|
The Chronicle of Higher Education
November 10, 2003
Not a Bad Gig
By ROB JENKINS
Teaching at a two-year college actually has a lot of advantages over teaching
at a four-year institution -- and certainly over being unemployed.
In my first column about teaching careers at community colleges, I focused
mostly on the bad news: heavy teaching loads, little time for research, underprepared
students, lower salaries, lack of prestige. If my frankness made some think
twice about applying for openings at two-year colleges, well, good. I've sat
across the table from too many candidates who had no idea what a community college
was all about, and who probably wouldn't have been there if they had.
But bad news, of course, is hardly the whole story. First and foremost among
the advantages is job security. I know you can have job security at a four-year
institution, too -- provided you get tenure, which can be more or less difficult
depending on the institution. It's also true that not all two-year colleges
offer tenure, or, as some call it, a "continuing contract."
But most community colleges do offer some version of tenure -- and it's often
relatively easy to get. Unlike their counterparts at four-year institutions,
who may be required to publish numerous articles and perhaps even a book to
be considered for tenure, community-college faculty members have no such mandate.
The truth is, at most two-year colleges, you don't have to publish anything
to get tenure.
You will probably be expected to participate in some sort of professional development,
but that could mean something as simple as attending technology-training sessions
on the campus and going to the occasional academic conference. While those are
useful and worthwhile activities, they're clearly not as demanding as writing
a book.
More importantly, you will certainly have to show evidence of good teaching
and also, in most cases, of service to the institution, because those are the
primary activities of community-college faculty members. But if you're able
to do that -- if you can document that you've consistently been a good teacher,
that you've served on committees and performed other important functions for
the college, and that you've undergone at least some professional development
-- you can probably get tenure at most two-year colleges in three to five years,
seven at the outside.
Another potential advantage of the "teaching track" is that you don't
have to have a terminal degree. Read the ads for faculty positions at community
colleges, and you'll see that nearly all list the same minimum requirements:
master's degree with 18 graduate semester hours in your particular field.
Don't assume that the term "minimum requirement" implies that those
with a master's degree don't stand a chance. Two-year colleges actually hire
lots of people with "just a master's" -- two-thirds or more of the
faculty at many two-year institutions hold only a master's. True, some of those
faculty members are A.B.D., and many others have hours beyond the master's.
Quite a few go on to earn additional graduate hours -- in many cases, at the
college's expense -- and some even complete their terminal degrees. But they
were hired with "just a master's."
Does that mean Ph.D.'s need not apply? Certainly not. In fact, in recent years,
the trend at community colleges has been to hire more Ph.D.'s, partly because
the market is glutted with them and partly, perhaps, because word has gotten
out that a community college can be a pretty nice place to work. My college,
this past year, hired 16 new tenure-track faculty members, six of whom hold
terminal degrees. Ten years ago, only two or three of the new hires would have
had them.
That said, I don't believe that a terminal degree will necessarily give you
an advantage in applying or interviewing. The faculty search committees I've
served on -- at least a dozen in the past decade -- were looking for the best
teachers we could find. Sometimes they were people with Ph.D.'s, sometimes not.
Our hiring committees tend to be "degree blind," especially in the
final stages of the search process.
Another advantage has to do with quality-of-life issues. In addition to less
stress, since faculty members probably won't perish if they don't publish, community-college
teaching offers other lifestyle benefits, some quite tangible.
It's true that, on average, faculty salaries at two-year colleges tend to be
lower than those at four-year institutions -- in some cases, much lower. On
the other hand, two-year colleges are often located in areas where the cost
of living is significantly lower than the national (or at least the state) average.
Many community-college professors are able to live quite comfortably, despite
the lower salaries.
In addition, most state systems offer excellent insurance coverage, including
health, dental, vision, and life, along with a generous retirement plan. Many
also allow faculty members to take graduate courses within the state system
at no cost, and some even provide tuition benefits for their spouses and children.
Prestige? That -- what there is of it -- is part of the package, too. Over
the years, I've known many colleagues who were highly regarded in their local
communities as experts. A friend of mine, a history professor, published a popular
history of the area where he lives. A political-science professor I know is
frequently quoted in the local news media. Others sponsor book clubs, give lectures
to community art and literary groups, or write columns for the newspaper.
Ultimately, though, the best thing about teaching at a two-year school is just
that: teaching. That's our primary mission, and we know it. We embrace it. Our
students know it, too, and they expect us to be good at it.
By and large, we are very good at it -- especially given the fact that so many
of our students are less than ready for college when they arrive. If there's
anything more rewarding in this profession than introducing a bright yet poorly
prepared (and perhaps unmotivated) student to the joy of learning, perhaps for
the first time, I haven't encountered it. All teachers get to experience that
occasionally. Community-college teachers do it every day.
So, yes, my colleagues at four-year institutions are publishing a lot more
than I am. Some of them are even becoming famous, or at least well known in
their fields. Their paychecks certainly have bigger numbers before the decimal
point.
But I seriously doubt that their careers -- or their lives, for that matter
-- are any more fulfilling than mine.
The Chronicle of Higher Education
October 21, 2003
Two-Year Colleges Not for You? Think Again
Not interested in teaching at a two-year college? You may want to reconsider.
In a recent issue of The Chronicle, more than a third of the full-time faculty
positions advertised were at two-year institutions.
Despite a sluggish economy, community colleges in many states are experiencing
record growth in enrollment, as the unemployed and underemployed seek additional
training and degrees. In response to this influx of students, a surprising number
of two-year colleges are hiring new faculty members, even in the face of cuts
in state budgets.
As someone who's spent a good deal of time on both sides of the hiring table
-- I've landed tenure-track jobs at community colleges in four state systems
and served on at least a dozen search committees during the past 15 years --
I'll be the first to point out that teaching in the community-college environment
isn't for everyone. Let's face it, there are some significant drawbacks -- or
what many academic job-seekers might perceive as drawbacks. I'll try to outline
a few of the more obvious ones here and, in my next column, talk about why you
may actually want to work at a community college.
The greatest downside is undoubtedly the teaching load, with its corresponding
lack of time and money for research. Most two-year colleges require a five-five
load -- meaning five courses each semester -- and in some states it's even higher.
(At several Florida colleges, for instance, the load is six courses a term.)
Faculty members are also expected to serve on committees, keep regular office
hours, and advise students.
None of that means you can't do research; you just have to find time, much
of which will be outside the regular 40-hour-plus work week. Nor will your scholarly
efforts be entirely unappreciated. Nearly all two-year colleges expect faculty
members to engage in some sort of professional-development activities, which
for most means attending conferences or in-house workshops. For you, professional
development could include publishing and presenting.
You should also know that money for travel is severely limited at most two-year
colleges. Some institutions support faculty travel better than others, of course,
but, generally speaking you'll be lucky if you're able to attend more than one
or two conferences a year, and those will probably be small local or regional
gatherings. Depending on the college, you may be able to get grant money to
attend one major national or international conference a year, or at least one
every two or three years.
On the bright side, some faculty members find that the two-year college environment,
where there is little if any pressure to publish, affords them the opportunity
to pursue research interests outside their narrow academic fields. I know of
one medieval scholar, for example, who for several years has been actively presenting
papers at pop-culture conferences. That sort of "branching out" might
be frowned upon at a research institution, but at a community college, it's
all professional development.
A second drawback, for some, may be the quality of the students. Since most
two-year colleges have open-door policies -- or entrance requirements so low
as to constitute de facto open-door policies -- often their students aren't
as well prepared for higher education as those at more selective institutions.
That's not to say all community-college students are underprepared. I've taught
at both four-year and two-year colleges, and my experience has been that an
average student is an average student. It's also true that a growing number
of two-year colleges have thriving honors programs, with students who would
be competitive anywhere but choose to start at a community college for personal
or financial reasons.
Still, the typical two-year college does have a substantial number of weak
or poorly prepared students who couldn't get into their state or regional universities.
And it probably has fewer of the really top-notch students who, for some professors,
make teaching worthwhile. That just comes with the territory.
OK. So maybe you can put up with the lack of research time and support, and
the fact that many of your students are likely to need a great deal of extra
help. But what about the pay?
Again, the news here isn't exactly good -- but it's not terrible, either. Two-year
college faculty members tend to make substantially less over their careers than
colleagues at four-year colleges, especially those at major research universities.
And you rarely find, at two-year colleges, the kind of huge pay differentials
that allow four-years institutions to offer higher starting salaries to those
in hot fields, such as science or business administration. (But that's only
a drawback for people in those high-demand fields; the rest of us might see
it as only fair.)
On the other hand, starting salaries for community-college professors are comparable
to those at most four-year colleges, especially in the humanities and social
sciences -- although the salary gap tends to widen over the years. And, in most
state systems, professors at two-year colleges have the same health insurance,
retirement plans, and other benefits as their counterparts at four-year campuses.
In the end, the factor that probably keeps more qualified applicants out of
the community-college pool than any other is lack of prestige -- whether real
or perceived. Perhaps you're thinking to yourself, "I went to graduate
school because I wanted to be a professor. Some of these schools don't even
have academic ranks."
True enough. Some two-year colleges don't have ranks, but, to be fair, many
others do. The real question for you is, Even at a two-year college that does
have ranks, are you actually going to feel like a "real" professor?
Are colleagues from four-year institutions going to take you seriously, regard
you as a peer? How about your family? Your neighbors? Will they be impressed
that you teach at East Podunk State Community College?
The answer is, if you care that much about status, perhaps you should be looking
elsewhere.
That's not to say there's no prestige at all at two-year colleges. In many
areas, these institutions are the heart and soul of the community, the local
center for the arts and sciences and anything else smacking of sophistication.
College faculty members, by extension, are often regarded as the most knowledgeable
people around in their respective fields. They can also become well respected
within the two-year-college community, a vast network of institutions and scholars
with its own set of journals, professional conferences, and other events.
The bottom line, though, is that a teaching career at a two-year college is
primarily about just that -- teaching. Not prestige. Not grant acquisition.
Not scholarship. Just teaching.
And that's not a drawback. It's the best thing about the job.
Cincinnati Enquirer
November 9, 2003
Priorities: What the voters want
(Editorial)
The votes are tallied. Now what should be done first? Your list may not match
the candidates.
We asked readers and newly elected officials to prioritize the issues for the
government entities listed below. The following are some of their responses.
Ky: Raise tobacco tax, improve education
Here are my priorities for the Kentucky governor:
1. Education. Restoring the primacy of Kentucky education at all levels, P-16
must be the top priority. This is the key to all forms of growth in Kentucky
and is essential in building a strong state infrastructure and in keeping our
best and brightest here where they can serve the Commonwealth.
2. Medicaid. Cuts in services have to be restored if we're to appropriately
care for and honor the aging population.
3. Deal with the state's budget problems. Obviously, the key to priorities
one and two but must be guided by those priorities, not by the big contributors
that got the governor where he is today.
4. Raise the tobacco tax. How a gubernatorial candidate who promoted himself
as a family doctor and who has any understanding of the public health costs
of Kentucky's underwriting of teenage tobacco use could have kissed off this
obvious harmless way to enhance government revenue is utterly beyond me.
Hugh Stocks, Cold Spring
(Dr. Hugh Stocks is Director, Libraries and Information Services at Gateway
Community and Technical College)
| 
