Inclusive educational spaces are necessary for post-secondary Black students to thrive. However, faculty and staff often, unintentionally, create non-inclusive educational spaces while exhibiting and perpetuating behaviors relative to race/racism and microaggressions driven by racial implicit bias. Via this mixed-methods study, researchers…

The purpose of this study is to understand the distinctive aspects of curricular spaces that bring together diverse disciplines by centering the voices of educators, with full recognition that these environments can inspire learning among both students and faculty. We interviewed eight faculty and one administrator from a mid-sized public…

Creativity is an important goal for higher education yet there is limited guidance on how to facilitate it at an organisational level. This arts-based exploration of the experiences of three award-winning academics who have been recognised for their creative work identifies that creativity can emerge from three interrelated factors --…

In 1984, Ryan and Sackrey's "Strangers in Paradise" explored the challenges of the professoriate for those from working-class backgrounds. Nearly 40 years later, there is a substantial body of narrative and reflective writing by working-class academics. We present findings from analysis of 218 narratives from working-class academics.…

Most postsecondary instructors in the United States require students to use textbooks in their courses; however, the cost of commercial materials has increased, and copyright policies impede sharing, editing, and customizations of materials. The current study aimed to examine faculty motivation to adopt Open Educational Resources (OER) and how OER…

This critical qualitative study illuminates how racially minoritized LGBTQ + faculty in the field of higher education navigate racist and heterosexist systems, leading to inordinate challenges related to tenure and promotion and deteriorating health and well-being. This system of higher education fosters isolation, hostility, racial battle…

Given the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to the forced adoption of online teaching in several academic institutions across the world, we set out an objective in this paper to examine salient factors that may affect the decision to use online teaching by faculty members (teaching staff). We propose and validate a model based on an…

This study focuses on the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on research and scholarship at a research university in the United States. Building on studies in higher education policy, we conceptualized the COVID-19 pandemic as a 'wicked problem' that is complex, nonlinear, unique, and requiring urgent solutions. Wicked problems highlight…

Grant funding is essential to the advancement of science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) fields with certain grants viewed as especially prestigious and career formative. The goal of this project was twofold: first to describe the gender demographics of the national winners of two prestigious grants and second, to document the impact of…

Emerging data suggests the COVID-19 crisis exacerbated preexisting, long-documented gender inequities among U.S. faculty in higher education. During the initial Spring 2020 'lockdown' in the U.S., 80 students conveyed their experiences with faculty across 362 courses. We evaluated whether students' reports of faculty supportiveness, accommodations…

In modern higher education, nurturing successful interdisciplinary collaboration is both an institutional priority and a grand organizational and cultural challenge. Recent scholarship describes the many and varied challenges inherent in the enactment of interdisciplinarity; it also explores how these challenges can be mitigated to spur successful…

Instructional reform in STEM aims for the widespread adoption of evidence based instructional practices (EBIPS), practices that implement active learning. Research recognizes that faculty social networks regarding discussion or advice about teaching may matter to such efforts. But teaching is not the only priority for university faculty -- meeting…

Despite the documented negative outcomes accompanying sexual harassment, the experience of sexual harassment among STEM faculty members remains underexamined. In this paper, we explore how two sexual harassment variables--gender harassment and sexual harassment climate--are linked to four facets of faculty well-being: job burnout, turnover…

Creating sustained, transformative change within and across organizations is challenging, particularly when those undertaking change act as individuals. COMmunities of Practice (CoPs) are organically created collaborations among like-minded participants, working toward a common set of goals (Lave & Wenger, 1991; Wenger-Trayner &…

Contingent, VITAL faculty make up the majority of faculty positions in the United States, and their role is primarily instruction. Yet they often face numerous barriers to participating in professional development and engaging in the scholarship of teaching and learning (SoTL), activities that can support their instructional effectiveness. This…