Visibility | Advocacy | Community

​

The two-tiered system in higher education is largely unrecognized by students and the public. As such, the crises adjunct faculty members face go largely unseen by students and the public. And if by chance students or the public have heard the term 'adjunct' before, it usually brings to mind a mental picture of a person who made some mistakes along the way or perhaps didn't try hard enough in their pursuit of an academic career. To anyone who has ever taught courses as an adjunct in higher education, you know this mental picture doesn't adequately capture the reality of life in this profession.

​

So what do we do? We seek to ameliorate these misconceptions through visibility, advocacy, and community with the goal of improving the lives of all adjuncts wherever they may be in their careers.

​

Visibility: Pulling Back the Curtain

​

The journey of an adjunct is marked by a unique set of challenges. These challenges, while not always visible to our students or the broader public, are profoundly impactful. The Adjunct is dedicated to shedding light on these issues, creating awareness and visibility of the lived realities of adjunct faculty. 

​

Advocacy: Speaking Up

​

We believe in the power of advocacy and collective action. The Adjunct is a platform for discussing initiatives, movements, and policy changes aimed at improving the working conditions of adjuncts. Additionally, we seek to provide extensive resource lists related to our employment so that we are better informed and better positioned to advocate for ourselves (because our campuses won't for us!).  

​​

Community: Narrative and Sharing

​

We recognize the power of storytelling and resource sharing. Each of us experiences adjunct life differently, but there remains a common set of professional obstacles we all face. The Adjunct is designed to be a space for sharing our experiences, our insights and institutional knowledge, our hopes and dreams, as well as our defeats. We will also engage in a larger conversation about the evolving landscape of adjunct employment in academia and ways we can improve the lives of current contingent faculty.