When we go to the polls on Nov. 8, we are going to be doing more than choosing a new president. We will also be choosing who will govern Allan Hancock College.
Hancock employs approximately 500 part-time academic employees—instructors, counselors, librarians, and coaches. They make up the single largest employee group on campus. One-half of the classes offered at Hancock are taught by part-time instructors. They provide the same quality education a full-time teacher does, but they do so for about half the pay a full-time teacher receives, and they do it without benefits, without offices, without the usual kinds of support an educator needs to do their job.
For years the Part-Time Faculty Association has brought these concerns to the attention of the board of trustees. And while some improvements have been made, they have been achieved only through the persistent efforts of the Part-Time Faculty Association in the collective bargaining process, often in the face of a great deal of resistance from both the administration and the board.
Change is needed on the board. A board is needed that appreciates and acknowledges—with action rather than words—the contributions of part-time academic workers. This is why the Part-Time Faculty Association is supporting Jeff Hall for trustee in Area 4, Dan Hilker for trustee in Area 2, and incumbent Hilda Zacarias for trustee in Area 1.
