I've been saying for a while now that teaching my courses get in the way of my job, and that's because administration has made the job so much more than teaching. Research is always a pleasure to do, and reading and thinking are central to how I like to live my life, but attending meetings are typically a distraction, especially when you realize that they take up the majority of time from 8 a.m. - 5 p.m. (when college administrators work). Those who teach grad classes from 5 to 9 then have to figure out how to carry out a plan (or grade) when all the time during the day is taken up with meetings.
I tend to be in schools during the day and, at times, I'll ZOOM in and listen if I can. I'm at a place, now, that has me thinking I should simply use my phone to clock 40 hours a week and then say, "Nope. I'm done for the week." If I count weekend hours, a Monday and Tuesday of meetings, and then classes. I'm usually clock in before Tuesday morning even begins.
But it's Wednesday and I have meetings until 9 p.m. tonight...not just with the University, but with schools, and national projects. I'm not teaching today, but I really need to grade; instead, I'll be in meetings discussing work that needs (should) be getting done.
I'm having flashbacks of our Danish friends who would visit us in Kentucky and hearing their teachers saying after two days in our schools, "I need to take a day off. This is exhausting." True. Working in higher education and K-12 schools makes it even more exhausting.
I need to figure out (have backbone) to say, "Nope. Not attending because it's a distraction from the work needing to be done."
I'm trying to figure out the whole boundary conversation, as the work-week needs to let up some, yet continues to creep in more and more invasive ways.
