Adjunctification has been a problem in higher education for some time now. At CUNY, I think that the statistic now hovers around adjunct faculty comprising 60% of total faculty teaching in the university. Adjuncts are technically part-time employees, but usually teach heavier course loads at multiple colleges to make up for the slack in pay. In New York City, it’s common to have someone teach a class at Columbia, NYU, and Queens [College] in a single day– but how is that sustainable? They make less money, they have less time to do their own writing and research, making it all the more harder to advance. And it’s only getting worse. Entering the Academy now is almost like that scene in Titanic when the crew members lock the gates on steerage passengers. So the mother brings her children back to their room, and the elderly couple lies in the bed as the water flows under the door. The system is in crisis mode, but what choice is there except to stay on the ship? –Anonymous Source