The New Administrative Superposition: How Neoliberalism Shapes the Experiences and Work of Administrative Assistants

• In Event: Transforming Educational Systems: Approaches From Different Stakeholders

Abstract

Administrative assistants create and preserve the tools and conditions for work to be done and for offices and departments to run smoothly. Using semi-structured narrative interviews, this paper follows the lives of eight administrative assistants in an attempt to understand how neoliberalism has shaped both their work and their overall experiences. I argue that neoliberalism has helped morph the administrative assistant position into a superposition where they take on a surplus of roles and responsibilities and are expected to do so while being actively marginalized. This paper directly answers a call put forth by Kezar et al (2019) and Magolda (2016) to study the experiences of essential campus staff and how their jobs are being transformed amidst growing neoliberal pressures.

Author

• Jordan N. Harper, University of Southern California