Work – Philip Nel

Over 100 Kansas Distinguished Profs to KBOR: Rescind New Termination Policy Immediately.

February 2, 2021Philip NelAcademe, Education, Kansas, Kansas Board of Regents, Kansas State University, University of Kansas, Wichita State University, Work

03 distinguished professors from four Kansas universities (K-State, KU, Wichita State, KUMC) are calling for an immediate end to the Kansas Board of Regents’ new termination policy. It threatens long-term damage to the missions of each institution. It undermines the purpose of tenure, which is to allow faculty to pursue their scholarship without fear of repercussions. Academic freedom is the foundation upon which we build discovery, robust research, scholarship and creative activities.

Concentrate: Instrumental Playlists

November 30, 2019Philip Nel1980s, Mixes, Music, Work1980s, Mixes, Music, Work

As those of us in North American academe stare down the final weeks of the term, it can be hard to sustain focus. Heck, whatever your job may be, there is much to distract you – in your environment, in your life, in your own head. So, here are some playlists to help you attend to

How I Spent My Summer “Vacation”

September 13, 2018Philip NelAcademe, Travel, WorkAcademe, Travel, Work

I wrote this for Kansas State University’s Department of English blog – we were asked to write about what we did over the summer. But I wrote a little more than the blog needs. So, we’re running an excerpt on the English blog, and I’m printing the full version here. “Being a professor means you

Running Out of Time

January 15, 2016Philip NelAdvice, Autobiography, Death, Hamilton, Kieran Setiya, Memory, Mom, Time, WorkAdvice, Autobiography, Death, Hamilton, Kieran Setiya, Memory, Mom, Time, Work

Following a December blog-conversation about Atul Gawande’s Being Mortal (occasioned in part by her own chemo), my friend Alison Piepmeier asked me to send her a contribution to her blog, Every Little Thing. It appeared there on Monday. I’m reposting it here now. In case you’re wondering, I got permission from the close relative (named below)

Advice for Aspiring Academics (in Inside Higher Ed)

August 19, 2015Philip NelAcademe, Advice, Cautious Optimism, Robin Bernstein, WorkAcademe, Advice, Cautious Optimism, Robin Bernstein, Work

Attention, graduate students, adjuncts with tenure-track aspirations, and recent tenure-track hires*! Always be publishing Believe in and doubt merit Do not define success according to academe’s terms … and 9 other pieces of advice in “Advice for Aspiring Academics,” published in today’s Inside Higher Ed. Regular readers of this blog may notice that this is

The Meaning of Life; or, How to Avoid the Midlife Crisis

November 19, 2014Philip NelAdvice, Death, Failure, Friendship, Health, Kieran Setiya, Philosophy, Time, WorkAdvice, Death, Failure, Friendship, Health, Kieran Setiya, Philosophy, Time, Work4 Comments

Why do successes sometimes feel like failures? As philosopher Kieran Setiya points out in a wise new essay, “Our achievements, whatever they are worth, are always numbered” (10). Each time we accomplish something, it’s done, finished, and we must move on to the next thing: “the completion of your project may constitute something of value,

Advice for Aspiring Academics: A Twitter Essay

April 11, 2014Philip NelAcademe, Advice, Cautious Optimism, Opportunism, WorkAcademe, Advice, Cautious Optimism, Opportunism, Work1 Comment

I have long been wanting to write a general “advice” essay for aspiring academics – recent PhDs, graduate students, anyone pursuing (or considering pursuing) a career in academia. The problem is that my desire to mentor and to encourage always collides with my equally strong desire not to mislead people about how challenging (even bleak)

In Search of Lost Time: Further Reading

March 3, 2014Philip NelAcademe, Advice, Time, WorkAcademe, Advice, Time, Work5 Comments

With thanks to all who have read and shared my “In Search of Lost Time” (an essay on why academics work so much, published inÂ Inside Higher Ed today), here are a few links for further reading. Most of these were embedded in the original piece, but didn’t make the transition to the Inside Higher EdÂ website.

This Job Can Kill You. Literally.

September 19, 2013Philip NelAcademe, Death, Doonesbury, WorkAcademe, Death, Doonesbury, Work76 Comments

As you likely already know, Margaret Mary Vojtko –Â an adjunct professor of French for 25 years – was found dead on her front lawn on September 1st. Facing mounting medical bills and lacking money to maintain or even heat her house, she died of a heart attack earlier that day.Â As Daniel Kovalik writes, “Even

Strike!

September 2, 2013Philip NelLabor Day, Radical Children's Literature, Reviews, WorkChildren's Literature, Labor Day, Michelle Markel, Radical Children's Literature, Reviews, Work

As American fast food workers strike for a living wage, it’s worth remembering that this struggle has a long history. It’s also worth teaching some of this history to children, so that they can learn about collective action, and fighting back against the powerful. Â Julia Mickenberg and I collect some of these stories in the