The New Deal for Students is focused on critical collaborations for investments in our students. (New Deal logo by Joan Cook)

It is time for a new deal. We need a new deal for our students and their future. Since 2018, we have lost nearly 100 full-time faculty to retirements or resignations. These lines have not been replaced and the college has relied on adjunct faculty to teach sections or take on assignments in areas of great need.

Our adjunct faculty make incredible contributions on behalf of students. I often say of our adjunct faculty that while their labor is part time, their heart is in the work full time. While we will always have adjunct faculty working with students, there has been a depletion of full-time faculty to serve the various and growing needs of students.

I believe that adding full-time faculty to departments that have grown in enrollment will help prepare students to meet the professional demands that exist in Suffolk County.

On Professional Development Day, Tuesday, February 6, the FA will unveil the New Deal for Students campaign. The purpose of this campaign is to educate our members, college leadership and county legislators about the need for more full-time faculty. Specifically, we will hone in on the areas of the college where more full-time faculty are needed in popular, competitive programs that students demand, such as nursing, automotive technology and cybersecurity.

The nursing program is one of the most competitive programs at the college. Last summer, the graduates from the Jane F. Shearer School of Nursing earned some of the highest NCLEX scores out any community college of its size in New York State. Additionally, the students earned higher scores than some of the four-year baccalaureate nursing programs on Long Island.

Despite all of their success, we need more full-time nursing faculty now than ever before, especially in a post-pandemic world. Since the pandemic, more than 100,000 nurses left the workforce nationwide as a result of burnout and stress. We all have accessed and will continue to need medical care in our lives. Since Suffolk County is the largest suburban county in the nation, we need highly trained, qualified nurses to care for the medical needs of our families, colleagues, friends and neighbors.

On November 6, 2023, Newsday published a cover story titled, “Nursing Instructor Shortage: LI schools turn away qualified students in part because of instructor shortage on Long Island, in US.” Dr. Cheryl Shaffer, associate dean of the Jane F. Shearer School of Nursing, states in the article, “Every year, Suffolk turns away 100 to 150 applicants who passed a nursing school admission exam.” More full-time faculty would enable us to avoid that.

Another area where the college can use more full-time faculty is in our automotive technology program. The technology in our vehicles has seen great advancements in hybrid and electric innovations. Assistant Dean of Automotive Technology David Macholz appeared in a CBS News story about the increased need to train automotive technicians on these new car technologies.

In addition to the constant technological changes in vehicles, there is great demand for highly trained and qualified automotive technicians. According to the NYS Department of Motor Vehicles, “Currently, there is a significant shortage of automotive technicians in every sector of the automotive industry, and the demand for qualified auto technicians is only expected to increase in the future.”

To help meet this demand, a new building will be built at the Grant campus for the automotive program. A new building does not accomplish much without skilled full-time faculty in it to teach our students.

In addition to nursing and automotive technology, we need more full-time faculty in our cybersecurity program to meet current and future demand. In December, Senator Kirsten Gillibrand held a press conference at SCCC to announce a federally funded Cyber Service Academy scholarship for those interested in pursuing a career in the field of cybersecurity. Senator Gillibrand noted, “There are thousands of unfilled public-sector cybersecurity positions, leaving our country with a severe shortage of cyber personnel needed to protect the United States.”

The cybersecurity program at SCCC started out with 38 students in 2017 and has now grown to nearly 110 students—with 20 students being placed on a wait list for the fall. The program will be expanded to the Grant Campus where it will be housed in the new STEM building.

As you can see, the purpose of the New Deal for Students campaign is not to simply ask for more lines because we have lost so many over the last six years. Our goal is to collaborate on strategies for an investment in our students and in the workforce of Suffolk County. Our aim will be to appeal to our elected officials in the Suffolk County Legislature to add additional funding towards next year’s budget. Specifically, we will be asking for ten new full-time faculty lines to help meet the workforce demands for the future of our county. Lest anyone misunderstand the focus on these particular departments, please read Cynthia Eaton’s article in this issue: “Democracy’s colleges in the time of a baby bust.”

We are asking our members to participate in and help advocate for this campaign. We look forward to working with you at Professional Development Day and throughout the semester on developing a New Deal for Students: please sign up at the bottom of the home page.