Kevin Jett knows a dance that isn't your typical do-si-do. You could call it the part-time shuffle.

It consists mostly of boogieing back and forth between the University of Toledo and Owens Community College, teaching a total of five writing courses between them to help make ends meet.

Part-time instructors across the nation, long viewed as a flexible source of labor and local expertise, are doing this dance, causing concern among some that they are becoming a sort of migrant underclass in academia.

“You can't work toward job security. It's a real dead end that is real lucrative for the university,” said Dr. Eileen Condon, a visiting composition instructor at UT who helped lead recent public efforts to call attention to the issue during Campus Equity Week.

A report by the American Federation of Teachers shows that 43 percent of college faculty nationally are part time, many earning substantially lower wages than their full-time counterparts with few, if any, benefits.

“It's exploitation,” said Tom Mooney, president of the Ohio Federation of Teachers. “They're paid far, far less per course than full-time faculty.”

Wages vary, but the majority of part-time faculty in nine key fields are paid less than $3,000 per course, according to the Coalition on the Academic Workforce, a group of 22 academic societies that meet in Washington and discourage the growing use of part-time and temporary instructors in higher education.

Part-timers are a sizeable presence at local colleges, teaching 20 percent of undergraduate student credit hours at UT and 16 percent at Bowling Green State University in spring, 2000, according to the most recent figures available from the Ohio Board of Regents.

UT has about 400 part-timers teaching this year, compared to more than 650 full-time faculty. BGSU has about 200 part-time instructors and over 800 full-time faculty, school officials said.

The numbers are even greater at Owens, where part-timers account for 57 percent of contact hours with students.

The presence of such a substantial part-time faculty helps the community college offer a tuition rate of $75 per credit hour ($85 per credit beginning in summer, 2002) - one of the lowest tuition rates in the region.

Dr. Paul Unger, Owens vice president of academic affairs, is quick to point out that part-timers bring valuable real-world experience to the classroom, especially in technology areas.

He acknowledged, however, that cost is a factor in using part-time instructors.

A typical part-time instructor with some experience makes more than $13,000 a year teaching a class load of 12 credit hours over two semesters at Owens.

The college's starting salary for a full-time faculty member, who has added responsibilities such as maintaining office hours and advising, is $29,000.

For those hoping to make a career of college teaching, it can be rough to cobble together courses at different schools, which sometimes add up to more than a full-timer's load.

“You bounce back and forth from school to school with a bunch of books in the back of your car, no benefits, and hope to God that you land something,” Mr. Jett, 32, said. “Back and forth. Grab another set of books and go teach the class. It's just a real pain.”

Mr. Mooney said reliance on part-time teachers, who do not have the right to collective bargaining in Ohio, hurts student learning. Part-timers just can't get as involved in campus life, colleagues, and students as their full-time counterparts, he said.

“When you have people who are `roads' scholars piecing together courses, you just can't provide the same quality of service to your students,” he said.

Diane Gagel understands this. She has taught on and off at Owens since 1973. This year she expects to make about $11,000 leading six English classes.

“I'm out there Mondays and Wednesdays. Sometimes students ask if they can see me other days, and I can't do it,” she said.

“It's not financially sound to come out there other days because the pay isn't enough,” she said.

Originally, Ms. Gagel, who has a master's degree in American studies from BGSU, taught part time because child care wasn't available. Now, she said, a tough market has hindered her quest to move to a full-time position.

Part of the problem, according to UT Provost William Free, is that in some fields there are more advanced degrees being produced than jobs.

Not everyone who teaches part time is hoping to make a living at it, however.

Alan Konop, a Toledo defense attorney, has been teaching a Saturday morning course in trial practice on the side at UT's law school for more than 15 years.

He said the class keeps him attuned to the thoughts of future lawyers and allows him to provide them with some practical insights.

“It's a tremendous experience,” Mr. Konop said. “It's really me teaching what I do every day.”

BGSU Provost John Folkins said such instructors help connect the university to the community and provide a flexible workforce to meet the changing needs of students.

Still, he said, BGSU has worked to reduce its overall use of part-timers because they aren't as available to students as full-time faculty. The university employed about 300 part-time instructors in 1999, a figure that has since dropped by about 100, he said.

Some schools just don't have the money to fill vacant full-time positions, though, and that could get worse given recent state funding cuts to higher education.

Dallas Black, who until recently taught Spanish and guitar part time at Owens and now teaches part time at Ohio Northern University, contends that's another reason some schools have been looking more to part-time faculty.

“There's no money there,” he said. “It's a sinking ship, and they're just plugging holes where they can.”

Teaching part time is a matter of convenience for Mr. Black, 35, who is a stay-at-home father.

Mr. Jett hopes to teach part time just until he finishes his doctorate at UT, but said he understands the concerns of colleagues with master's degrees and PhDs who get stuck on the part-time treadmill.

“You get frustrated after a while,” he said. “You have all these degrees and you're not getting paid anything.”

First Published December 2, 2001, 12:00 p.m.