Union officials push for more full-time faculty After a post-pandemic rise of enrollment, part-time grows to meet demand

By Delfino Camacho

Chris Lopes, 23, works part-time at Compton College and attends El Camino.

While he cites a history of excellent part-time instructors, he sympathizes with them due to his own part-time job, he would like more interaction.

“I would prefer more office hours, more chances to visit a professor,” Lopes said.

The Data: Part-Time Increase

Part-time/temporary faculty increased 32% between 20202022 at El Camino, faster than the California average, a 3% drop.

El Camino and statewide student enrollment saw a 2% rise last year, per the California Community College Chancellor’s Office data mart.

An enrollment strategies presentation given at the May 15 Board of Trustees meeting indicated a rebound of students began in fall 2022 and continued through this year.

Retention rates declined between 2018 and 2021.

Meanwhile, full-time faculty decreased by nearly 6% between 2020-2022 at El Camino, compared to a 3% drop across California.

“We’re growing, that’s really good news for us and that also means we’re bringing back more part-time faculty in order to … accommodate the surge of enrollment.” Vice President of Academic Affairs Carlos Lopez said.

While tenure or full-time positions can take months, temporary positions can be filled much faster.

As emergency funding is set to expire in 2025, Lopez said colleges are incentivized to attract and retain students.

Cerritos College also increased temporary instruction and is experiencing an enrollment bump, something Santa Monica and East LA colleges are not seeing.

Human Resources Director Maria Smith said while the recent part-time increase seems drastic when compared to years prior to 2020 she can see current tenure and temporary numbers are similar to 2019.

She said historically El Camino has always hired a lot of temporary faculty.

“If you have one person who leaves five classes, you may have to hire three people to replace that one,” Smith said.

While Lopez said the parttime increase was necessary next semester, the college approved 25 new full-time faculty positions and four oneyear full-time temporary positions with plans to increase tenure positions if possible.

President of the El Camino Federation of Teachers Kelsey Iino said the increase in parttime makes sense for flexibility.

“But I would always encourage more full-time permanent employees … it just creates a better work environment and job security,” Iino said.

Iino brought up retention rates and how full-time faculty can help students stay.

“Within reason I think we can get to a higher number of fulltime and a lower number of contingent faculty,” Iino said. Increasing Full-Time Evan Hawkins, executive director of the Faculty Association of California Community Colleges said incentives exist to help districts increase their full-time instruction, but they don’t always work.

He said the 75/25% rule established in 1988 was meant to encourage colleges to strive for more full-time instruction. Others say it’s not realistic.

“The funding model in the state is not designed right now to support 75/25,” Lopez said.

“It’s a noble goal but the current funding structure and the current funding realities in our system make it very difficult.”

Hawkins says the problem with the goal is there is no penalty to comply.

“There’s no enforcement,” Hawkins said. “Research and data (show) that students can be more successful when interacting with a full-time faculty member.”

The faculty obligation number does have a penalty; colleges that do not comply receive reduced funding. But Hawking thinks the Faculty Obligation Number has become the goal rather than the tool to reach 75%.

“It was supposed to be a minimum, so it was supposed to be sort of a floor but most districts use it as their benchmark,” Chemistry professor at Merritt College Jennifer Shanoski said. She is also the president of the Peralta Federation of Teachers..

She said increasing full-time instructors helps students by increasing support services outside the classroom like lab, office or committee hours.

A 2023 report from the California State Auditor’s Office found some districts mismanaged their statewide allocation of $150 million meant to be used to increase full-time instruction.

The report read “two of the districts we reviewed did not always use the funds properly,” while another two districts could not always prove they had used the funds as intended.

El Camino was not audited but has met its faculty obligation. While the 75/25% split eludes El Camino, other schools have failed to consistently reach it as well.

Even legislation is not a guaranteed fix. Two failed California bills, AB 1505 and SB 777, were meant to help enforce 75/25%. The issue received attention but the bills did not pass.

“The downside of it is not just that it hurts students by not having as much access to fulltime faculty, but basically, budgets are balanced on the back of temporary faculty,” Hawkins said.

Lopes’ idea of how to increase full-time instruction echoes the words of Iino and other faculty.

“It would help out if you increase full-timers ... fulltimers need more incentive,” Lopes said. “Better pay.”

To read more, visit the website at eccunion.com