Here’s the body of my response to the “edited” version of my letter and below that, my re-edit.
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Reviewing the edits for space, I felt the essence of my comments had been lost. Therefore, I rewrote my letter to better reflect the character and word limits. The body of the version you sent me clocked in at 972 characters (w/spaces) and 154 words. The one I offer in return has 987 characters (w/spaces) and 156 words. I think the way I frame it at the end may also underscore the importance of the issue for a reader of the Business Section.
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I would like to remind your readers that there are those of us for whom teaching college is a profession we have dedicated nearly a decade of training for, only to face permanent economic insecurity and deplorable working conditions. The elimination of tenure-track positions began long before this recent economic downturn. Those of us facing (and trapped within) the downward spiral of adjuncting have watched the consolidation of an administrative class, and a fundamental alteration of the nature of college education.
The American university has long positioned itself as a place where the twin goals of research and teaching are brought together to promote the advancement of thought. This model has largely explained why the best students from all over the world covet degrees, particularly graduate degrees, from American institutions. The question we should be asking is what the casualization of the academic labor market means for our ability to continue as a leader of ideas.
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