Newman_Reviving-the-State-of-the-Profession

Reviving the State of the ProfessionjMlAjokeshave prolifer-atedlikeethniconeswiththeexceptionthattheliterature andlanguageprofessorsaretheonesmakingfunofthem­ selves.Suchcomicalself-loat

Reviving the State of the Profession

jMlAjokeshave prolifer-atedlikeethniconeswiththeexceptionthattheliterature

andlanguageprofessorsaretheonesmakingfunofthem­

selves.Suchcomicalself-loathingmaytellussomething

aboutwhyourprofessionisinthestateitis.Butfirst,a

joke.OnthestreetsofSanFranciscooutsidetheMLA

convention,anattilydressedEnglishprofessorpassesa

homelessmanwhoaskshimforahandout.Theprofessor

looksthehomelessman upanddownandproclaims,

“Neitheraborrowernoralenderbe.”Beforeresuminghis

journeyhepunctuateshismessagewith“WilliamShake­

speare.”Ashetakeshisnextstep,thehomelessmanre­

sponds,“Screwyou!,”followedbyhisownpunctuated

signature,“DavidMamet.”

Iwanttousethisjokeasalaunchingpointtoaskwith

whomwemostidentify,thepompousacademicorthe

angryhomelessman?Dowefindourselvesintheposi­

tionofthecondescendingprofessor,dispensingcheap

anduselesswisdom,orthefrustratedone-upmanshipof

thehomelessman,whoseassertionsatdignityproduce

nosustenance?Whenhighereducationallocationsshrink

despiteeconomicboom,whenuniversityadministrators

adoptcorporateandmilitarymodelsforgovernancethat

displaceorco-optfacultyvoices,whenstudentsconsider

theireducation onlyalargely irrelevant necessityfor

adecent-payingjob,whichtheyhopemightbeaccom­

paniedbysome“lite”entertainment,whenknowledge

withoutimmediateandvisiblepubliccurrencyisconsid­

eredsuperfluous,andwhenthepurveyorsofsuchknowl­

edgearebrandedinsulatedandaberrant,thenIbelieve

wefindourselvesconvenientlyshuntedintobothofthese

untenableslots

Thegeneralpublic;manyofourstudents,administra­

tors,andlegislators;andweourselveslampoonusas

self-absorbedandoutoftouchwithreal-worldproblems.In

theseconstructions weareas lovablyinnocentas Mr

Chips,asfoolishasaJerryLewistype,ashypercriticalas

JeanBrodie,andasdrunkenandphilanderingasaMichael

Cainecharacter.Morerecendy,wearespoiledmalcontents

whopreachpoliticsand,liketherobedprofessorsinthe

MarxBrothers’Horsefeathers,havejoinedinawarpedcho­

rusof“whateveritis,wereagainstit."Outofself-denial,

self-interest,orself-loathing,weoftenhaveaidedthese

constructionsbyourretreatintoasenseofivory-tower

privilegeandbyoureschewaloftheverycommunitywe tendtoinvokeabstraedyinacademicdiscourse.Suchare­ treatisproperlyconstruedandresentedaselitist

Increasinglywealsoaretheunderpaid,thegypsyschol­ ars,denizensofthefreewayscobblingtogethermultiple coursesatmultipleinsdtudons,victimsofdownsizing,re­ allocation, shifting standards, and cost-effectiveness Roughlytwo-thirdsofnewPhDsnowfailintheyearthe degreeisawardedtofindtenure-trackemployment(Lau­ rence59,table2).Non-tenure-trackadjunctsnowconsti­ tutenearlyfiftypercentoffacultymembersinfour-year Englishdepartments(“Report"fig.2,11).Relianceon them andon cheapgraduatestudentlaborfor lower-divisioncoursesindicatesthedenigrationbothoffresh­ manandsophomoreundergraduateeducationinmost universitiesandofthosedoingit.Wearethehomeless, reducedtoaskingmeeklyforhandoutsintheformofan extrasection,somesharedofficespaceinwhichtoseeour students,someremotevoiceinthepoliciesthatwillde­ termineourfuture,and someideaofwhenwemight knowwhetherornotournexthandoutmightbeforth­ coming.Whatshamesusmostisthatwemustaskfor thesehandoutsfromthosetrainedaswewere,whosein­ tellectualpassionsandbeliefswesupposedlyshare.We oftenaretreatednotasoccupantsorevenvisitorsintheir homesbutratherasmaintenanceorserviceworkers,un­ comfortablebuttransientnecessities.Maybetheyuncon­ sciouslyenacttheFaulknerianpattern wherebythose victimizedmustthemselvesfindvictims.Maybewere­ mindthemtoomuchofwheretheymightbehadthey beenbornagenerationlater.Whetherwearetheen­ trenchedacademicorthetenuousone,whetherwedis­ miss thelower-classversionofourselvesorsufferthe dismissal,whetherwerequotingShakespeareinaesthetic

The author is Professor of English and Chair, Department of En­ glish, at the University of South Carolina, Columbia, and edits the Cultural Frames, Framing Culture series published by the Univer­ sity Press of Virginia This paper was presented at the 1998 ADE Summer Seminar West, hosted by the University of Wyoming in Jackson Hole, Wyoming.

ADEBulletin,No.122,Spring1999

36 •Reviving the State of the Profession

denialorMametinfutilerage,bothsidesofthiserudite

doppelgangerarebeingscrewed,andthescrewingisnot

entirelynonconscnsual

Whilethecostofeducatingacollegestudentgrew

morethansixfoldoverthepastthreedecades,farout­

strippingtherateofinflation,fundingbybothstateand

federalgovernmentshasdiminished.By2015,a1997re­

portbytheCouncilforAidtoEducationestimates,“the

highereducationsectorwillfaceafundingshortfallof

about$38billion—almostaquarterofwhatitwillneed”

(qtd.inFranklin5andinGilbertetal 16).Asentitle­

mentprogramsrequireasteadilyacceleratingproportion

offederalfundsandasstateexpendituresforprisonsin­

creasedramatically,thepercentageofspendingonhigher

educationcontinuestodecrease.HerbertLindenberger,a

formerpresidentoftheMLA,citesastudyfromtheNel­

sonA.RockefellerInstituteofGovernmenttoconclude

that“highereducationhascometoserveasa‘cashcow’

tofinanceotherstateneeds"(3;qtd.inGilbertetal 17)

Apincerlikeeffecthasbeenbroughtto bear

profession.Ononeendofthesqueezearetruncatedleg­

islativeappropriationscoupledwithpublicresistanceto

highertuition.Ontheotheristheconcatenationofg

igenrollments,diminishedsecondaryschoolqualityand

.tandards,increasingnumbersofcollegestudentsinneed

ofremedialwork,thepressureofthatworkfallingpri­

marilytoEnglishandlanguagedepartmentsinthehu­

manities,theconsequent needtomaintainsmallclass

sectionsinordertoconcentratepedagogicalattentionef­

fectively,andtheenhancedifnotcompletereliance

adjunctfacultymembersandgraduateteachingassistants

toteachtheselower-divisionclassesoutofeconomicne­

cessity.Theidealsolution,asuddenfundingflowthaten­

ablestherecruitmentofnumerousfull-time,tenure-track

facultymemberswhowillteachbothupper-and

lower-divisioncourses,isaboutaslikelyasOJsconfession.Even

iftheteachingloadsoftenuredandtenure-trackfaculty

memberswereraisedandthesefacultymembersassumed

responsibilityformostcompositioncourses,thescholarly

andresearchmissionwouldsufferdrastically,andmostof

thedepartmentsnowmakingheavyuseofadjunctsand

teachingassistants still could notofferall the

lower-divisioncoursesneededandsatisfythedemandsofmajors

andgraduatecourses(“Report”23).Whileweaddressed

thecanonwars,deManspastdemons,theGableredition,

andtheSokalhoax,themultitierjobsystememerged,

andthestrangersoccupyingtheofficesaroundusweren’t

alwaysthegraduatestudentsweeasilypartitionedbecause

oftheirapprenticeshipstatus.Thesepeoplealsoheld

PhDs, but we neo-Marxist cultural criticsand post­

colonialiststooofteninvokedthecastesystemandstaked

ourterritorial claims.Statuscourses, travelfunds, re­

searchsupport,newcomputers,decisionmaking,and

thetimetoaddressthecanonwarsremainedreserved,

andwestillhadsomeoneelsetoblamewhenthe upper-divisionstudentsweinheritedcouldn’twriteclearlyor thinkcritically.Unfortunately,thecurtailmentoffaculty authoritysimultaneouslyingraineditselfinourinstitu­ tionalstructuresasafaitaccompliwhileweretreatedin elegiaclamentation

Iwanttoproposeingeneraltermsthreeinterrelatedac­ tionsthatIthinkmightbegintoaddressthisquandary:

anenhancedpublicrelationscampaignforhighereduca­ tion,greatercollaborationwithsecondaryschoolsand communitycolleges,andanelevationofourself-image andhealingoftheinternecinestresseswithinourdepart­ ments.Thethreadthatrunsthroughthesethreeitems

iscommunity—ouracademiccommunity,whichhas shiftedfromself-governingstatustoever-tighteningreg­ ulationfromaboveandbeyond,andthenonacademic communityagainstwhichourcampusestoooftenhave insulatedthemselves,resultinginthesuspicion,miscon­ ceptions,and underfunding we now suffer Growing publicdistrustabouthighereducationcomesprimarily frommisunderstandingsoverthedifferencesbetweenthe universityworkplaceand mostotherworkplaces We needtodoabetterjobofeducatingthepublicaboutthe benefitsofwhatwedoandhowwedoit.Andwecan onlydothatbygettingmorepubliclyinvolved.Commu­ nitiestendtobondmostcohesivelyinthefaceofadver­ sity,andouracademiccommunityhasneverbeforefaced suchadversecircumstances

Weneedtobecomemoreproactiveincontrolling fatesinsteadofpassivelylettingthembecontrolled.To

doso,Iproposethatweimplementthemotivationbe­ hindtheculturalstudiesapproachesmanyofushave nowadopted—toconnectabstracttheorizingtoconcrete socialandhistoricalconcerns.Althoughthismotivation hasalteredourresearchandcurricularagendas,ithasnot sufficientlyinfluencedourprofessionalidentitiesandthe wayweconductourbusiness.Insistingonthesociocul­ turalconnectionsinourworkrequiresafullerintegra­ tionofourscholarly,teaching,andcommunitymissions Suchanintegration,Ibelieve,wouldelevateourvisibility

inpositivewayswhileenhancingourcontributionstoso­ cialjustice Increasedinvolvementin thecommunity permitsusameanstoreshapepublicopinionbycom­ municatingmorefullyandaccuratelywhatwedoand whyitisimportant.Aswriters,culturalcritics, narratolo-gists,andrhetoricians,weshouldbeusingourskillsmore effectivelytopromoteourselvesbeyondtheacademy

Weneedtostrategizecollaborativelywithotherna­ tionalorganizationsrelatedbothtothedisciplineandto theprofessiongenerallyand,throughaseriesofplanned jointmeetings,analyzewhatthreatensusandhowwecan adapttosurviveandprosper.Theseeffortsalreadyhave beguninvariousforumswiththeAmericanHistorical Association,AmericanPhilosophicalAssociation,

Amer-onour

row-our on

Robert Newman • 37

\

ican Political Science Association, American Mathe­

maticalAssociation,AmericanSociologicalAssociation,

NationalCouncilofTeachersofEnglish,AmericanAs­

sociationofUniversityProfessors,NationalEducation

Association,AmericanFederationofTeachers,andCom­

munityCollegeHumanitiesAssociation.The collab­

orativeeffortsneed to beextendedand intensified I

alsosuggestthatwedevotesignificantportionsofour

nationalconventionstoaddressingtheseissuesthrough

collectivepanels,massivedistributionoftoolkits—fact

sheets,talkingpoints,actionitems—andjointlobbying

effortstargetedtostateandfederallegislaturesandtocor­

porations.Weshouldincludegovernment,corporate,and

universityofficialsatthesemeetingstofacilitateamutu­

allyeducationaldialogue.Weneedtoinfiltratethemedia

andtodevelopcommercialadvertisingandeditorial

paignsaswellaspublic forumsinnewspapersandon

radioandTVthatexplainwhywhatwedocontributesto

thecountry’seconomic,social,andculturalwell-being.If

thecostofsucheffortsmeansanelevationofmember­

shipdues,sobeit.Ourinvestmentclearlywouldbedes­

ignatedforself-interestandpotentialmaterialreturn

Broadeninggraduatetrainingtoemphasizeapedagog­

ical dimension would help makeourgraduatesmore

marketable,butsuchabroadeningshouldincludearevi­

sionofourvalueandrewardsystemaswellasarestruc­

turingandsolidifyingofourcurrenttenuouslinkswith

theothereducationallevelsinourimmediateandbroader

communities.Weneedtostoppayinglipservicetoour

beliefinthemutualityofresearchandteaching.Toeffec­

tivelyintegrateapedagogicalcomponentintoourgradu­

atetraining,wewillneedtoacceptthestudyofpedagogy

asascholarlyactivityandrewarditaccordingly.Thede­

velopmentoftechnologicallyenhancedinstruction,in­

novativetextbooks,andcross-disciplinaryclassroomswill

havetoearnscholarlymerit,andwewillneedtobridge

theprestigegapandforgeseamlessnessbetweenthoseof

uswhoteachwritingandthoseofuswhoteachreading

Accordingly,wewillhavetoreformtenure,promotion,

andmeritcriteriatoensurefairandmoreinclusiveevalu­

ationforcutting-edgepedagogicalscholarship.Wealso

willneedtointegrateethnographicstudies,educational

reform,andcommunityoutreachprojectsintoourre­

searchandcurriculardesigns.Justaswehavecometo

understandliterary theoryassocialcriticism,wealso

mustrecognizepedagogyasknowledgeproduction

Theelitistattitudesoftheprofessoriatinthehumanities

extendtocollegesofeducationwhoseprograms,faculty,

andstudentsareoftendenigratedasintellectuallybank­

ruptandirrelevantlybureaucratic.Atmanyresearchuni­

versities,undergraduateprogramsineducationhavebeen

shiftedtothesubjectareatoaddressthisperception,al­

thoughgraduateprogramsineducationhavecontinuedto

flourishasdegreemillslargelytoprovidearaisondetre

andtosustainthestatusquoinfacultylinesandbudgetary allocations.Myownuniversitycurrentlyawardsfortyper­

centofitsadvanceddegreesineducation.Atthesame timetheperformanceofoursecondaryschoolstudents hasdiminishedrelativetothoseofstudentsinmostindus­

trializedcountries,agenuineteachershortagehasemerged nationally,andenrollmentsatcommunitycollegesareac­

celeratingrapidly.Ourattentiontocoursesinpedagogy couldaddressthesemarketsandbroadenpossibilitiesfor theMAsandPhDswenowproducewhileenhancingthe trainingandthequalityofteachersthroughoutoureduca­

tionalsystem

Forthistohappen,thecondescension,threats,and turfwarsbetweencollegesofeducationandtheirsister collegesmustend.Collegesofliberalartsandeducation especiallymustrecognizethateachhassomethingthe otherneedsandthatcollaborationwillservethemboth

Healthyliasonswouldincludecoordinatedcurricular planning;interactionswithsecondaryschools;andjob placement,jointfacultyappointments,andprogramsof studyforundergraduateandgraduatestudentsthatex­

pandratherthancircumscribepedagogicalconcepts.The teachershortage,whichhasreachedcrisisproportionsin populousstateslikeCaliforniaandTexas,mightbepar­

tiallyaddressedifsecondaryschoolscouldtakeadvantage

oftheoverproductionofPhDsinliberalartsfields.Since emergency teaching certificates thatsuspendnormal teacher-preparation requirements are now issued in recordnumbers,itseemsalogicalnextsteptooverhaul thoserequirementsandpermitsubstitutionofgraduate pedagogicaltraininginthesubjectarea.Sincestatefund­

ingforelementaryandsecondaryeducationgenerallyhas ainedstatusquoorhasbeenincreasedwhilethatfor highereducationconsistentlyhasdecreased,thecostof introducingwell-trainedprofessionalsintothesecondary schoolsdoesnotappearprohibitive.Theconsequences

ofsuchaplanmightincludeimprovementstothequal­

ityofeducation,elevatedstudentperformanceindica­

tors,andamplifiedcooperationbetweensecondaryand highereducation in theirmutualmissions.Although PhDswouldnotbedoingtheuniversity-levelteachingto whichtheyoriginallyaspired,thisalternativetothead­

junctroutegenerallywouldofferasimilarteachingload,

ahighersalary,andabetterchanceatapermanentjob

Communitycollegesperhapsaremorenaturalmarkets

totapforourfrustratedgraduates,butthelinesofcom­

municationbetweenouruniversitiesandtheseinstitutions haveatbestbeengossamer.Increasingly,ouruniversity studentstaketheirlower-divisioncoursesatcommunity andregionalcampuses.Weneedmoreoutreach,morein­

clusionofcommunitycollegefacultymembersatprofes­

sionalmeetings,moredialogueaboutcurricularplanning andreform,morecollaborationonscholarlyprojectswith pedagogicalimplicationsandonexternalgrantproposals,

cam-rem

38 • Reviving the State of the Profession

moresharedfacultyexperiences,andmoreconcertedef­

fortsatenlistmentinourpublicrelationscampaign

Likemanywhoareperpetuallyembattled,university

facultymembers,especiallyintheliberalarts,tendtopro­

jectalowself-image.Wehavebeenscapegoatedasprivi­

legedand outoftouch,as defilers oftheintellectual

purityofourcharges,aspeoplewithjobsforlifewhoonly

worksixhoursaweekwithsummersoff,andasthreatsto

thecontinuedviabilityofmainstreamAmerica.Inreality,

wefurnishtheskillsincommunicationsandcomparative

andcriticalthinkingnecessaryforasuccessfullycompeti­

tivecorporateAmerica.Weexciteandgroomtheimag­

ination necessary for invention and production We

identifyandexplainthenarrativetropessharedbyaworld

unitedthroughthetelecommunicationsrevolution.Fur­

thermore,ourcritiquesofcorporateAmericademonstrate

ourculturalcentralityinhealthyquestioningandshifting

frontiers;inintellectualattemptsatinclusion,diversity,

andconnection;andinapproachesthattakeseriouslythe

principlesofdemocracy

Toelevateourstatuswiththegeneralpublicrequiresa

transformationinourownattitudesaboutourpublic

function.Nolessthanentertainers,athletes,psychothera­

pists,businessexecutives,andgovernmentleaders,we

helpmakelifemoremeaningfulandpleasurable.Wedeal

withtoughquestionsaboutvalues,rules,equality,pov­

erty,death,relationships,andmisunderstanding.Wein­

volveourstudentswiththesequestionssothatthey

livetheirlivesmorefullyandwithgreaterunderstanding

andcompassion.Weequipthemwiththeirmostpower­ fulandtranslatablecommodities—knowledge,critical thinking,andproficiencyatcommunicating.Ourschol­ arship,nolessthanthatinscience,engineering,andbusi­ ness,investigatesthevariednuancesofwhatitmeansto

behuman,ourcontextsforinterpretation,andwayswe canfathomandimproveourdestinies.Theseareessential real-worldissues,andweneedtovoicethemcollectively beforewenolongerhaveavoice

Note

IwishtoexpressmygratitudetomycolleagueAmittaiAviramfor hisinsightfulandearnestcommentsaboutthistopic

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29.3(1997):5-6

Gilbert,SandraM.,etal.Final Report: MLA Committee on Profes­ sional Employment.NewYork:MLA,1997.Rpt.inADE Bulletin

119(1998):27-45

Laurence,David.“Employmentof1996-97EnglishPhDs:A

Re-theMLA’sCensusofPhDPlacement."ADE Bulletin

121(1998)58-69

Lindenbcrger,Herbert.“TheCommitteeonProfessionalEmploy­ mentatWork.”MLA Newsletter 29.2(1997):3-4

“ReportoftheADEAdHocCommitteeonStaffing."ADE Bulletin

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porton

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