Temporary Faculty

While the contract uses the term “temporary faculty,” APSCUF endeavors to use “adjunct faculty” where possible. This term was chosen in response to a 2013 survey of temporary faculty in which respondents identified “adjunct” as their preferred title. We know every term has its own set of positive and negative associations. Our intent was to honor the majority preference.

The Adjunct Update, a newsletter exclusively for our adjunct members, publishes electronically three times a year. Click here (login required) to view past editions of the newsletter, which we aim to publish each October, February, and April.

APSCUF believes that all faculty members at the 14 state-owned universities deliver quality education to their students and deserve fair and equitable treatment. Non-tenure-track faculty members in the State System are guaranteed certain benefits as defined by the collective bargaining agreement, such as the right to the grievance procedure, sick days, personal days, and health and welfare benefits. We encourage non-tenure-track faculty to get involved in APSCUF. To learn more about the organization, talk to your local chapter president.

See our checklist for questions that every adjunct faculty (contractually referred to as temporary faculty) member should ask.

Articles 11.G and 11.H of the collective bargaining agreement discuss the conversion of adjunct faculty positions to tenure-track status. This document outlines the guidelines for the implementation of that process.

Click here to read the 2013 resolution on temporary faculty and the Affordable Care Act.

Click here to download the Campaign for Future Higher Education report focusing on adjunct faculty. To read APSCUF’s brief report summary, see our Research and Fact Sheets page or click here.

Know Your Contract

The information below specifies sections of the 2019–23 contract that include language directly relating to adjunct faculty members. To view the contracts, visit our Contract page. From there, you can download the contract or search/browse it through Google Docs.

• Definition of Temporary Faculty (page 2, see “NON-TENURE TRACK FACULTY”)
• The Grievance Procedure (Article 5, pages 6–10)
• The cap on Part-time Temporary Faculty (Article 11.F., page 23)
• Temporary Faculty Conversion Rights (Article 11.G. and 11.H., pages 24–25)
• Evaluation of Temporary Faculty Members (Article 12.H., page 38)
• Application of Time Spent in Temporary Service to Probationary Period (Article 15.B., pages 43)
• Sick Leave Accrual for Temporary Faculty Members in Semester/Academic Year (Article 17.A.1.d., page 51)
• Sick Leave Usage for Temporary Faculty Members in Summer (Article 17.B.5.d., page 53)
• Sick Leave Bank (Article 17.C., page 53. (See also Sick Leave Bank Policy and Procedures at your local APSCUF office.)
• Health Care Benefits (Article 21, pages 68–73)
• Retrenchment Order (Article 29, page 103)
• Temporary Faculty Teaching at Other Locations (Article 40.B.2., page 123)
• Temporary Faculty Teaching at Home and Remote Sites (Article 41.B.2. and 3, page 125)
• Seniority Credit for Temporary Service (Appendix B.I.B. and B.I.C., page 141)

Resources for Adjunct Faculty

Click here to download APSCUF’s guide for adjunct faculty. (login required)

Click here to download Article 11 flowcharts.

Click here to download information about performance review and evaluation of temporary faculty. (Updated 2022)

Click here to download information about health-and-welfare benefits for part-time temporary faculty.

Click here to download the adjuncts’ sick-and-personal-leave memo.

Click here to download a memo about the clarification about Article 11 of the APSCUF collective bargaining agreement.

Click here to read the 2013 resolution on temporary faculty and the Affordable Care Act.

Click here to download the Campaign for Future Higher Education report focusing on adjunct faculty. To read APSCUF’s brief report summary, see our Research and Fact Sheets page or click here.

The New Faculty Majority: NFM is dedicated to improving the quality of higher education by advancing professional equity and securing academic freedom for all adjunct and contingent faculty. See more at: http://www.newfacultymajority.info/

The Association for Union Democracy (AUD): AUD is a pro-labor, non-profit organization dedicated to advancing the principles and practices of democratic trade unionism in North American labor movement. https://uniondemocracy.org

Coalition of Contingent Academic Labor (COCAL): COCAL is a coalition of higher education activists united in working to improve working conditions at colleges and universities for contingent faculty, including adjunct, part-time, and non-tenure track instructors, and graduate teaching assistants. See more at http://cocalinternational.org