2008 Woodie Awards
LOMBARDI: Theology department challenges Marquette to live up to its Catholic identity
By Eric Lombardi
There is a professor who put herself through four years of undergrad, four years of graduate school and earned her PhD, completed post-doctorate work, and finally is now teaching here at Marquette.
Unfortunately for this professor, who will remain anonymous because she fears she will lose her job for telling me her story, universities across the country, including Marquette, have substantially decreased the proportion of professors they hire as faculty or tenure-track. Her only option was to take a position as an "adjunct" professor.
Adjunct professors, who are also called "lecturers," are paid only $3,200 per class they teach. They are offered absolutely no benefits, including health insurance.
If Jane Doe were to buy health insurance from Marquette it would cost more than her entire salary for a semester.
Just to keep her head above water she is currently teaching six classes at universities all over Milwaukee. She has a PhD, works more than 60 hours a week and is still on the borderline of the poverty level.
Now here's the kicker, Jane Doe is just one of more than 50 Marquette adjunct professors who are barely scrapping by.
The theology department has apparently had enough of Marquette underpaying and under appreciating non-faculty professors, and in its last meeting unanimously passed a motion demanding health care benefits for all professors teaching at least two classes.
Included in the motion is the following, "...we (Marquette), as an institution, have an urgent moral obligation to give health and dental care benefits to our PhD adjunct faculty who are teaching at least two courses per semester."
"Marquette teaches Catholic social doctrine which includes the principle that basic health care is not a luxury but a basic human right which must be honored," said Daniel Maguire, theology professor and creator of the motion.
"We looked at Catholic teaching, looked at what we're doing, and all agree that we must fight to change it," Maguire said.
Unfortunately for this professor, who will remain anonymous because she fears she will lose her job for telling me her story, universities across the country, including Marquette, have substantially decreased the proportion of professors they hire as faculty or tenure-track. Her only option was to take a position as an "adjunct" professor.
Adjunct professors, who are also called "lecturers," are paid only $3,200 per class they teach. They are offered absolutely no benefits, including health insurance.
If Jane Doe were to buy health insurance from Marquette it would cost more than her entire salary for a semester.
Just to keep her head above water she is currently teaching six classes at universities all over Milwaukee. She has a PhD, works more than 60 hours a week and is still on the borderline of the poverty level.
Now here's the kicker, Jane Doe is just one of more than 50 Marquette adjunct professors who are barely scrapping by.
The theology department has apparently had enough of Marquette underpaying and under appreciating non-faculty professors, and in its last meeting unanimously passed a motion demanding health care benefits for all professors teaching at least two classes.
Included in the motion is the following, "...we (Marquette), as an institution, have an urgent moral obligation to give health and dental care benefits to our PhD adjunct faculty who are teaching at least two courses per semester."
"Marquette teaches Catholic social doctrine which includes the principle that basic health care is not a luxury but a basic human right which must be honored," said Daniel Maguire, theology professor and creator of the motion.
"We looked at Catholic teaching, looked at what we're doing, and all agree that we must fight to change it," Maguire said.
Published: 4/22/08 Section: Viewpoints
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