This has been a very difficult decision, but, the prospect of being lesbians, in English and Philosophy, looking for jobs together was just too bleak for us to face. We are encouraged now by the sheer number of jobs in community colleges in the mid-west and west, and feel that the opportunity to find jobs in the same location is increased greatly by this fact. We are on the job market now and hope to begin our full time teaching careers in the Fall. When I think about this issue of academic couples searching for jobs in the same location, I often reflect on the military and how a government institution that is usually far from accommodating works very hard to keep couples who are both in the service stationed in the same place, for morale purposes. It seems like a simple issue if looked at from the point of view of morale and performance.
Happy people work better.
And, it seems more likely that couples who find jobs together will be far more inclined to stay with a department long-term, work harder, perform better, publish more, teach well, and become active and healthy members of their college community. Academia is changing rapidly, as we all know, and it seems to me that in this ever changing world of budget cuts, reorganizations, and down sizing, departments would value a little stability among their faculty. My partner and I are very happy that we are able to teach and have embraced the idea of the community college system for that reason. But, for folks who are more research oriented and prefer the idea of a university or four year college, it would be nice to know that they are valued and that they won't have to decide between career and family. We should all be able to have both.