Jacksonville, AL – United Campus Workers of Jacksonville State University (UCW-Jax State) is informing the campus community about what it describes as an unexpected and unilateral decision by the university administration to override a signed agreement naming and funding the institution’s adjunct teaching award.
Adjunct faculty at Jacksonville State University (Jax State) play a significant role in academic instruction, contributing specialized expertise, real-world experience, and expanded course offerings that support student needs. UCW-Jax State has stated that despite their contributions, adjuncts at Jax State receive no benefits and are paid $2,000 per 3-credit-hour course, a rate that has remained unchanged since 2018. According to UCW-Jax State, this compensation is low compared to regional peers. The university’s Adjunct Excellence in Teaching Award has historically included no monetary recognition, offering recipients a framed certificate.
To highlight adjunct contributions and wage concerns, UCW-Jax State proposed funding the award with a $1,000 cash honorarium and naming it the “United Campus Workers Jax State Adjunct Excellence in Teaching Award.” Throughout summer 2025, members of the union worked with Jax State Philanthropy to create the award, and by August 2025 a formal contract had been drafted, signed, and funded with contributions from UCW members across Alabama.
According to UCW-Jax State, the situation changed this fall. On November 18, 2025, two union leaders met with Vice President for Philanthropy Alan Medders, who informed them that the university had secured a different donor to endow the Adjunct Excellence in Teaching Award and no longer intended to follow the terms of the union’s signed contract. The union describes this as a reversal carried out without dialogue, raising concerns about administrative transparency and whether similar actions would occur with non-union donors.
While UCW-Jax State acknowledges that the university’s new donor funding will expand financial support — now providing honoraria not only for adjuncts but also for winners of the university service award and a new dual enrollment faculty award — union members emphasize that systemic issues remain.
UCW-Jax State maintains that the core concern is adjunct compensation. They argue that while enhanced awards represent progress, raising pay for all adjunct faculty would be the strongest indicator that the university values their contributions. The organization continues to urge the administration to commit to providing adjuncts with what it describes as a living wage.
