What does an Engineering Instructional Faculty do? Voices of Engineering Instructional Faculty at Hispanic-Serving Institutions

Abstract

This paper shares results from an exploratory study of how engineering instructional faculty (EIFs) at Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs) define their roles and responsibilities. HSIs are known are for providing a student-centered education, enrolling more than 60% of Hispanic students in higher education. EIF are full-time, professional-track faculty who are evaluated primarily on their teaching. EIF are often not on a tenure-track but may be on a promotion track, depending on their department and institution. The career trajectory toward EIF positions is varied, and those varied academic and career experiences of EIF can enrich students' classroom experiences. Over the last twenty years, there has been an increase in the number of professionaltrack faculty in higher education. This increase is attributed to the need for subject-matter specialists who can bring extensive content knowledge and, in some cases, industry experience to the classroom. With the rise in the number of faculty in these roles and the number of posted positions for instructional faculty in engineering, there is a need to better understand what it means to take on an EIF position and what differences may exist across departments and institutions. Further, our current description of the roles of EIF is insufficient to understand all of the assets they bring to the engineering education system. This study aims to amplify the work of EIF by addressing the following research question: How do EIF at HSIs describe their roles and responsibilities as instructional faculty? To answer this research question, seventeen participants were recruited from six HSIs across two regions of the United States for virtual semi-structured interviews. The interviews lasted around 45-60 minutes each and included questions about the participants' pathway to an EIF position, their engagement with students inside and outside the classroom, their general responsibilities, and their experience, if applicable, with promotion and re-contracting. The interviews were transcribed and coded using data analysis software (NVivo). Data were analyzed using a deductive data analysis approach. The final codebook was based on three thematic areas and multiple iterations of coding and engaging in critical reviews of the codes by peer debriefers. Leveraging the job crafting framework, findings show that EIF craft their roles either by altering the scope/process of their work due to passion and the desire to support their students, or by building helpful relationships to support their students or by seeing their duties from a new perspective and changing students' perception about engineering. The need to support student learning is a motivating factor for job crafting by EIF. Faculty and administrators in engineering education could leverage the findings from this paper in providing support for students in Hispanic serving institutions.