CONTINGENT FACULTY: ISSUES AT THE TABLE HOLLY LAWRENCE UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS AMHERST MASSACHUSETTS SOCIETY OF PROFESSORS NCSCBHEP Conference NYC, CUNY Graduate Center April 10-12, 2011

Focus on Opening the Tenure Center Share the makeup of my bargaining unit, the Massachusetts Society of Professors or MSP, and cover contract gains in place today. Consider issues of status that are related to tenure – both on the UMass campus as well as other campuses. Make a case for adopting and making more widespread a model of tenure already in effect today in many top universities – I call this opening the ‘tenure center.’ Prepare to take the tenure issue to the bargaining table – for MSP that means the 2012 contract negotiations.

Overview of MSP Membership The MSP at UMass Amherst is a mix of TT and NTT faculty and librarians. Profile of faculty in the unit, 2010:  927 TT faculty  438 NTT faculty – full and part-time combined  321 NTT faculty with benefits – 50% time or more  117 NTT faculty without benefits – under 50% time Percentage-wise in 2010:  65.8% of our member faculty are TT  31.1% of our member faculty are NTT  3.1% of our members are librarians

Bargaining for TT and NTT Collectively MSP has successfully bargained for more TT positions while also making gains for NTT faculty. Ways this was done include:  Appealing to members’ sense of equity, around specific bargaining points and conditions of employment  Pointing out differences between TT and NTT appointments, with TT heavy research emphasis and NTT heavy teaching focus; the resulting framework – the appointments are not at odds  Recommending the reduction of part-time positions and conversion of those positions to full-time faculty; since 2007, decrease of part-time NTT faculty by 18.75%

NTT Contract Gains in 2004 and 2007 Increase in floor from $38,395 to $46,750 Increase in rights for part-time NTT faculty  Access to union membership Promotion opportunities – creation of Senior Lecturer and Senior Lecturer II Right to renewal of contract Protection of position through just cause

But You Aren’t Tenure Track A protection, plus ways to terminate a contract:  Just cause  Termination of position  Replacement by TT faculty The ugly truth – replacement by TT faculty; the constant reminder that I’m not good enough; that someone else out there is inherently better than I am because he/she is on the tenure track. Measured by standards, rubrics, and frameworks designed for TT faculty to emphasize research. Compared to TT faculty by everyone from the administration to the media to accreditation boards.

Expansion of the Tenure Model If tenure is still ‘the center,’ we must broaden the notion of tenure to reflect the reality of all of us who do the teaching, research, and service in higher education today. “Tenure was not designed as a merit badge for research-intensive faculty or as a fence to exclude those with teaching-intensive commitments.” (p. 90, AAUP report on teaching-intensive appointments) We should start with the conversion of current NTT appointments. What follows is an overview of characteristics of TT teaching appointments in public research universities.

Characteristics of ‘Dual’ Tenure Tracks Candidates have appropriate terminal degree or professional experience in the field of academic specialization. Areas of evaluation and review for tenure include:  teaching effectiveness,  research or creative/professional activity,  and service – departmental, college/school, campus, community. TT appointments tend to fall into two primary tracks – instructional and research. Both tracks typically include the ranks of assistant, associate, and full professor.  University of Michigan and University of Hawaii sites detail this well.

Tenure-Track Teaching Appointments Research universities with TT teaching appointments:  West Virginia University, Morgantown  University of Georgia, Athens  Michigan State University  University of Colorado, Boulder  Purdue University  University of Michigan, Ann Arbor  University of Minnesota, Twin Cities  Colorado State University  University of Hawaii, Manoa  University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign

Tenure Review Process Criteria should be based on the particulars of the appointment and work performed. At University of Colorado, Boulder, tenure may be awarded only to faculty members with:  demonstrated meritorious performance in each of the three areas of teaching, research or creative work, and service;  and demonstrated excellence in teaching, research, or creative work.

Ways to Demonstrate Teaching Effectiveness External reviews and internal reviews:  University of Michigan Scholarship, including pedagogical – publications and other contributions in the discipline with independent peer review:  UH, Manoa Teaching evaluations and contributions to the curriculum:  UH, Manoa Peer evaluation of instruction:  University of Georgia Teaching portfolio:  University of Illinois Summary of teaching record:  University of Michigan

Win-Win for Faculty and Administration Expanding the tenure model should:  Address the demand to have TT faculty do more of the teaching,  Stop useless and divisive comparisons between TT and NTT faculty,  Create equity and, therefore, a more steady, available, and committed workforce,  Establish measures that fit the work we all do and, therefore, recognize everyone’s contributions toward achievement of the mission of our institutions. Converting NTT teaching appointments to TT can:  Give people choice and preserve morale  Force administrators and others to do a needs assessment  Ensure a match between the position and the individual filling it

Considerations Does creating an additional tenure track produce another tier and more hierarchy among faculty?  This is a real concern. The AAUP report includes a recommendation for giving people choice about getting on the tenure track. At Purdue, part-time faculty can hold TT appointments. University of Georgia has both TT teaching appointments and NTT lecturer positions with senior lecturer promotions. Note: for a variety of reasons, not all NTT positions may be convertible to the tenure track, whether instructional or research-based appointments

Do I Want Tenure? Purposely chose a NTT position at UMass Amherst. My field has few TT positions because it is largely teaching- oriented and is housed in various locations on college campuses, ranging from B-Schools to Liberal Arts. Pleased with benefits I already listed but tired of the reminders of second-class citizenship. Through bargaining, my union must pursue options that better recognize the contributions of NTT faculty. Given that tenure is still the center, faculty and administrators must work to expand the center to include us all.

References and Useful Resources From HR at Purdue on eligibility: From the University of Minnesota on the tenure review process and eligibility: From the University of Colorado on eligibility: rticle5.html rticle5.html From University of Michigan on ranks and promotion guidelines: ml ml From University of Georgia on ranks and promotion guidelines:

References and Resources From University of Hawaii on criteria for promotion of instructional faculty: act_renewal/pdf/ _criteria_guidelines.pdf act_renewal/pdf/ _criteria_guidelines.pdf From the University of Illinois on teaching portfolios: From University of Michigan on summarizing teaching records: rack_faculty/promotions rack_faculty/promotions From University of Georgia on peer observations: