by Jo Gibson

IT WASN'T UNTIL recently, as I neared the end of my twenty-year-plus career as an editor and writer, that I embarked on my second, part-time, edging-my-way-into-retirement career as an instructor in the freshman composition program at Cleveland State University. New to this business of being an adjunct faculty member, I soon became aware of some of the unique properties of the position, noting the tension inherent in the paradox of relishing the autonomy that comes with the job (in spades!) and striving to come to feel a part of a larger collegial community.

As with any new endeavor, there was a shakedown period. I enjoyed the well-designed day of orientation spent in the company of my fellow adjunct members, and the comprehensive 100-page Freshman English Faculty Handbook, which had not just solid general information, but also "Tips for Teaching Effectiveness," "Tips on Assignments," and a half-dozen essays written by instructors for their fellow teachers on subjects like peer review and portfolio exchanges. In addition to designing the orientation session and handbook, Dr. Earl Anderson, chair of the English Department, and Dr. Jeffrey Ford, director of composition, had also arranged for office space dedicated to adjuncts.

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