The University of San Diego’s (USD) non-tenure track (NTT) faculty across the school’s College of Arts and Sciences announced recently that they are coming together to form a union with Service Employees International Union (SEIU) 721.

According to the NTT unionizing committee website, they’re establishing a union due to “USD continuing to reduce tenure-track positions in favor of contingent, NTT teaching appointments that offer no job security, much lower wages and limited opportunities for advancements.”

Their website further stated that the abovementioned conditions impact student learning “by limiting [NTT professors’] ability to provide quality instruction and mentorship to [their] students and [holds them] back from becoming fully acknowledged and included members of the campus community.”

On Feb. 29, the unionizing NTT faculty held a union teach-in for students, staff and community members to learn further about the process and ask questions. They explained that their movement began two years ago, while going to local coffee shops to discuss their working conditions.

Adjunct Assistant Professor David Miller, PhD began teaching a range of upper- and lower-division courses for USD in 2005. Despite being part of the university for almost two decades, Dr. Miller said that he’s still recognized as a temporary employee. Along with other NTT faculty, he has a contract that can be renewed or terminated every three years.

In front of the teach-in’s packed room, Dr. Miller further shared that he’s part of their unionizing effort because he believes in democracy and that the best way to resolve these problems “is to unify as a collective voice, debate and vote on our needs and work together with the university to create a contract that serves all our interests.”

Love and anger at the same time

La Mesan and Lecturer II Ted Falk, PhD stated during the event that he’s “here because of love and anger” — love for his students, colleagues and USD, and angry because NTT faculty are “undervalued, underpaid and underappreciated in so many ways.”

Adjunct Assistant Professor Antonio Iannotta, PhD similarly said that NTT unionizing staff are “here because we love you, […] because we want to be a better community.”

Many NTT faculty have outside jobs out of necessity to afford San Diego’s steep cost of living, which has a median rent price of more than $3,000 according to American compensation software company Payscale.

Lecturer I Soroya Rowley, for instance, has had to pick up a second job at the Old Globe Theatre in order to survive.

“I used to be embarrassed that I have a PhD, yet USD pays me $26,220 for teaching four classes per year, giving public talks and mentoring students from the Middle East,” Dr. Falk said. “Then I realized USD should be the one embarrassed and ashamed of that salary. This is how much they pay a lot of their faculty. To build their budget and paying professors the lowest salary possible and denying benefits like health insurance is morally bankrupt, especially for a Catholic university with a self-proclaimed ‘culture of care.’”

“I have taught at USD since the mid-1900s and have been a full-time instructor since 2014,” said Adjunct Assistant Professor Eric Cathcart. “Since that time, I have had to work at least two jobs to make a livable wage. In addition to teaching, I support multiple research students and projects — for a small stipend — which impacts the amount of time I have to work a second job. With every other company I have worked for, experience is rewarded through additional compensation. At USD, my salary is the same regardless of the number of years I have been teaching — and that salary is below what our students are getting with entry level jobs immediately after graduation. Our compensation should at least be a livable wage for Southern California and should commensurate with experience. The salary I get for teaching courses at USD is currently not negotiable, so I feel that a collective bargaining agreement is the only way for me to continue doing the job that I love.”

ProPublica’s nonprofit explorer estimated USD’s net assets at $1,385,911,144 for the 2022 fiscal year. USD President and Trustee James T. Harris III was listed as the university’s top compensator at the time, having earned $795,272.

A statement shared from USD detailed that “[the university] is committed to the dignity of all humans and a culture of care. That includes taking care of our non-tenure track (NTT) professors. We have a long track record of supporting these important members of our community. USD is also committed to excellence and there’s always room for improvement. The Office of the Provost, faculty committees and many others at USD have been in conversation with non-tenure track faculty members over the past year to identify opportunities for enhanced job stability, compensation and advancement and are looking forward to continuing those conversations.”

Moreover, USD’s statement included that they are “aware that there are outside efforts to encourage some of our NTT professors to unionize. USD is not pro- or anti- unionization. If a group of people is helped by a union, as many have been throughout history, that’s a good thing. If a union’s involvement is counter to the majority of a group of people’s best interests, it’s not. We support each person’s right to make an informed decision on whether or not to join a union based on their individual circumstances.”

As NTT professors continue to voice their concerns, their hope is to “achieve a contract that makes USD not just competitive with peer institutions, but a leader in how private Catholic universities reimagine the place of [NTT] faculty in their mission,” the NTT Faculty Union Organizing Committee said.

They additionally detailed that their “asks” will be determined by a democratic process once unionized and will “likely include steps toward livable wages, opportunities for advancement, support for research, compensation for university service and a meaningful voice in university governance. We want to be able to spend more time on campus teaching, advising students, collaborating with fellow faculty and doing events with student groups, and less time–as some of us must do–driving between teaching or other jobs as ‘freeway flyers.’ We love our USD community and are eager for the opportunity to be more involved in campus life.”

Editor’s note: Jessica Mills is a 2023 alumni from the University of San Diego College of Arts and Sciences.

(Courtesy photo)