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Mariela Agrawal Administration and Higher Education Southern Illinois University Carbondale, IL 62901 Abstract The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore the self-identity and funds of knowledge (fok) of eight Latina faculty in relation to their understanding and conceptualization of academic scholarship. Two broad questions guided this research. First, how do Latina faculty understand and conceptualize academic scholarship, and second, how do perceptions of identity and life experiences influence this conceptualization? The underrepresentation of Latinas in faculty positions and the devaluation of the social capital of Latino communities prompted me to explore the relationship between the participants' ethnic identity, life experiences/funds of knowledge, and scholarship. I collected the data for this study through two interviews with each participant, a focus group, and written narratives. These methods allowed the women in this study to reflect upon their experiences growing up, their obstacles and opportunities in their journeys in higher education, the people who supported and guided them through their academic career, and their experiences with racism and discrimination as people of color. The major findings in this study include the conceptualization of scholarship as an act of intellectual engagement with a purpose and the influence of ethnic identity in faculty's academic scholarship based on discipline. The major implications of this study include the need to distinguish immigrant from non-immigrant Latina faculty in educational research, the importance of support systems outside the family, the importance of role models, and the influence of fok in the success of Latina faculty. As this research is not exhaustive, I recommend extending it to include academic socialization of Latino doctoral students, ethnic identity in relation to classroom pedagogies, and epistemologies of faculty of color that influence academic scholarship.

The retention of African American faculty at predominantly White institutions (PWI) has long been a point of concern in higher education. Midwest Community College (MCC), a PWI, 2-year public institution, has a problem of retaining African American faculty employed by the college. The purpose of this study was to explore the perceptions of African American faculty retention practices at MCC since little is known about the African American faculty experience at PWIs. Delagado and Stefancic's critical race theory conceptual framework of counter storytelling, Whiteness as property, interest conversion, and critique of liberalism guided this study. A qualitative case study research design was implemented for this study with research questions about the perceived issues of African American faculty and administrators' retention practices at MCC. Four African American faculty and 4 African American administrators answered questions to an interview. Interviews, observation of interviewees, archival review, and field notes constituted the data collection techniques. A qualitative research process of manual data and inductive thematic analysis was implemented in this study. Key findings developed from the themes with implications for changes to organizational culture as well as faculty recruitment and retention practices. Policy recommendations include: the appointment of a Diversity Office designee to the Joint Advisory committees; faculty recruitment through the development of a minority faculty recruitment program; faculty retention through the development of a minority faculty success retention program, along with parallel diversity training for all MCC employees. This study would promote social change by offering focused practices for hiring and retaining African American faculty.

The retention of African American faculty at predominantly White institutions (PWI) has long been a point of concern in higher education. Midwest Community College (MCC), a PWI, 2-year public institution, has a problem of retaining African American faculty employed by the college. The purpose of this study was to explore the perceptions of African American faculty retention practices at MCC since little is known about the African American faculty experience at PWIs. Delagado and Stefancic's critical race theory conceptual framework of counter storytelling, Whiteness as property, interest conversion, and critique of liberalism guided this study. A qualitative case study research design was implemented for this study with research questions about the perceived issues of African American faculty and administrators' retention practices at MCC. Four African American faculty and 4 African American administrators answered questions to an interview. Interviews, observation of interviewees, archival review, and field notes constituted the data collection techniques. A qualitative research process of manual data and inductive thematic analysis was implemented in this study. Key findings developed from the themes with implications for changes to organizational culture as well as faculty recruitment and retention practices. Policy recommendations include: the appointment of a Diversity Office designee to the Joint Advisory committees; faculty recruitment through the development of a minority faculty recruitment program; faculty retention through the development of a minority faculty success retention program, along with parallel diversity training for all MCC employees. This study would promote social change by offering focused practices for hiring and retaining African American faculty.