03/18/2020
Georgetown Adjunct Instructor Sara Colina wrote a compelling letter to the leadership of Georgetown University. It a thoughtful and accurate assessment of the current affairs of an adjunct faculty member at Georgetown. I would encourage you to read it here. This will also be distributed to as many adjunct faculty (and their supporters) as well. See below:
March 18, 2020
Dear President DeGioia,
I hope that you and your family are safe and comfortable during this difficult time.
As you know better than anyone, in the last two weeks, much of Hoya life has fallen away. There are no more lecture halls, dorms, sporting events, tulip-filled campus courtyards, or even research labs. What remains is the core mission: teaching. Here at Georgetown, much of that mission is being implemented by contract workers who are not paid a livable wage. If there was ever a time to revisit the notion of how one becomes a real part of the Georgetown community, this is it.
I am one of the many adjunct faculty here at Georgetown University. I am spending countless hours moving my classes online and attending to the needs of my justifiably panicked students. I am doing so lovingly and responsibly because my Hoya community needs me.
I just wish I was a real part of that community.
As you know, more than half of the classes at Georgetown are taught by adjunct faculty. That means when it comes to benefits, raises, job security and opportunities for future advancement, we are clearly not a part of the Georgetown community. Faculty meetings? I’m not invited. Teaching awards? I’m not eligible. Grants? Not for me.
The University defines us as contractors instead of employees because of our "limited" responsibilities. This claim has always strained credulity. Adjunct faculty serve as senior thesis advisors, help organize student groups, and attend and regularly contribute to campus events. We write countless letters of recommendation (I have proudly helped dozens of aspiring Hoyas attend top law schools). Most importantly, we devote many hundreds of hours supporting our students. I no longer keep track of my hours because when I did so, I realized I make less than minimum wage.
Adjuncts at Georgetown have been arguing for a long time that we are an essential part of the community (or, as labor law puts it, “a key aspect of the business”) and that we deserve to be treated as such. These are extraordinary times and Georgetown is appropriately asking us to take care of our students. But I own a small business and I work on an hourly basis, which means I must decide every day how many unpaid hours I can afford to donate to Georgetown. This is not fair to adjuncts, and more importantly, it is not fair to the students who depend on us.
Georgetown teachers were given about a week to create an online equivalent of our courses. To support us, the university has created dozens of hours of training-- in which we can partake, for no pay. Meanwhile, I understand the university is in great need of more online courses. Adjuncts are limited to teaching two classes because, legally, that is the most we can work before we must be treated as part-time salaried employees. I have been told the university is trying to come up with a “workaround” so we can be hired to teach more without being treated as employees.
I have another suggestion. Let us be part-time employees with a livable salary, prorated benefits, opportunities for merit and longevity raises, and some job security. Let us be a real part of the community.
I cannot imagine how difficult it must be to steer this ship during this storm, and I certainly understand why other issues have taken precedence. But
Georgetown students are now mostly in the hands of adjunct instructors, and for the foreseeable future, adjunct instructors' passions, talents, and commitment will be essential to making Georgetown the "uniquely caring, strong and resilient community" you envision. Teaching is a labor of love, but we also deserve to be compensated for our work.
Respectfully yours,
Sara Collina, JD (she/her)
Founder and Director, Blueberry Hill Strategies
Women's and Gender Studies Program
Georgetown University
202-841-4219
