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An Adjunct Resigns

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 Since I was let go from a full-time position in 2013, I have somehow survived as an adjunct. In those 13 years alone, I have taught over 115 classes, plus however many classes I taught at the very institution that let me go during a six-month stretch three years after the firing. As an adjunct, I have often had to decide between offers at two or more colleges. This happened again today. I was offered practically identical schedules at two of the five colleges where I have worked. Ultimately, I went with the college that has provided me more classes over the years. This required me to request replacement for the upcoming spring semester from the institution where I began working the earliest in my career. But, I did not just ask to be replaced; I resigned from the institution itself. As an adjunct, I did not have to resign. I did so to draw a clear line in the sand that my time there was over. This calendar year I did not work for that institution, but earlier in the month my panic...
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Reach

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 I have been thinking about personal reach in terms of getting messages communicated and advancing in my work. A fellow Doctor of Education has been reaching out to his base to get them to vote for him in a contest that would provide him additional support in growing his podcast, which can be accessed on his YouTube channel:  Gerardo Gauthier-Zayas - YouTube . As I write this, he is fifth in his category - no small feat. I have tried to support his journey by voting daily and sharing his campaign on my Facebook and LinkedIn, but I do not have a very strong social media following.  I also know how hard it is to get eyes on content. In the past, my own YouTube channel  Matt Cogswell, Creative Consultant - YouTube  featured recordings of my performances, but now it serves as a landing ground for video announcements for the online public speaking classes I facilitate. I cannot speak to his reach on Spotify, but Dr. G's YouTube channel has only 8 subscribers, and he ...
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An Actor Who Took Up Space

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I learned today that an actor I worked with on two plays passed away last month at the age of 67. I started to re-watch the television show "NOS4A2," in which he appeared during two episodes. I looked him up on IMDB.com to see if he were still acting and saw his years of life before his credits. The photo below, taken during a publicity rehearsal, features him on the far left.  Bruce Serafin was a large, physically intimidating actor. I worked with him on stage productions of "Twelve Angry Jurors" and "Awake and Sing!" I first met him during an audition for the first show. We both arrived at a seemingly sketchy location for theater auditions, neither of us believing this was possibly the right place for us both to be. From that first moment I could feel a strong energy from him. He was not polite about the dark parking lot and the flight of stairs that awaited us as we walked up toward the audition. He made a few choice comments about our shared experience...
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Creative Consultant

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 Since earning my doctorate just over four months ago, I have heard different versions of the same question: So, what are you going to do with it?  It took me some time to craft a halfway intelligent response on demand. I felt the implied pressure that I was supposed to suddenly advance in my profession, and while that may have happened for some people, it has not happened for me, and spoiler alert, I don't want it to advance my profession. Even before being called "Doctor" the first time, I was looking for work on higheredjobs.com and through the human resources at the three colleges I've worked at that still exist. I applied for one position each at the three colleges and did not even land an interview. I would read the minimum requirements for other positions and be discouraged. I had the 'wrong kind' of experience. Yes, I know you should still apply if you feel you could do the job, but that wasn't the takeaway of the most recent job search. What I fin...
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Where You Are Fitness: A Support Group for Health and Wellness

The ideas and language in this post belong to Matt Cogswell. They reflect work he did within some of his doctoral classes and operate as talking points for later development and collaboration.  Return to Collaborative Space Activity Time : before any official work tasks (Best to share in advance that this will be the first activity upon return as a team) Environment : a community table with just enough chairs for participants plus a facilitator. An enclosed space with natural lighting If outside participants are involved, allow Zoom/other access to all, even if present, so everyone can see each other. Materials : Small sketchbooks or stacks of paper (colored, if possible), approximately 5 per person. Crayons, colored pencils, markers. [Send a creativity pack to those off-site?] Facilitator talking points: This is not a work task. It is an activity we’re going to work on as a team. It is meant to be fun, even if some moments don’t feel that way. You are encourage...
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Designing Better Belonging: Creative Leadership for Supporting Adjunct Faculty

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The ideas and language in this post belong to Matt Cogswell. They reflect work he did within some of his doctoral classes and operate as talking points for later development and collaboration.  Designing Better Belonging: Creative Leadership for Supporting Adjunct Faculty Contents Project Outcomes                                                                                                                     Playb...
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