The National Education Association Higher Education Conference was held March 5-7 in San Antonio. The conference provided a forum for academic professionals, faculty, and support staff to come together, share experiences, and discuss topics of mutual interest. Session topics included retirement and benefits, professional unionism, workplace morale, and the use of part-time and adjunct faculty.
Dr. Linda Johnsrud presented the results of her case study research on job satisfaction among academic professional employees at the member institutions of the University of Hawaii system-institutions that range in classification from community colleges to Research I institutions. Dr. Johnsrud's study found that academic professionals employed at the community colleges indicated a higher level of job satisfaction than their counterparts at the comprehensive and research universities. The results of the study also showed the level of employee morale in the workplace to be higher for those employed at the community colleges. Even at institutions where morale among professionals was low, the research showed that work productivity remained high!
The use of part-time and adjunct faculty was addressed in several sessions. The Report of the Sloan Conference indicates that part-time and adjunct faculty are poised to become the majority of those teaching in college classrooms. It was also noted that one in every four faculty positions today is a non-tenure-track position.