In four decades of teaching college English, the author has watched many good teaching jobs morph into second-class ones. Worse, she has seen the memory and then the expectation of teaching jobs with decent status, security, and salary depart along with principles and collegiality. To help reverse this downward spiral, she contends that what is…

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 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…

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 paper, the author describes what might happen if a college got rid of its board of trustees and the faculty became voting partners in running the "corporation." What if there was no board of trustees composed mainly of outsiders? What if the president was chosen by and responsible to the faculty? What, in short, if the faculty owned the…

Describes one day in the teaching life of a temporary college faculty member, focusing on her dedication to the students and the class that she has been asked to teach, and highlighting issues that she faces in being a temporary faculty member (e.g., low pay and no job security). (SM)

In 1999, most deans of nursing schools that belonged to the American Association of Colleges of Nursing reported that they did not have a faculty shortage. By 2005, however, 75 percent of U.S. nursing schools cited faculty shortages as the major reason for denying admission to qualified students. The average age of nurse educators holding PhDs is…

A table presents corrections to the faculty compensation data reported in the 1999-2000 Annual Report on the Economic Status of the Profession published in the March-April issue of "Academe." Institutions are listed by state, with data provided for average salary, average compensation, percent of faculty tenured, and numbers and salaries of…

Describes the experiences of a group of temporary faculty members at Northern Illinois University who worked to create a union, highlighting their issues related to pay and equity and looking at the response of university administrators to temporary faculty demands. (SM)

Introduces three articles describing how faculty at three medical schools fought back against aggressive medical school administrators who tried to limit the faculty's power by cutting salaries and/or threatening tenure. (DB)

A survey of college faculty revealed that the Tax Reform Act of 1986, designed to make taxes simpler and more equitable, has increased the taxes of over half the respondents and decreased the tax liability of only 9%. Results also suggest that faculty bear a significant portion of the expenses associated with their profession. (MSE)

Analysis reported in this annual report concludes that while faculty salaries have increased after adjusting for inflation, the gap between faculty salaries and those of others with similar education has widened significantly. Twenty-three tables detail conclusions of Committee Z on the Economic Status of the Profession and the national survey…

Notes that increasing numbers of medical schools no longer guarantee the full salary of tenured professors and suggests faculty members must rely on traditional structures of shared governance to ensure that the decoupling of tenure from salary does not destroy academic freedom within the university. Evaluates five models proposed to deal with the…

It's not hard to understand why college and university professors might worry about trends in faculty compensation. It may be more difficult, however, to see why those outside higher education should share this concern. But they should. In 2005-06, average faculty salaries increased by less than the inflation rate for the second consecutive year,…

Most college and university administrators claim to care deeply about the quality of teaching at their institutions. But, too often, their actions belie their words. Consider, for example, the following questions. Which candidate for a faculty position is usually viewed as more attractive, the promising researcher or the promising teacher? Who…