‘How To Fix Adjunct Crisis,’

From Chronicle Of Higher Ed

SUNY Oneonta Ups

Pay, Opportunities

For Adjunct Faculty

By JENNIFER HILL • Special To www.AllOTSEGO.com

ONEONTA – Increases in pay, access to promotions and increased job security for part-time faculty are parts of the “significant collaboration” between SUNY Oneonta and United University Professions, the college announced this afternoon.

“Forty percent of our faculty are part-time adjuncts,” Dr. Mark Ferrara, an English professor who serves as the union’s chief negotiator.  “Giving them more job security, access to promotions and access to faculty development funds is a way of validating them for all they do for the college. It’s a big step forward.”

No pay details were available, but here’s the salary schedule for SUNY adjunct faculty as of 2018.

The college and the union have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that allows “part-time, adjunct faculty members to receive promotions, along with increases in pay, greater job security and access to faculty development funds,” according to press releases issued by SUNY and the union.

Hiring part-time faculty instead of full-time tenure-track has been a hotly debated issue in higher education for years.  In Ferrara’s department, for instance, 18 of 32 faculty members or adjuncts.

“It’s a significant collaboration,” said Hal Legg, SUNY Oneonta’s chief communication and marketing officer, said today.

Adjunct faculty usually have one-year contracts, which they have to renew every year, and are paid for each course they teach per semester, with the amount per course rarely increasing.  With the new MOU, SUNY Oneonta’s adjuncts will have opportunities to renew their contracts every two or three years instead of one as well as receive salary increases, depending mainly on the length of time the adjunct has worked there.

The MOU also sets up a system that “mirrors the one for permanent faculty,” Ferrara explained.  “An adjunct instructor who has taught at SUNY for five years can be promoted to Assistant Professor Adjunct, renew his or her contract every two years, and have a salary adjustment.”

The idea for establishing “a career ladder” and job security for adjunct faculty stemmed from Ferrara’s research on that subject for his book, “Palace of Ashes,” published in 2015. “I became alarmed by the adjunctification of higher ed faculty,” he said.  “Fifty percent of faculty nationwide are part-time, temporary.  They often don’t make a living wage.”

Ferrara and SUNY political science professor and past Vice President for Academics Dr. Rob Compton,  began informal discussions in 2015, which turned into formal negotiations a year later.

“It took a long time partly because we had a change in leadership, from Dr. Kleniewski to Dr. Barbara Morris, who has just been here for 15 months,” said Ferrara.  “The other reason was UUP had been without a contract for a couple of years and we were negotiating a new one with the state, which took a while.”

SUNY Oneonta President Barbara Morris said the MOU reflects the inclusivity of the campus community. “I began my career in higher education as an adjunct lecturer, so I understand the dedication of those who teach part-time through my own experience,” she said. “SUNY Oneonta is fortunate to have many adjunct faculty members who are fantastic in the classroom, inspiring and guiding students year after year. It’s time to acknowledge and reward this.”

The Adjunct Lecturer Promotion and Evaluation Program will go into effect this fall. Eligible part-time faculty members will be able to apply for promotions after the start of the 2019-2020 academic year.

SUNY Oneonta’s new adjunct faculty career track could be a model for other colleges and university.

“I am proud our campus moved in this direction,” said Ferrara.