In today’s episode we examine the systemic issues and dead ideas that underlie the hiring and supporting of contingent faculty. We speak with Kerry O’Grady, Director for Teaching Excellence at the Samberg Institute for Teaching Excellence at Columbia Business School. Dr. O’Grady discusses some of the “normalized” practices that often leave adjunct instructors with a lack of resources and support for their teaching. She then provides research-based recommendations that can help adjunct faculty feel more valued and empowered, as noted in her letter to the editor in The Chronicle of Higher Education, in response to an article titled, “Adjunct Professors Face a ‘Constant Struggle to Not Give Up,’ Report Says,” (October 26, 2023). 

Resources

• “Adjunct Professors Face a ‘Constant Struggle to Not Give Up,’ Report Says” (October 26, 2023, The Chronicle of Higher Education) by Amita Chatterjee
• “How to Help Adjuncts Not Want to Give Up” (November 29, 2023, The Chronicle of

Higher Education) by Kerry O’Grady