A Day in the Life . . .

One of the things that makes it difficult to organize non-tenured faculty is that we are different in so many ways. Some of us have outside careers and truly do see ourselves as part-time instructors. Others teach on multiple campuses in order to make ends meet. In fact, almost every "part-timer" I meet has a unique story to tell. I thought I'd share a little of mine with you. Each year, as I near the end of the famine part of my annual "Feast or Famine" work cycle, I find myself thinking about how much progress I've made in my career. While I have to admit that there isn't a lot to be happy about, things have improved for me.

At one of the colleges where I teach, we have a priority-hire system, and I've survived there long enough to be near the top of the list. Unfortunately, the second college that I teach for doesn't have such a system, and there have been a couple of quarters when newcomers were being offered classes weeks before I was. I have some suspicions as to why that happened, but since there is no security system in place there (which means they don't have to give any reason for not giving me classes. All they have to do is not return my calls), they are only suspicions.

Still, I am teaching three classes at the college with the security system and two classes at the college that doesn't have one. Assuming, of course, that enough students enroll for my classes to "make" and no full-timer needs one to complete their load. But it's the fall quarter, and chances are pretty good that I'll have all five of my classes. (Since each system is different, I probably should mention that three classes is considered a full load.) Fall is my busiest quarter, winter tends to be pretty reliable, spring is pretty thin, and getting a summer classes is close to a miracle. To be honest, this fall I'll have one of the best schedules I've ever had. I won't have to leave my house until 7:30 a.m. to be in my office at Highline Community College by 8:00.

Yes, I do have an office at that school. I share it with more than thirty other part-timers, but we have eight desks in our central area and three small rooms where we can hold private conferences with our students. There are times when our office gets crowded, but most of the time there are only three or four of us there at once. And, we even have our own secretary. I should mention that we don't get paid for our Office Hours, but we are expected to have them. Since the colleges don't want to pay us for them, they don't specify how many we have to have, but I like to get work done before I go to class so I'll be there almost every day. I'll teach a 9:00 and 10:00 class each weekday at Highline -- I don't usually get back-to-back classes, so I'm very happy about this -- and then I'll have an hour to get to Green River Community College, which is only about a thirty mile drive, but with traffic in our area, it takes about an hour to get there. At GRCC, I'll be teaching a class at 1:00 Mondays through Fridays, another from 2:00 to 3:30 on Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays, and a third at a satellite campus from 4:00 to 6:30 on Mondays and Wednesdays.

This means that on most days, I'll have an hour for lunch (which I will enjoy either in the cafeteria, one of the teacher's lounges, or in my office at Green River (yes, I actually have an office there, too. It's actually the union office, but I get to use it since I've been elected president of the local there). Usually, I eat lunch in my car while I'm traveling between schools. Yes, I'm in my eighteenth year as a professional college instructor, and I'll be teaching nearly double a full-time load for less than what a first-year full-timer would make, but at least I live in an area where this is possible.

This quarter, I'll only put about fifty miles a day on the '73 Ford Torino I drive. Just a few years ago, my daily commute totaled close to 150 miles, and I did it by bus because I didn't own a car (which had certain advantages -- buses are great places to grade papers!). I taught on three campuses, and was conditioned to say "Yes" to every sentence that began with "Phil, could you teach . . . " When I began my career, I was living in New Mexico. I was a Graduate Teaching Assistant at Eastern New Mexico University in Portales, and I taught a few classes as a part-timer at ENMU-Roswell -- more than 90 miles away. After I graduated (and endured a short stint as a manager for a string of travel stops -- an experience that still gives me nightmares) I taught as a part-timer at New Mexico State University -- Grants Community College. By that time, I figured that working a different job was better than a long commute, so I worked as a staff-writer at the local newspaper.

So, now I live along the narrow I-5 corridor in western Washington, where it is possible to teach for multiple colleges -- both private and state -- and I've been here long enough to have a little security on one of those campuses. I've met a lot of wonderful people, and I get an occasional visit or e-mail from students who actually give me credit for making a difference in their lives. It's a tough life, but it's gotten better. I still hate summers, though!