Date of Award
2026-05-01
Degree Name
Doctor of Education
Department
Educational Leadership and Administration
Advisor(s)
Eduardo C. Arellano
Abstract
Since the 1970s, adjunct faculty have become the majority of higher education instructors, yet institutional onboarding practices for adjuncts remain inadequate and are inconsistently studied. Using a basic interpretive qualitative approach, the study explored how adjunct faculty at a Hispanic-serving community college in the U.S.-Mexico border region experienced and perceived their onboarding process. Four adjunct faculty members participated in semi-structured interviews, and data was analyzed using thematic analysis. Findings were interpreted through the Kirkpatrick Model of Training Evaluation and Organizational Socialization Theory. Three themes emerged from the data: the absence of structured onboarding, leaving participants to independently seek institutional knowledge, the disproportionate burden placed on coordinators as the primary source of onboarding support, and significant gaps in the timing and consistency of information provided to new adjunct faculty. The findings suggested that the institution's onboarding practices inadequately supported adjunct faculty socialization and integration, with implications for institutional policy, coordinator support structures, and the equitable design of faculty onboarding.
Language
en
Provenance
Received from ProQuest
Copyright Date
2026-05
File Size
111 p.
File Format
application/pdf
Rights Holder
Melissa Ann Aguilera
Recommended Citation
Aguilera, Melissa Ann, "Adjunct Faculty Onboarding Experiences At A Hispanic-Serving Community College In The U.S.-Mexico Border Region: Faculty Perspectives Of Integration And Effectiveness" (2026). Open Access Theses & Dissertations. 4615.
https://scholarworks.utep.edu/open_etd/4615