A presentation that can be edited by adjuncts for use in their class to educate students on contingent faculty. GEARED towards adjuncts, not necessarily those without tenure. Slide 33 and 35 might need to be edited, because they are specific to my situation and campuses. I suggest you put your own comments here. Slides have transitions from one slide to the next, but unless you save it in a format that is more current, you won't be able to change the transitions. The presentation can be opened, and played, and you can easily walk out of the class until it finishes. Approx. 12 minutes long

1. NATIONAL ADJUNCT
WALKOUT AND
AWARENESS DAY
February 25th
, 2015
“The Rise of the Hyper-Educated Poor”
Developed and prepared by Dr. J Smith, Adjunct in TX

2. WHO ARE ADJUNCTS?
•“Part Time”
professors
•“Contingent
faculty”
What does this mean?
The college did not have
enough full time faculty to
cover all its classes
They hired people to work
‘part time’, with equal
qualifications, to teach
other scheduled classes

3. THE MAJORITY OF CONTINGENT
FACULTY DO NOT HAVE PROFESSIONAL
CAREERS OUTSIDE OF ACADEME.
Most teach basic core
courses, rather than narrow
specialties in which they are
highly trained.

4. WHO ARE ADJUNCTS?
•On average, 76% of professors at most US
colleges are hired ‘part time’ or non-
tenure-track
So, you’d think that these professors have the
same pay, benefits, opportunities and job
security as full-time faculty, right?
WRONG

5. ADJUNCT WAGESAdjuncts are paid based
upon how many classes
they teach, or
‘contact hours’.
Adjuncts are limited by the
state to 9 ‘contact hours’
(3 classes) per school,
maximum.
Full time faculty are
salaried employees
Full time faculty are given a
maximum of 15 ‘contact
hours’ (5 classes)
Most adjuncts must get jobs at
multiple schools (with maximum
hours) to have a decent
livable wage, typically
18-24 contact hours (6-8 classes).

6. ADJUNCTS ARE PAID
$2,700 PER COURSE,
ON AVERAGE.
(NOT PER MONTH, FOR THE
WHOLE SEMESTER…)

7. WHEN CALCULATED PER
HOUR THAT ADJUNCTS
ACTUALLY WORK, IN
AND OUT OF CLASS,
THIS FIGURE IS LESS
THAN MINIMUM WAGE.

8. IF AN ADJUNCT TAUGHT
ONLY 9 CONTACT HOURS
PER SEMESTER
(3 CLASSES),
THEIR INCOME WOULD
FALL BELOW THE POVERTY
LINE.

9. Average yearly income of an adjunct with a Ph.D.
and equivalent experience, teaching at 2
institutions (9 hrs at one school, 6 hrs at another):
$22,500
*Does not include summer teaching appointments
Average yearly income of a full time professor
with a Ph.D., teaching 15 contact hours:
$84,000
** at community colleges this figure is around $60,000
*full time professors can get raises, adjuncts cannot

10. Many adjuncts are on food
stamps, welfare, Medicaid, or
unemployment benefits,
WHILE STILL WORKING.

11. ADJUNCT AWARENESS
Adjuncts are not eligible for
health care – many go without
Adjuncts are not offered
retirement benefits
Adjuncts do not get sick days or
paid time off – they have money
deducted from their paychecks
if they have to miss class
Full time faculty get healthcare
Full time faculty get retirement
and 401k
Full time faculty can cancel class
or find a sub if they are sick with
no deduction to their salary

12. ADJUNCT CLASSES
Full time faculty can often choose
their class times
Full time faculty can often choose
WHAT classes they teach
Adjuncts must accept classes they’re
offered, or risk losing their jobs

13. WHAT HAPPENS IF A CLASS HAS TOO
LOW ENROLLMENT FOR THE SEMESTER?
Adjunct:
Loses that class, and that
pay, for the entire
semester, without warning
Full time:
Is given another section of
the same class, often at
the expense of an adjunct
who loses that class

14. ADJUNCT EDUCATION
Many adjuncts have equal
education and training to
their full-time counterparts
Since they get paid so little,
most adjuncts cannot afford
to pay student loan debt,
putting them further behind
Adjuncts get no
payment for time spent
commuting to their
different campuses,
often on the same days

15. JOB SECURITYAdjuncts are hired ‘per
semester’ and given
no guarantee of
employment after that
Adjuncts are often told what their
class assignments are DAYS
BEFORE THE CLASS BEGINS, but
are expected to provide the
same level of educational
experience for their students
Full time faculty are given
‘contracts’ for years at a
time, or permanent
employment (tenure)
Full time faculty know
months in advance what
classes they’ll teach and
at what time

16. SCHOOL PARTICIPATION
At most campuses, adjuncts have
no voice or say in administrative
proceedings of their colleges
Adjuncts are typically not invited to
departmental meetings
Adjuncts cannot serve on
department committees for
selecting textbooks, hiring, planning,
or serve as advisers
Full time faculty have representatives
in the ‘faculty senate’
Full time faculty are required to
attend department meetings
Full time faculty are expected to
participate in department
committees and advise students

17. OVERUSE OF CONTINGENT FACULTY
HURTS ALL FACULTY
•Responsibilities like advising students, setting
curriculum, and serving on college-wide
committees are divided and assigned piecemeal
to instructors, lecturers, graduate students,
specialists, researchers, and administrators.
•Proportionally fewer tenure-track faculty means
fewer people to divide up the work.

18. OUTSIDE OF CLASS…
Adjunct faculty do not have private
office space, and at some
campuses, no office at all
Full time faculty have private offices

19. OUTSIDE OF CLASS…
Adjunct faculty are not paid for
office hours for students, though they
are required for each class
Adjunct faculty are not paid for time
spent grading or preparing for class
Full time faculty are compensated in
their salary
Full time faculty are compensated in
their salary

20. MANY CONTINGENT
FACULTY MEMBERS ARE
EXCELLENT TEACHERS AND SCHOLARS.
But no matter how qualified and
dedicated, contingent faculty
members are hobbled in the
performance of their duties.

21. HEAVY RELIANCE ON CONTINGENT
FACULTY HURTS STUDENTS (YOU).
•Adjuncts:
• have little ‘down time’ – their
time is spent commuting or
working.
• Never having ‘down time’
means a lower quality of
life
• can offer few office hours,
and are never easy to find on
campus.
No matter what, adjuncts
NEVER let their own
struggles affect the
QUALITY of education
you receive.
YOU are our TOP priority.

22. CONTINGENT FACULTY
HAVE HIGH TURNOVER…
•This means that some students:
•may never have the same teacher twice
•may be unable to find an instructor who
knows them well enough to write a letter of
recommendation.

23. THE TURN TOWARDS
CHEAPER LABOR IS
LARGELY A MATTER OF
PRIORITIES RATHER THAN
ECONOMIC NECESSITY.

24. WHILE MANY INSTITUTIONS ARE
CURRENTLY SUFFERING BUDGET CUTS…
THE GREATEST GROWTH IN CONTINGENT
FACULTY OCCURRED DURING TIMES OF
ECONOMIC PROSPERITY.

25. Full time employment has
decreased in the past 25 years…
While
employing
adjuncts has
skyrocketed.

26. ADJUNCTS ARE THE ‘FACULTY OF THE FUTURE’
Unless you do something about it…

27. MANY INSTITUTIONS HAVE INVESTED
HEAVILY IN FACILITIES AND TECHNOLOGY
WHILE CUTTING INSTRUCTIONAL SPENDING.
Though incoming students may find finer
facilities, they are also likely to find:
fewer full-time faculty with adequate time,
professional support, and resources
available for their instruction.

28. WE, THE ADJUNCT FACULTY
OF THE UNITED STATES,
are taking a stand for working
conditions deserving of the level of
academic preparation and
commitment of adjunct faculty.

29. SO WE ASK YOU, TODAY, WITH ONE VOICE:
“What would you do if your professor
was not here?
What if he/she got fed up with the
conditions, and left you to learn alone?
Or with someone with lesser
qualifications, or less desire to see you
succeed?”

30. IT’S NOT JUST ONE VOICE…
Sources:
•New Faculty Majority
•Chronicle of Higher
Education
•Inside Higher Ed
•Vitae
•Adjuncts in Action
•Adjunct Faculty Union
•AdjunctNation.com
•Adjunctsauras
•Association of
Governing Boards
•American Federation
of Teachers
•AAUP
•National Center of
Education Statistics
•Various news outlets
• Washington
Post
• New York Times
• Huffington Post

31. YOUR FACULTY, FULL-TIME AND
PART-TIME, STAND BEHIND YOU.
WE HAVE DEDICATED OUR LIVES
TO HELPING YOU SUCCEED AND
ACHIEVE YOUR DREAMS.
REMEMBER US NEXT TIME YOU
PAY FOR YOUR CLASSES.

32. I’M ONE OF THE LUCKY ONES…
Your campus has a great support system
of administrators and supervisors that
care about contingent faculty, from
working with my schedules, to providing
temporary offices, and other necessities.
But not all are that lucky…

33. GET EDUCATED ABOUT HOW
YOUR TUITION AND FEES ARE
SPENT, AND DEMAND THAT IT
IS SPENT FOR THE THINGS YOU
WANT.
Ask me if you’d like to write a
letter or talk to someone
about this issue.
We cannot have
change without YOU!

34. SIGNED…
One of the thousands of adjunct faculty
that love you, who
•Has been on food stamps
•Been forced to receive unemployment benefits
•Cannot pay back anything on 5-figure student loans
•Has no health, dental, or vision insurance
•Has no retirement benefits or personal savings
•can’t afford to live alone
•Worked, at one point, for 4 colleges simultaneously
to make ends-meet
•Has no office
•Buys clothes at thrift stores (not by choice)
•Currently teaches 18 contact hours (6 classes)
•Got an advanced degree, just so she could teach
you at the highest level
•Has a Ph.D., loves teaching you every day, and
would do anything to make sure you succeed.
Someone come
to the hallway
to get me! 
Thank you
for standing
with me!