Honoring the (Often) Invisible: Community College Faculty in an Era of Reform

Session Type: Symposium

Abstract

Community colleges currently are experiencing an unprecedented level of attention from the public and policymakers, yet the critical roles, responsibilities, and challenges that community college faculty are taking on in this context remain mostly overlooked and understudied. The purpose of this symposium is to make visible the crucial role of community college faculty in this shifting postsecondary landscape, the scope and nature of the challenges they face, and their experiences and perspectives as they respond to those challenges. Aligned with this year’s conference theme, this session will feature interactive discussion about the latest research on community college faculty, which will contribute to public understanding, policy debate, and professional practice in our nation’s most diverse postsecondary institutions.

Sub Unit

• Division J - Postsecondary Education / Division J - Section 4: Faculty, Curriculum, and Teaching

Chair

• Susan B. Twombly, The University of Kansas

Papers

• The Pedagogy of Statewide Developmental Education Reform Policy - Rebecca D. Cox, Simon Fraser University

• The Emerging "Teacher-Scholar-Activist": Community College English Faculty, Disciplinary Professional Organizations, and Education Policy - Christie Toth, University of Utah

• Shared Governance in the Community College: The Faculty Voice - Sue T. Kater, Maricopa Community Colleges

• Enhancing the Academic and Social Integration of Part-Time Faculty at Community Colleges - Kate Thirolf, Jackson College