Dive Brief:
- The New England Association of Schools and Colleges has proposed a number of changes to higher education accrediting standards, some of which have adjuncts on edge.
- Inside Higher Ed reports the proposed standards take away a language requiring "reasonable contractual security" for adjuncts as well as "undue dependence" on these faculty members, and it will only require institutions to publish a list of continuing faculty, rather than all faculty, distinguished by their full- or part-time status.
- Some adjuncts argue the process for drafting the new standards was not open enough and SEIU's Boston-based director for higher education told Inside Higher Ed the revision process could have been an opportunity to offer greater protections to adjuncts at a time when many colleges are placing a greater reliance on them.
Dive Insight:
Adjunct faculty at several colleges and universities in New England have organized a union under the SEIU umbrella, including Boston, Northeastern, Tufts, and Lesley universities. The NEAS&C is set to discuss the proposed changes at its annual meeting in December.
The conversation comes at a time when accreditation is being eyed for reform at all levels. With the Elementary and Secondary Education Act renewed as Every Student Succeeds, Congress is free to turn its sights on the Higher Education Act, where federal accreditation policy is due for an update.
Adjunct activism across the country could lead legislators to consider enshrining protections for this group in federal law. At the top of the list, however, is addressing the strength of accreditor oversight and avenues for innovation.