicants are required to attend. The 2-day seminar focuses on the contents of the "Substitute…

The role of part-time faculty in the community college is discussed in this paper along with ways of improving their performance and morale. Introductory material outlines the advantages of employing part-time teachers (e.g., low cost, high motivation, and fewer commitments), and specifies some of their particular needs (e.g., stability, provision…

A model and implementation process is presented for projecting student headcount and credit hour and contact hour enrollment for each academic area and all areas aggregated by semester and fiscal year for each campus of Montgomery College, Maryland. The projection model is suggested as a managerial tool to assist the college's management to…

In California community colleges there are 14,273 people who are employed full-time as instructors. Another 20,027 are employed as part-time faculty members. In the past three years there has been an estimated annual increase of 10 percent in the number of part-time faculty employed. Benefits of utilizing part-time instructors include: (1) The…

Many colleges and universities use "adjunct faculty" as a means to address increasingly unpredictable student populations, questionable funding formulas, and tightened education budgets. Initial evidence suggests, however, that the practice of using them contains flaws. This research was conducted to determine existing circumstances of adjunct…

The exploitation of adjunct faculty is a disgrace to the academy. The prominence and indispensability of part-time faculty is obvious, yet they are rarely acknowledged or compensated for their mandatory contributions to higher education. This paper seeks to explicate how adjunct faculty are at risk and disempowered by a lack of respect…

The difficulties experienced by part-time faculty members are discussed, and some benefits of part-time teaching are identified. Among the problems faced by part-time staff are per-course salaries, lack of college-paid benefits, job insecurity, and invisibility on campus. If the part-time teaching position is a primary source of income and career…

The problem of effective staff use in a college department of physical education is addressed in this paper. Some of the advantages and disadvantages frequently associated with the full-time teacher, the part-time instructor, the graduate assistant, and the paraprofessional are examined. It is suggested that careful assignment of faculty, using…