Afterword

Abstract

We understand that the plight of contingent faculty members is increasingly dire. Initiatives such as the National Adjunct Faculty Walkout Day (NAWD), planned for 25 February 2015, raise widespread awareness about contingent faculty working conditions. On this day, adjunct faculty from across the United States plan to walk out of the classroom to protest their poor pay, lack of benefits, and unequal treatment within academic institutions. As this collection goes to print, the NAWD Facebook page, launched on 1 October 2014, has quickly garnered ‘likes’ from faculty members of every rank. Sharing the link for Sarah Kendzior’s ‘The Adjunct Crisis is Everyone’s Problem,’ this page cites four reasons faculty at all ranks should support reform of contingent faculty hiring practices:

Labor exploitation is not the new normal

Hurting researchers hurts research

Exploiting teachers means harming students

It can be fixed

We agree. Yes, contingent faculty must be supported by living wages, benefits, and improved material conditions—particularly faculty members working at two-year institutions and community colleges.