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According to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES; 2016), contingent faculty comprise nearly half of the higher education teaching workforce. I was a contingent faculty member working in a music teacher preparation program at a small college in the Northeast U.S. Using Wenger’s communities of practice (1998) and Lave and Wenger’s legitimate peripheral participation (1991) as a theoretical lens, I conducted a self-study to understand: (a) how our group of two full-time and two part-time contingent faculty negotiated our work, and (b) how my contingent faculty identity was shaped through participating in the group. I analyzed transcriptions of group meetings, email messages sent among the group members, and brief interviews to establish that our community of practice (CoP) was positioned relative to broader enterprises, such as accrediting bodies and the state department of education that regulated teacher licensure. We negotiated our practices in response to their standards and regulations, and we often felt that our practices were constrained. I learned that the members of our CoP had rich histories of membership in other CoPs, and knowledge and identity from those CoPs were constantly reconciled with new understandings and identity. I learned that multimembership can be a hindrance for some, yet it can also be a benefit that helps propel the work of a CoP forward. My identity was shaped through dialogue with other members of the community. I learned that it is common for contingent faculty to feel as I did: autonomous and competent in my teaching practices, yet detached from the department (Kezar & Sam, 2010; Levin & Hernandez, 2014; Shaker, 2008). Learning some of the history of the joint enterprise helped me feel more connected and empowered, and as my dialogue with the full-time tenure-track faculty continued, I was given additional responsibility for developing and subsequently teaching two new courses. Very little research has been conducted from the perspective of contingent faculty in higher education. This self-study was therefore a timely addition to the literature, and it should be replicated, extended to other teacher education faculty, and also to collaborative self-studies between full-time and contingent faculty.

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The rapid increase in the number of non-tenure-track faculty members (Curtis, 2014), has prompted research about this group (Allison, Lynn, and Hovermann, 2014; Coalition on the Academic Workforce, 2012; Eagan and Jaeger, 2009; Umbach, 2007). There is also a large body of literature that explores the experiences of faculty members of color (Joseph and Hirshfield, 2011; Stanley, 2006a; Turner, González, and Wood, 2008). However, there is very little research about the experiences of non-tenure-track faculty members of color (NTFOCs). This study centered the experiences of NTFOCs to understand how this group experiences racism and other forms of systematic oppression in their work environments. The theoretical frameworks for this study were critical race theory (CRT) (Bell, 1980; Delgado and Stefancic, 2012; Ladson-Billings and Tate, 1995) and critical race feminism (CRF) (Wing, 1997). Critical race methodology was integrated throughout the research process (Solórzano and Yosso, 2001; Solórzano and Yosso, 2002). The sample consisted of 24 NTFOCs who worked at four-year, historically White colleges and universities. Data was collected through semi-structured interviews. Ten themes emerged that revealed the ways NTFOCs experienced racism and marginalization in their work environments: (a) not treated like a professional; (b) lack of support; (c) formal discrimination; (d) racialized evaluations; (e) racialized and gendered microaggressions; (f) feeling unsafe in the classroom; (g) unpaid labor; (h) balancing job responsibilities; (i) lack of resources; (j) different treatment than White colleagues. Four additional themes regarding the ways NTFOCs navigated these experiences with oppression and marginalization: (a) relying on systems of support; (b) negotiating speaking out against forms of oppression; (c) disclosing personal information; (d) deciding how to interact with department/program colleagues. These findings have implications for the personal well-being of NTFOCs, how they perform their job, and their ability to gain secure employment. The findings highlight the need for campus constituents to recognize the work of NTOFCs and to create better work conditions for them. / Ph. D. / There has been a rapid rise in the number of non-tenure-track faculty members (Curtis, 2014). These faculty members are underpaid and lack job security relative to their tenured and tenured-track colleagues (Allison, Lynn, & Hovermann, 2014; Coalition on the Academic Workforce, 2012; American Federation of Teachers, 2010a). However, there is little research that considers race and the experiences of non-tenure-track faculty members of color (NTFOCs). This study sought to explore how NTFOCs experienced racism in their work environments. I interviewed, 24 non-tenure-track faculty members of color about the ways they experienced racism in their classrooms and departments, and how they navigated these experiences. Participants worked at predominantly and historically White colleges and universities across the United States. Ten themes emerged that revealed the ways NTFOCs experienced racism and marginalization in their work environments: (a) not treated like a professional; (b) lack of support; (c) formal discrimination; (d) racialized evaluations; (e) racialized and gendered microaggressions; (f) feeling unsafe in the classroom; (g) unpaid labor; (h) balancing job responsibilities; (i) lack of resources; (j) different treatment than White colleagues. Four additional themes regarding the ways NTFOCs navigated these experiences with oppression and marginalization: (a) relying on systems of support; (b) negotiating speaking out against forms of oppression; (c) disclosing personal information; (d) deciding how to interact with department/program colleagues. The findings highlight ways that NTFOCs are marginalized by the nature of their positions as well as intersections of racism and sexism.

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Adjunct faculty teach over 50% of courses in U.S. higher education but little is known about them as educators. Strong evidence has been found in the K-12 literature demonstrating the link between teachers’ beliefs, instructional practices, and subsequent student outcomes. Teaching self-efficacy, beliefs in one’s capabilities to perform specific tasks in a particular context, is an important contributor to motivation and performance (Tschannen-Moran et al., 1998). This research advances teaching and learning literature in higher education and provides insight into an understudied population of educators by exploring adjunct faculty’s teaching self-efficacy and factors that influence those beliefs. In this mixed methods study, an explanatory sequential design was used to explore teaching-self efficacy among adjunct faculty at a Mid-Atlantic community college. Adjunct faculty were surveyed using the College Teaching Self-Efficacy Scale (Prieto Navarro, 2006). Data were selected from the surveys for further explanation in subsequent interviews. Quantitative and qualitative data were merged to form an overall interpretation of teaching self-efficacy and factors that influenced those beliefs. Teaching self-efficacy was highest in creating a positive learning environment, followed by overall teaching self-efficacy, and then instructional skills. Assessing student learning was rated lowest. Adjunct faculty with fewer than five years teaching experience had lower self-efficacy scores than those teaching for six or more years. Mastery experiences and feedback from students and full-time faculty mentors emerged as the most influential sources of teaching self-efficacy. Student evaluations and attending Convocation were positively correlated with scores in overall teaching self-efficacy, instructional skills, and creating a positive learning environment. Adjunct faculty identified working to accommodate the needs of a diverse range of learners as the most significant challenge to teaching self-efficacy followed by challenges related to working conditions including inadequate pay and job insecurity. Key recommendations for promoting adjunct faculty’s teaching self-efficacy beliefs include increasing opportunities for interaction with departmental colleagues to share best practices and teaching resources, and offering trainings at flexible times and in creative formats on instructional skills, assessment practices, and learning theories. Improving onboarding processes, recognizing different needs of adjunct faculty based on experience, and reassessing pay and employment structures are also needed.

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