ABSTRACT
Issues related to Latina/o faculty in higher education need to be framed within the complexity of the “educational pipeline” that exists in the United States and in the organizational dynamics that occur in highly bureaucratized educational institutions (Oakes, 1985; Ovando & Collier, 1998; Schmidt, Sr., 2000; Spring, 1998). The dynamics of institutional life involve language, cultural, political, technical, economic, and other interactions that often manifest themselves as competition or clashes between various interests groups or stakeholders (Berliner & Biddle, 1995). With respect to the specific issue of Latina/o faculty retention, the underlying structural complexity is further intensified by microlevel search committees, departmental, and college processes which have a dynamic of their own (Padilla & Montiel, 1998), and by local institutional cultures which vary considerably across the multitiered system of postsecondary institutions (Tierney, 1990). This chapter focuses on the barriers that Latina/o faculty encounter in accessing the professoriate and on their chances for success after they gain access to it. Neither access nor success is easy to achieve and understanding the nature of the difficulties is both challenging and enlightening. The main focus of the discussion will be on the HTP process (hiring, tenure, and promotion) and its impact on Latina/o faculty in institutions of higher education. First, the background influences of the educational pipeline will be acknowledged. Then a general framework for HTP will be presented which will be useful for understanding how Latina/os experience HTP and for suggesting ways in which Latina/o faculty can be more successful in academia.
