A state debate over whether graduate assistants and adjunct faculty members have the right to unionize has sparked contention among state officials and heated responses from graduate students, but adjunct faculty have remained largely quiet on an issue that some say should be just as critical to them.
Graduate assistants and adjunct faculty at state public universities do not currently have a legal right to collectively bargain. But after a November report was issued stating that they should not be allowed to unionize because of the expense it would impose on and the friction it could cause in state institutions, a heated dispute erupted among graduate students, state officials and university system administrators. Most adjuncts, however, seem apathetic or unaware of the issues surrounding this ongoing debate.
“The sort of disengagement that most part-time faculty feel is because they work two or three jobs,” said Monica Jacobe, an adjunct University Senate representative. “A lot of adjuncts don’t take their job farther than what they are contractually obligated to do.”
Adjuncts make up about 22 percent of the faculty at the university and teach about 11 percent of the courses. At the state university level, there are about 5,000 adjunct professors. Nationally, more than 50 percent of all faculty members are contracted on a per-semester basis, according to the U.S. Department of Education.
The term “adjunct” denotes professors who hold temporary positions on a more part-time basis than tenure or tenure-track faculty.
Some adjunct professors hold jobs outside of the university, teach at other universities or are graduate students. Many graduate students end up teaching as adjuncts instead of as teaching assistants because of funding, said Anna Bedford, a graduate student and former adjunct professor at St. Mary’s College.
Because the adjunct faculty population is a minority group of professors and is less permanent than other members of the university community, system-wide representation and awareness tends to waver.
Joe Vivona, the university system’s vice chancellor for administration and finance, said more needs to be done to engage these faculty members because no one-size-fits-all approach would be effective in such a diverse population.
Following the November workgroup report — which was written under an 18-member committee consisting of graduate students, adjunct faculty members, labor representatives and university and University System administrators — the system created two teams charged with overseeing the implementation of the policy changes outlined in the report, including allowing adjunct faculty members to take on a stronger role in shared governance.
Adjuncts were given a seat in this university’s senate for the first time just last year.
But allowing adjuncts a seat at the table might not be enough.
Sabrina Baron, who served as the adjunct senate representative last semester, said she had trouble communicating with her constituency because the university gave her no access to their contact information. And because many adjuncts are not on the campus for longer than it takes for them to teach their classes, it was often difficult to determine what their needs were or what their opinions were on various university issues.
This disengagement, Baron said, stems from overcommitment and a weak sense of belonging, not from a lack of interest, care or understanding.
“I know people who teach at three or four different universities. They’re not really earning a living wage,” she said. “There’s also this idea that adjuncts live as housewives, looking for a hobby. That’s a really false perception.”
quijada at umdbk dot edu
