Riding winds of change: Artist Jan Johnson on program closures, thriving in an adjunct career, and the enduring joys of teaching

Abstract

When Jan Johnson heard that the program in which she teaches was closing, it was from a colleague's text message, and then, 10 minutes later, a student reached out, asking, “What's going on?” Johnson had no answer. The university where she's worked for 15 years had announced that the program in which she teaches would be closing in the coming year, sending the email to full-time and tenured faculty but not part-time faculty like Johnson.