About the Conference

Why Hills and Hollers?

The home node of this conference is Appalachia, a mountainous region known for its hills and hollers. On a hilltop, we can see far distances and gain greater perspective. In a holler, we gather close to our kin and develop strong ties.

For non-tenure track faculty, gaining perspective and developing ties can be challenging. Our conference seeks to bring together from across the country faculty who are intimately familiar with this contingent academic world. We seek to develop connections among our community; to empower faculty to have tough conversations with their campus leaders and colleagues; and to advocate for enfranchisement, inclusion and equity in benefits, pay and access.

We hope to answer questions and address topics around such topics as:

Faculty identity: What does it mean to be faculty? What rights does being faculty entail?
Workload
Pay equity
Eligibility for professional development, sabbatical leave, leadership advancement, professorships
Organizing and advocacy on campus
Rewards, recognition, incentives
Empowering our passions in our work
Diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice on the non-tenure track
Networking
Building a cohort of peer evaluators (internally and externally)
Evaluation and promotion

This conference is sponsored by the WVU Office of the Provost.

Why Virtual?

This inaugural conference will take place virtually for a few reasons. We understand that non-tenure track faculty may not have access to support and funding to help with travel to a conference’s physical location. One positive effect of the pandemic is we now all see the possibilities of virtual work for bringing together a wide range of people. Finally, the conference organizers wanted to test the waters to see whether there is an interest for such a conference; if the response is positive, in-person options are in our future.

Conference Goals

The goals of this conference include: