skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Thursday, March 28, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Pulling back the curtains on wage-theft enforcement in MN; Trump's latest attack is on RFK, Jr; NM LGBTQ+ equality group endorses 2024 'Rock Star' candidates; Michigan's youth justice reforms: Expanded diversion, no fees.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg says rebuilding Baltimore's Key Bridge will be challenging and expensive. An Alabama Democrat flips a state legislature seat and former Connecticut senator Joe Lieberman dies at 82.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Historic wildfires could create housing and health issues for rural Texans, a Kentucky program helps prison parolees start a new life, and descendants of Nicodemus, Kansas celebrate the Black settlers who journeyed across the 1870s plains seeking self-governance.

WA Part-Time College Instructors Seek Job Stability

play audio
Play

Monday, February 8, 2016   

OLYMPIA, Wash. – Almost half the college courses in Washington are taught by part-time instructors at less pay than full-timers and with no benefits.

Legislation in Olympia aims to change that in the state's busy community and technical college system. House Bill 2615 outlines a plan to convert 200 teaching positions every two years from part-time to full-time.

Annamary Fitzgerald, now a full-time instructor at South Puget Sound Community College, knows the difference well. She spent nine years as a contingent or part-time teacher.

"It's a lot of piecemeal contract work,” she explains. “It is just really tenuous every quarter, how many classes you'll teach. Your income fluctuates dramatically and you have no guarantee that in three months, there'll be another contract for you."

Fitzgerald points out that having more part-timers at a college increases the workload for the fewer tenured faculty members, who develop courses and majors, set policies for their departments and serve on school committees.

The House bill made it out of committee last week. It calls for a study of overuse of part-time faculty in the community college system.

Karen Strickland is president of the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) Washington, which represents some higher education teachers and support staff. She says research shows that giving instructors more job stability also gives students a better education.

But she acknowledges it's a big goal, with a short legislative session and tight budget.

"We're in this for the long run,” Strickland states. “I'd like to think that within five years, we would have made substantial progress. It requires some real shifting in how colleges do what they do."

The bill also mentions the need to examine whether part-timers are receiving equal pay for equal work, and ways to diversify the faculty to better represent the racial diversity of students.




get more stories like this via email

more stories
A report from the Tennessee HealthCare Campaign recommended the federal government needs to strengthen 340B drug pricing and other federal negotiation mechanisms to make needed medicines more readily available and less expensive for hospitals to purchase and administer. (Spotmatikphoto/AdobeStock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

A recent report examined how some rural Tennessee hospitals have managed to stay afloat despite financial challenges. The report includes interviews …


Social Issues

play sound

Earlier this month, a new Arizona Public Service rate hike went into effect and one senior advocacy group said those on a fixed income may struggle …

Social Issues

play sound

Michigan recently implemented a significant juvenile justice reform package following recommendations from a task force made up of prosecutors…


Nearly 13 million Americans receive health coverage through unique plans under both Medicare and Medicaid. They are known as Dual-Eligible Special Needs Plans. (Adobe Stock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

Medicare and Medicaid are key sources of health coverage for many Americans and some people qualify for assistance under both programs. With lagging …

Social Issues

play sound

New research shows more than six in 10 abortions in the U.S. last year were medically induced, and U.S. Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto - D-NV - is …

Social Issues

play sound

Missouri lawmakers are concerned with protecting people from the potential risks of the increasing accessibility of AI-generated images and videos…

Social Issues

play sound

A 2023 study from the University of Nebraska Medical Center concluded the number of Nebraskans with a mental health or substance abuse disorder has pr…

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021