More than half of the undergraduate courses at U.S. public colleges and universities are taught by “contingent” faculty and graduate instructors rather than full-time tenured faculty, resulting in an unstable and financially exploited workforce, according to a report released today by the American Federation of Teachers.
Unfair Labor Practices have been filed against Heartland Community College for not complying with the binding arbitration results. The Illinois Education Labor Relations Board is now reviewing the ULP's to determine a ruling on this issue.
Why We Teach
There is nothing more satisfing than sharing information about a subject you love and see the seed of that passion grow in a student. But we as instructors receive so much from our students as well. Their personal stories of triumphs and pitfalls are also the seed they plant in us. Through our students, we are educated in the disciplines of humanity and diversity. I hope this article about an HCC student of mine becomes the first of a series of articles. I am inviting any HCC adjunct faculty to submit a story about one of their students that they feel inspired by.
Jane Camp
HAFA Vice-President
This is an exciting time to be a member of ther Heartland Adjunct Faculty Association, Local 6077. We are now in our second year of our third contract, with advances in language and pay!
The Heartland Adjunct Faculty Association, Local 6077, IFT/AFT, AFL-CIO has recently received a favorable ruling on an arbitration case that it entered in with Heartland Community College District 540.
"The employer violated Article VIII, Sec. 8.2. (Rights as a Citizen. The Board recognizes the right of the individual Faculty Member to speak or write as a citizen, to engage in community affairs and political activities, and to express opinions free from institutional censorship or discipline...) and
Article II, Section 2.3 (Right to Join. The Board and the Association recognize the every Faculty Member shall have the right to join or refrain from joining the Association without discrimination. Membership in the Association shall not be a condition of employment, nor shall the college discriminate in hiring or promotional opportunities or otherwise because of membership and/or participation in activities of the Association.) when it failed to hire or promote the Grievant to an available full time faculty position in the Art Department.
Kathleen Lopez comes from a family of teachers. Her mother was an adjunct professor until she retired two years ago at the age of 82. Her daughter has a doctorate and is headed down an education path. Lopez hopes her daughter’s degree will lead her through the hallowed hallways of academe, not along the asphalt roadways that have marked Lopez’s teaching career. In her view, “the big myth in higher education is, if you work hard, get a degree, take on extra, you will get hired as full-time faculty.” She wishes someone had clued her in earlier that that wasn’t going to happen.