We Will Choose What’s Best for Us, If We Have To

For many years I taught Gentle Yoga in the Maricopa, Arizona Community College System, as an Adjunct Faculty member. An Adjunct Faculty teacher was someone with a Bachelor’s Degree — not a Master’s — who was hired on a semester-by-semester basis to teach individual courses, as sort of a “gig” job before that term became popular. It was expected that the teacher would have another, major source of income, since this appointment came with no benefits or guarantee of further employment beyond the current semester. Even so, the Adjunct Faculty Association of the Maricopa County Community Colleges grew into a large and vibrant organization. In the decades before 2013 I was something of a star. I taught on 4 different campuses — Phoenix College, Scottsdale Community College, Paradise Valley Community College and Glendale Community College. I started in 1987. People loved my classes for their relaxing environment, reasonable approach to stretching and positive psychological messages. My students’ ages ranged between 18 and 60. My roster always filled early, with a waiting list. People would re-enroll semester after semester. I made some good friends that way! But it took me quite a while to understand that this popularity was not due solely to my loving, Buddha-like temperament. It had more to do with the Community Colleges’ requirements for attaining an Associate’s Degree. <a href="https://medium.com/@noratedczukor/we-will-choose-whats-best-for-us-if-we-have-to-3ec1dc778f6c">Read More</a>