In academe, where I spent 40 years, the term "professor" is loosely applied to anyone on the teaching faculty who is not also a graduate student. It would be quite common for students to refer to a senior lecturer, as Obama was, as "Professor Obama". In fact, people from "industry" who teach part-time are often given the title of "Adjunct Professor", which is lower down in the pecking order than "senior lecturer". Undoubtedly, Obama was not "tenure-track" because he was only teaching part-time. I guess that technically he could be called "Doctor Obama," since law school graduates are J.D.'s.

There's the old joke, "You don't have to call me Doctor, Professor will do." In Obama's case, if he takes an academic position after his poliical career is over, this will all be moot, since "Senator" or "President" is certainly a classier title than any of the others..

Gregory Bachelis

Retired Mathematics professor and (mostly political) blogger

www.mathpol.com