What Passes for Victories in an Era of Political Gridlock

Here is the opening of a recent item from The Hill [http://thehill.com/homenews/house/319443-immigration-advocates-claim-resounding-win-for-their-side-in-quiet-august]: “Advocates for comprehensive immigration reform are claiming victory in the August recess. Their argument? They won because they didn’t lose. “With legislation stalled in the Republican-controlled House, the push to overhaul the immigration system has not dominated the national headlines or evening news…

National (In-)Security: Fifty Notable American Espionage Novels: 49-50.

Uris, Leon. Topaz. New York: McGraw Hill, 1967. Leon Uris’s great subjects were the experience of combat in the Second World War, the post-war pursuit of war criminals, and the establishment of the Israeli state. Topaz is set during the same general time period and treats many of the themes that recur throughout Uris’…

"Why Would They Hire YOU?"

When I returned to campus, after two years teaching elsewhere, for the final interview that would bring me back full-time, I stopped into the adjunct room to see if anyone I knew was around. The only person there was one I knew only slightly. She asked what I was doing back. I told her. She…

AAUP Takes UIUC to Task for Apparent Summary Dismissal

The AAUP today wrote to University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign chancellor Phyllis Wise to express deep concern about actions taken against professor Steven Salaita. “Aborting an appointment in this manner without having demonstrated cause has consistently been seen by the AAUP as tantamount to summary dismissal, an action categorically inimical to academic freedom and due process…

Poorer by Degrees

Here is a link to Poorer by Degrees, a new short documentary by Jennifer Shuberth, a former faculty member at Portland State University: http://vimeo.com/95828754. The documentary questions the premise that our economic growth requires a dramatic increase in the number of college graduates. Indeed, it suggests that the increased emphasis on completing degrees may actually…

Dear "Whining Adjuncts," Just for the Record Even I Think That This Is Tone Deaf

Some time ago, Aaron Barlow wrote a post titled “To My Tenured Colleagues” in which he asked those with tenure to treat the adjunct faculty at their institutions as full and genuine colleagues. It was a great post, one which I fully endorsed. But it occasioned a veritable flood of complaints from adjunct faculty about…

COCAL–A Tri-National Contingent Workforce Self-Organizes to Abolish Contingency

By Joe Berry and Helena Worthen Over 200 people attended the eleventh conference of COCAL (Coalition of Contingent Academic Labor) which took place August 4-6 at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, part of the City University of New York (CUNY) in New York City. The focus was on contingency–the damage it does to faculty,…

When One News Story Clarifies Another (and Another)

Ohio State University has gotten national media attention for something other than Gordon Gee’s excessive compensation and the football team’s diminished prospects following quarterback Braxton Miller’s season-ending injury. The university’s police department has recently acquired a Mine-Resistant Ambush Protection Vehicle through a program that distributes surplus military equipment and supplies not only to local police…

A Correction, a Clarification, or a Cat Chasing Its Tail?

On August 16, the Lafayette Journal-Gazette ran this small item [http://www.jconline.com/story/news/college/2014/08/16/ipfw-faculty-unhappy-daniels-comments/14181695/]: “Some Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne faculty members are unhappy with comments Purdue University President Mitch Daniels made about the role of regional colleges. “The Journal Gazette reports the former governor told a public radio host that higher-education advocates in Fort Wayne are mistaken…

An Open Letter to Allan Bense, Florida State University Board of Trustees Chair, and Florida Governor Rick Scott

Dear Chairman Bense and Governor Scott: The battle over FSU’s next President seems to have slowed, except that the FSU Board of Trustees (BOT) has silently “postponed” its Aug. 26th meeting. This meeting was the last chance for Chair Allan Bense to answer the overwhelming call to restructure the Presidential Search Advisory Committee (PSAC) before…

ACADEME BLOG

The blog of Academe magazine