Academe Today: Lower Pay. Less Job Security. More Covid-19 Risk?

States push public-college mergers, but easy fixes remain elusive; higher ed’s purge of Trumpists; one college’s fully mobile courses; and more. ADVERTISEMENT [Advertisement]( [logo] [Read this newsletter on the web](. PANDEMIC FACULTY [Lower Pay. Less Job Security. More Covid-19 Risk?]( By Jack Stripling [image] Economists found that half of Auburn University’s classes lack capacity for adequate physical distancing, and lower-ranked instructors are more likely to teach in the riskiest rooms. ADVERTISEMENT [Advertisement]( FINANCE [More States Turn to Public-College Mergers, but Easy Fixes May Remain Elusive]( By Lee Gardner [image] New Hampshire is the latest state to propose consolidation in response to ebbing numbers of high-school graduates and increased competition. BACKGROUNDER [The Great Contraction]( By Lee Gardner [image] Cuts alone will not be enough to turn colleges’ fortunes around. THE REVIEW [Higher Ed’s Misguided Purging of Trump Supporters]( By Jonathan Zimmerman [image] Like during the Cold War, academic freedom is under attack in the name of democracy. TEACHING [Lessons From One University’s Fully Mobile Courses]( By Beckie Supiano Los Angeles Pacific University was working on a fully mobile app before the pandemic. The problems it was meant to deal with have gone from widespread to nearly universal. Virtual Events: Tune In Live - Learn how an institution outside the United States is tackling the challenges of diversity and inclusion. [Register here]( for today's conversation between Liz McMillen, executive editor at The Chronicle, and Lynn Dobbs, vice chancellor of London Metropolitan University. This is our first in a series of interviews with global higher-education leaders. - Teach hands-on skills remotely. [Sign up here]( for tomorrow's forum on how colleges can provide an education in disciplines that are ill suited for virtual learning. - Recruit and accommodate a generation of students who have lost a step because of Covid-19. [Register here]( for Tuesday's forum on how colleges must rethink enrollment and support services in the post-pandemic era. - Respond to student needs in a changed landscape. [Sign up here]( for Wednesday's forum on the future of student affairs. Subscribe to The Chronicle The Chronicle’s award-winning journalism challenges conventional wisdom, holds academic leaders accountable, and empowers you to do your job better — and it’s your support that makes our work possible. [Subscribe Today]( Views ADVICE [Scholars Talk Writing: Who Really Wrote Your Book?]( By Rachel Toor [image] Turns out some academics use ghostwriters, but even the many who don’t use them depend on good editors. Paid for and Created by Humboldt-Universität [Academe in the Anthropocene]( Seeking to improve how humans interact with the world around them, Humboldt Lab aims for more inclusive research by eliciting opposing perspectives as well as creating and strengthening a knowledge society. ADVERTISEMENT [Advertisement]( Job Announcement Executive Director of Strategic Initiatives at Pikes Peak Community College.[Visit jobs.chronicle.com]( for more details. Paid for and Created by Utrecht University [‘The world does not benefit from scientists being ‘one-trick-ponies’]( Utilizing an unconventional implementation strategy, ‘the Utrecht way’ offers room to explore, experiment, share insights and start pilots, resulting in a driving force in which colleagues inspire and enthuse one another. Burned Out and Overburdened: How to Support the Faculty Professors are anxious and burned out. They’ve been pivoting. They’ve been juggling work and child care. They’ve been worried — about Covid-19, the economy, social justice, the nation’s divisive political climate. This collection includes many of The Chronicle’s essential reads on how colleges can support their faculty members — and how professors can help themselves — during these stressful times. [Order your copy today.]( Job Opportunities [Postdoctoral Job Posting in Innovation/Entrepreneurship]( Stevens Institute of Technology [Special Purpose Instructor of Criminal Justice]( Radford University [Dean of Ave Maria School of Law]( Ave Maria School of Law [Associate Dean for Nursing Research, Scholarship and Science]( LSU Health-New Orleans School of Nursing [Dean of Nursing and Allied Health Professions]( Harford Community College [Director of Nurse Midwifery Program]( LSU Health-New Orleans School of Nursing [SmartState South Carolina Endowed Chair in Environmental and Biomedical Panomics]( Medical University of South Carolina [AVP/VP, FRM Program]( Global Association of Risk Professionals [Executive Director of Strategic Initiatives]( Pikes Peak Community College [Computer and Information Sciences Full-time Assistant Professor]( University of Nevada, Las Vegas [Search the Chronicle's jobs database]( to view the latest jobs in higher education. 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