In years past, Cathy Sellers and her husband, both UF adjunct professors, made the two-hour commute from their Tallahassee home in separate cars.
Because Sellers estimates that fueling up her car will cost about $600 more than last year, she and her husband will share a car on their commute to Gainesville this fall.
The average cost of a regular gallon of gas nationally is $1.14 more than it was a year ago. Despite the pain at the pump, UF adjunct faculty members, or part-time, non-tenured faculty, are continuing to make the trek to teach.
For Gardner Davis, who has been an adjunct law professor for eight years, the effects have been minimal.
"Gas prices are psychologically an issue, but it will never affect my decision to teach," said Davis, who usually commutes to UF from Jacksonville twice a week.
Davis, who donates his teaching salary back into the Levin College of Law, said he might consider trading in his Ford Explorer for a car with better gas mileage, but those who can teach as adjunct faculty members usually have a professional salary that can handle the rising gas prices.
UF spokesman Steve Orlando said adjunct faculty can add a different dimension of real-world experience to the curriculum.
Todd Jones, who commutes from Tampa to teach at the Warrington College of Business, said the opportunity to learn from a professional is valuable to students and therefore worth the drive.
"I know they're getting benefits because many of them have gotten jobs because of the work in my class," Jones said.
He said the business college has made it easier for him to be an adjunct faculty member by scheduling his classes on one day, a move that weakens the impact on his professional life and wallet.
James Jenkins, an adjunct professor in the College of Fine Arts who commutes once a week from Jacksonville, said gas prices have made him consider taking his motorcycle. But even that option is problematic.
Jenkins would have to buy a tuba and a euphonium, instruments too large for the back of a motorcycle, to keep at UF. He said he has had offers from the University of North Florida, which wouldn't require a three-hour roundtrip, but he feels committed to UF.
"At this point, I've turned down other offers, but at some point, the economic impact will be a factor," he said.
Jenkins said his UF salary is not a significant portion of his income, but he wouldn't be teaching without it.
Cathy Sellers said for her, it has never been about money, and she plans to continue teaching.
"You do it because you love it, and as long as you can afford to love it that much, people will continue to do it," Sellers said.
