Moving the Needle: Uncovering the Engagement and Mentoring Needs of Contingent Faculty

Abstract

In an extensive study of part-time academic faculty, Gappa and Leslie ( The Invisible Faculty: Improving the Status of Part-Timers in Higher Education. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 1993) developed a typology consisting of four employment profiles based primarily on academic background, employment history, and career motivations: career-enders, specialists/experts/professionals, aspiring academics, and freelancers. Using a survey research design, the authors sought to determine whether the categories developed by Gappa and Leslie held in recent times and whether there were statistical differences in contingent faculty members’ desired mentoring functions and work engagement based on employment profile. As the current study included both full-time and part-time contingent faculty, the results of a thematic analysis produced a fifth employment profile, true teachers. Multivariate Analysis of Covariance (MANCOVA) was run to identify differences in desired mentoring functions and work engagement among employment profile groups while controlling for employment status, years teaching, and history of mentorship. Aspiring academics were the largest employment profile group, representing one-third of all respondents. This finding supported an earlier study that indicated a disproportionately large segment of contingent faculty desiring a permanent position in academia. The results of the multivariate analyses revealed that aspiring academics and career-enders had a significantly higher need for career-related mentoring than other groups. Furthermore, career-enders and specialists reported the highest levels of engagement, while aspiring academics reported the lowest levels of engagement. These findings indicate a need for attending to the career development needs of a large segment of contingent faculty in higher education.

I am not worthy: How interpersonal experiences influence perceived value and worth of full- and part-time faculty

“…According to Umbach (2007) part-time faculty structure and prepare for their courses differently than full-time faculty and use active and collaborative instructional techniques less often. According to Batiste (2016), part-time faculty members do not have access to professional development in teaching and learning to the extent that full-time faculty members do. Additionally, due to the limited terms in which they serve in their roles, many part-time faculty members are not able to develop meaningful relationships with students (Curtis and Jacobe, 2006).…”

“…Each of these experiences is often present within the part-time faculty member's experience (e.g. Batiste, 2016; Curtis and Jacobe, 2006; Eagan et al, 2015; Meixner et al, 2010).…”

Working in uncertainty: Organizational behavior of contingent college teachers in the Philippines

“…The employment of contingent teachers in higher education institution is prevalent due to new staffing patterns in academia [1]. The percentage of fulltime, non-tenure track faculty has doubled from 18.6% to 37.6% from 1975 to 2007 and it has tripled during the past three decades as nearly 60% of new fulltime faculty appointments are now under temporary contracts [2].…”

“…The percentage of fulltime, non-tenure track faculty has doubled from 18.6% to 37.6% from 1975 to 2007 and it has tripled during the past three decades as nearly 60% of new fulltime faculty appointments are now under temporary contracts [2]. Contingent faculty, also known as adjuncts, or non-tenure track faculty, represent two thirds of all faculty members in higher education in the United States [1]. Clay [3] confirmed this, stating that over 70% of the then current faculty workforce consisted of contingent workers.…”