Challenges and Opportunities for Two-Year College Faculty in the New Millennium

Faculty members at two-year colleges deal daily with numerous challenges that affect their work environments, their morale, the morale of their colleagues, and the extent to which they can be effective in the classroom. These challenges include deep cuts in state and institutional budgets, sometimes coupled with rising enrollments; the struggle to stay abreast of technological changes and adapt the best in new technologies for instructional use; sharp increases in the numbers of part-time faculty and the percentage of courses taught by part-timers; the encroachment of customer-based business models on academic functions; and public perceptions of two-year colleges as institutions of last choice, with little credibility as academic institutions. However, within these challenges lie many exciting opportunities for two-year college faculty to find professional fulfillment, to serve students and their communities, and to raise the profiles of their institutions. A noted columnist and authority on two-year college issues leads this entertaining and inspirational discussion, ideal for convocations or faculty development days.

To find out more, email Ed Leach or call (480) 705-8200, x233.