10. The Practical Guide to Adjunct Success and Advocacy: A Conversation with Jan Yager
From EdUp Provost · 50:10
Show by Association of Chief Academic Officers (ACAO)
In this episode of EdUp Provost, Dr. Gregor Thuswaldner speaks with Dr. Jan Yager, author of The Adjunct’s Handbook: A Survival Guide for Part-Time and Contingent Faculty. Drawing on her experience teaching at 12 institutions and on interviews with 60 adjuncts, full-time faculty, and administrators, Yager explains what academic leaders often misunderstand about contingent faculty and what they can do about it. She and Thuswaldner discuss the stigma adjuncts face, the wide disparities in pay for the same course, and practical ways provosts can build community, from monthly virtual adjunct meetings to adjunct recognition awards. They also cover supporting online and hybrid adjuncts, giving contingent faculty a voice in shared governance, and why course assignments and realistic benefits matter. The conversation closes with book recommendations and a reminder that adjuncts are a lasting part of the academy. Takeaways Many adjuncts are accomplished professionals who choose part-time teaching. The idea that they couldn’t get a full-time job is a myth. Provosts should examine their own attitudes toward adjuncts, because those attitudes shape policy and campus culture. Monthly virtual adjunct meetings with breakout rooms build community at little cost, especially for online faculty. Pay for the same course can range from $500 to nearly $8,000 across institutions. Small gestures matter: feature a part-time faculty member of the month, create an adjunct award, and consider a paid adjunct liaison in shared governance.
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