Role of Adjunct Faculty in Realizing the Postsecondary Dreams of Historically Marginalized Student Populations

• In Event: The Role of Contingent and Part-Time Faculty in Student Learning

Abstract

Community colleges play a critical role in educating historically marginalized student populations, and more than half of community college courses are taught by adjunct faculty. As reliance on part-time instructors continues to grow, particularly in introductory courses which enroll a greater share of historically underrepresented students, this study fills an important gap by exploring how students perform in courses taught by adjuncts, how that performance compares to that of students taught by full-timers, and how that performance varies by course, student and faculty characteristics. Better understanding how community college students, specifically those from underrepresented student populations, fare in courses taught by adjunct faculty will elucidate the important role part-time faculty play in student success.

Authors

• Florence Xiaotao Ran, Teachers College, Columbia University

• Jasmine Sanders, Community College Research Center

• Octaviano Chavarin, Teachers College, Columbia University