The Great Resignation Hits the Academy: On the Consequences of Losing Talent in Higher Education and Student Affairs

Session Type: Symposium

Abstract

The elevated discourse around the “great resignation” hitting academia brings questions about why faculty and staff are leaving - or being pushed out - for industry jobs. Connected to the persistent underfunding of education and increase dependence on contingent faculty, this session connects the larger sociohistorical and policy contexts to current manifestations of academic labor. It highlights the changing landscape of postsecondary education, from continued attacks on tenure and academic freedom (e.g. teaching CRT), to increased expectations of productivity and external funding, continued unpaid labor for minoritized individuals, and salaries that are not keeping up with other industries.

Sub Unit

• Division J - Postsecondary Education

Chair

• Marc P. Johnston-Guerrero, University of Denver

Papers

• Why Is Everyone Leaving the Academy? - Marc P. Johnston-Guerrero, University of Denver

• Commentary 2 - Lori Patton Davis, The Ohio State University

• Commentary 3 - Venus E. Evans-Winters, The Ohio State University

• A Laborious Space: Working Conditions of Campus Staff of Color - Katherine S. Cho, Loyola University Chicago