In academia, there are two different worlds, one inhabited by tenure-track and the other by non-tenure-track faculty. In the first, people encourage faculty to become involved in a series of important reforms that increase student success, completion, and learning. In this first world, people envision faculty simultaneously increasing their…

The new majority of faculty in today's colleges and universities are part-time, yet sizable gaps exist in the research on their needs, interests, and experiences. Further, the peer-reviewed scholarship is largely quantitative. Principally, it focuses on the utility of the adjunct work force, comparisons between part-time and full-time faculty, and…

The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore the experiences of older adult dislocated workers who participated in community college non-credit workforce training programs. The research questions guiding the study were: (a) what are the experiences of older adult dislocated workers who attend community college non-credit workforce…

For the forty-second time, the Association for Educational Communications and Technology (AECT) is sponsoring the publication of these Proceedings. Papers published in this volume were presented at the annual AECT Convention in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Proceedings of AECT's Convention are published in two volumes. Volume 1 contains papers dealing…

Among the most visible indicators of a shift toward sustainability in higher education is the increase in new staff positions dedicated to sustainability, along with support staff and offices. To provide our members with a greater understanding of these new positions, AASHE has been conducting a biennial survey of campus sustainability staff since…

Drawing on a survey of chief academic officers at 347 community colleges nationwide, this study examined the impact of institutional type (rural, suburban, urban) on reliance on and demand for adjunct faculty members. Findings indicated that rural institutions rely less on adjuncts, whereas both rural and urban institutions report high levels of…

This mixed methods study explored the phenomenon of job burnout among adjunct faculty at two suburban Illinois community colleges. The Maslach Burnout Inventory-Educators' Survey (MBI-ES) was administered to adjuncts at both colleges to determine overall levels of burnout for the three dimensions of burnout--emotional exhaustion,…

The United States faces a critical shortage of full-time registered nurses, which is . directly affected by the shortage of nurse educators. Many schools of nursing are already seeing the impact as qualified program applicants are being turned away due to the lack of qualified educators available to teach them. The trend has become to employ…

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),…

Teaching and learning have been a focus of professional development for community college faculty, yet little is known about the impact of professional development on the instructional practices of part-time community college faculty. The purpose of this qualitative study was to describe the impact of sustained professional development on the…

"FACTC Focus" is a publication of Faculty Association of Community and Technical Colleges (FACTC) with the purpose of presenting diverse views on faculty issues. Included in this issue are: (1) LOL: The Easy ROUTE TO Critical Thinking (Barbara B. Parsons); (2) Critical Thinking: We Know It When We (Don't) See It (Jared Anthony); (3) Critical…

Fiscal constraints, understaffing, increased enrollments, demand for professional education, and the need for a more flexible workforce account for increases in the employment of part-time faculty in higher education. Part-time faculty tend to teach large, introductory courses for first and second-year students, who are in the "risk…

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…

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…

Over the past several decades, one of the most significant changes in the delivery of postsecondary education involves the dramatic increase in the use of contingent or part-time faculty. Although the increased use of part-time faculty within higher education makes sense from an administrative point of view, its use does not come without…