2008 Woodie Awards
Part-time instructors fill important gap in faculty
Jeff Eagan
Issue date: 2/27/04 Section: Features
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You may not know who they are, you could have been in one of their classes and you've probably even crossed a few in the halls without ever giving a second glance. These are, of course, the nearly 250 adjunct, or part-time, instructors teaching at Bakersfield College.
These instructors, however, fill a very important gap. They teach subjects ranging from physical education and the sciences to child development and English. Although not all of the adjunct faculty are here for the same reasons. Their intentions for teaching are as diverse as the subjects they cover.
For example, the English Department at BC currently has around 26 full-time and around 24 adjuncts, said Carol Cunningham, the department's chairwoman. Some of these adjuncts have been teaching at BC for years and do it simply for the mere enjoyment of teaching, while others see it as both a means to a financial need and a steppingstone to a permanent position.
"Most of the faculty we have who are part-timers want to become full-time instructors, most of them, the younger faculty," said Cunningham. "There are faculty who are retired, who like to keep a hand in the game, and like young people they teach part time, but aren't looking for a full-time position."
Like many young adjuncts, Kerrie Buis, an English teacher, holds two jobs to make ends meet. Teaching English 60 and 1A at BC since the summer of 2000, Buis originally taught at Cal State Bakersfield, but after the budget cuts hit, she had to look for work in the high school district as a substitute. Though Buis has not yet applied for a full-time job, she does have ambitions to make that step.
"I love teaching at a college level, hopefully, one of these days when they open up for tenure track."
There are many similarities and differences between part-time and full-time teachers. One of the differences with adjunct status is that they are paid per class at a rate of $40 per hour, whereas full-time faculty are paid by days under a 175-day contract. And according to Cunningham, full-time faculty usually have seniority over adjuncts when it comes to choosing classes, but adjuncts work just as hard as any other faculty member at BC.
These instructors, however, fill a very important gap. They teach subjects ranging from physical education and the sciences to child development and English. Although not all of the adjunct faculty are here for the same reasons. Their intentions for teaching are as diverse as the subjects they cover.
For example, the English Department at BC currently has around 26 full-time and around 24 adjuncts, said Carol Cunningham, the department's chairwoman. Some of these adjuncts have been teaching at BC for years and do it simply for the mere enjoyment of teaching, while others see it as both a means to a financial need and a steppingstone to a permanent position.
"Most of the faculty we have who are part-timers want to become full-time instructors, most of them, the younger faculty," said Cunningham. "There are faculty who are retired, who like to keep a hand in the game, and like young people they teach part time, but aren't looking for a full-time position."
Like many young adjuncts, Kerrie Buis, an English teacher, holds two jobs to make ends meet. Teaching English 60 and 1A at BC since the summer of 2000, Buis originally taught at Cal State Bakersfield, but after the budget cuts hit, she had to look for work in the high school district as a substitute. Though Buis has not yet applied for a full-time job, she does have ambitions to make that step.
"I love teaching at a college level, hopefully, one of these days when they open up for tenure track."
There are many similarities and differences between part-time and full-time teachers. One of the differences with adjunct status is that they are paid per class at a rate of $40 per hour, whereas full-time faculty are paid by days under a 175-day contract. And according to Cunningham, full-time faculty usually have seniority over adjuncts when it comes to choosing classes, but adjuncts work just as hard as any other faculty member at BC.