This article presents the annual report on the economic status of the profession. This year's report covers three main issues--all perennial problems, but with new analysis based on the latest data--in addition to summarizing the current results from the annual American Association of University Professors (AAUP) survey of full-time faculty…

This article presents the annual report on the economic status of the profession. Although the results of this year's survey of full-time faculty compensation are marginally better than they have been the last two years, 2011-12 represents the continuation of a historic low period for faculty salaries. The overall average salary for full-time…

The use of contingent faculty in higher education in the United States has grown tremendously over the past three decades. In 1975, only 30.2 percent of faculty were employed part time; by 2005, according to data compiled by the American Association of University Professors (AAUP) from the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS),…

Challenges associated with the increasing use of contingent faculty appointments in American higher education are mounting. The AAUP and other professional groups have identified several major problems: (1) unacceptable conditions and compensation for contingent faculty members; (2) poor learning outcomes for students; and (3) the potential…

What qualities are the essence of a top-notch university professor? "Enthusiastic." "Fun." "Interesting." "Cares about students." These attributes are listed in student reviews of America's number one professor for 2009, as determined by the Web site ratemyprofessor.com. Other students made these comments about the same instructor: "Very easy A,"…

The effects of reliance on part-time faculty in higher education have been much discussed of late. Most observers now agree that the increasing reliance on contingent academic labor has worrisome consequences for both students and faculty. The authors recently attempted to provide needed analysis of what drives the current reliance on part-time…

The Professional Staff Congress (PSC), the union for twenty-two thousand faculty and staff members at the City University of New York (CUNY), has been successful at gaining New York State aid for tuition remission for doctoral students and health insurance for graduate student employees, increasing budget allotments to CUNY, and obtaining transit…

According to the National Bureau of Economic Research, the Great Recession began in December 2007 and ended in June 2009. With a duration of eighteen months, this recession was almost double the length of the average post-World War II economic downturn. Although the worst recession since the Great Depression is now technically over, this analysis…

In this article, the authors provide a description of the academic climate in New Mexico. Like many other places in the world today, New Mexico is trying to find an identity in an environment that the authors label "increasingly privatized, corporatized, and militarized." New Mexico's higher education salaries are lower than those in…

While it may provide greater economic efficiency, the increased use of part-time faculty in colleges and universities has been strongly criticized. The criticisms of increased employment of contingent faculty are based on research that supports the idea that faculty-student interaction leads to positive outcomes, including increased cognitive and…

This article talks about the retired faculty members from different types of institutions around the country that were interviewed to find out how well their preparations for retirement are serving them now. Like other state employees in California, faculty members at public institutions participate in the California Public Employees' Retirement…

The work of individual professors and members of the "faculty" requires a high degree of autonomy. This professional independence that educators enjoy individually through academic freedom and collectively through peer review and shared governance arises from a social contract, a tacit agreement with the public about the contribution of…

Almost thirty years ago, Justice William Brennan saw clearly that American higher education was coming under the same pressures to "cut costs and increase efficiencies" to which market forces were subjecting businesses. Since Justice Brennan's observation, employers generally have sought to maximize their "flexibility' by creating a…

The 2006 report from Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings's Commission on the Future of Higher Education, "Test of Leadership: Charting the Future of U. S. Higher Education", made recommendations that most parttime faculty cannot follow. The report "urge[s] postsecondary institutions to make a commitment to embrace new pedagogies, curricula,…

The president of the American Association of University Professors examines the year's activities and asserts that one of the association's most important contributions has been helping to raise the alarm about the serious impact of contingent academic labor on higher education. (EV)