Thread regarding DeVry Inc. layoffs

Consolidations

Consolidations have been occurring since 2015: first, online which had always been separately governed as its own campus, became one with on-site campuses. Next campuses were consolidated into regions (and centers closed). Before I left, the original 90 (?) campuses and centers were consolidated into 8 regions and then were down to 4.

So, as an example, in 2009, a campus with 3 locations/centers that boasted approximately 1500 students and 30 full-time faculty, is now 2 locations with 4 full-time faculty. I don't know the current student count.

What were once distinct campus/center/locations are now combined with other states. Faculty, once hired strictly for online teaching, must teach on the closest on-site campus in their region. And, those faculty who were hired for a particular on-site campus must teach online courses. For those whose physical location was immaterial (as they were hired to teach online), suddenly they had long commutes--2, 3 or more hours just to get to an on-site campus and teach 5 students (if they were lucky). And, they still had 80 or more students in online courses. The dead time in commuting was nontrivial, forcing faculty into 7-day weeks of 60+ hours.

At one time (until 2016) DeVry allowed faculty to teach "overload" courses. At that time, course enrollment was capped at 20. Many faculty needed these extra overload courses to earn market salary rates. Additionally, some courses were valued at 4 credits, not 3. That, too, changed. After 2015, overload courses were out, and all 4-credit courses were reduced to 3. For those faculty who were accustomed to overload teaching, these measures represented a $20,000 pay cut.

And, with the cap removed, faculty were teaching 40 or more students in online classes in a cultural contest that promoted the student to customer, obviating any faculty authority to establish rules and at times, even basic human decency. The ax, ever ready to fall on our necks, had us all rather desperately seeking other employment, while doing all we could to "persist" (pass) students with the highest possible grades, futilely hoping to preserve our ECE scores. Students who lacked skill, who couldn't even submit work, their backs to the wall, often lashed out verbally and in the evaluation process. A student caught plagiarizing could get pay back at evaluation time, and they did.

In most institutions, the dean layer carries messages in two directions, and is often the voice for faculty. Not so at DeVry: the administrative layer has one role: to ensure that orders from above are carried out, and to ensure that their jobs are preserved. So they invent committees and deliverables, which are nothing but make work to preserve their jobs on the backs of an already weary faculty.

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| 1401 views | | 6 replies (last July 9, 2018) | Reply
Post ID: @OP+U2xUgMT

6 replies (most recent on top)

Here is no fake news, Camden likes it in the boooty!

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Post ID: @2vpp+U2xUgMT

Perhaps not "all" 4-credit courses were reduced. But in the College of Liberal Arts, courses that were 4 credits were reduced to 3 credits. We were told that it was across the board--but, obviously it wasn't. I believe in the Business program, there are still 4-credit courses. As for overloads--when it suited management, they were denied. The year I left, they were begging some faculty to take on an overload course here and there. But, who could teach 160 online students? The grading of weekly deliverables was impossible--at least in any remotely qualitative manner.

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Post ID: @1hcn+U2xUgMT

The OP stated ALL 4 credit courses were reduced and ALL overload classes were taken away. That is fake news. I teach both every session.

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Post ID: @1cqo+U2xUgMT

To clarify, in my program, all 4-credit courses were reduced to 3 credits. No fake news, fjn.

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Post ID: @flj+U2xUgMT

I had heard about the classes moving to 3 credits but it hasn’t happened yet. I do agree with the OP that overloads are largely a thing of the past. I used to get two a session, each session. I got one last year all together. They are nor the rare exception, rather than the rule. So yes, effectively a $20K pay cut is about right.

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Post ID: @dho+U2xUgMT

Overload classes still exist and 4 credit classes still exist. Not sure where you got your fake news from. I teach both every session.

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Post ID: @fjn+U2xUgMT

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