Table of Contents

• Jump to:
• Overview
• Background
• Faculty Diversity at Bakersfield College
• Program Model
• Regional Collaborative
• STEM Fields Considered for Program
• Eligibility
• Program Learning Outcomes
• Commitments and Expectations of Fellows
• Classroom Expectations
• Compensation
• Application Process
• Ready to Apply?
• Resources

Overview

The 26,000-square miles from Merced to Kern counties constitute a significant population of low-income rural residents with the nation’s lowest educational attainment. The lack of education translates to reduced employment opportunities, increased poverty, and limited access to resources such as education. Like rural communities across America, ensuring that California’s Central Valley meets the workforce demands of industry is essential to the economic stability of our rural communities. In rural regions, where populations are more dispersed and farther from major job centers, labor markets face different challenges than those in metro areas, where people are closer to education, training, and employment options.

More specifically, Bakersfield College serves over 20,000 students, within nearly 25,000 square miles in California in parts of Kern, Tulare, Inyo, Mono, and San Bernardino counties. The mission of Bakersfield College is to provide opportunities for students from diverse economic, cultural, and educational backgrounds to attain Associate and Baccalaureate degrees and certificates, workplace skills, and preparation for transfer.

This Fellowship will provide post-baccalaureate students interested in teaching in a 2-year college with an opportunity to participate in a Faculty Fellowship Program. This program will provide candidates a mentorship collaboration with a Bakersfield College faculty. In addition, candidates will gain exposure to the community college culture, including best practices for teaching and supporting the diverse group of students enrolled at Bakersfield College.

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Background

Bakersfield College is in need of qualified diverse faculty that can contribute to the Guided Pathways and other campus-wide efforts. The college has a growing number of students of color and it is imperative for the college to implement practices that will aid in the recruiting and retention of students of color. Additionally, as described in the literature, faculty of color are vital to the success of underrepresented minorities.

A Faculty Fellowship Program allows the college to recruit and train qualified candidates in an effective and fiscally responsible manner. More importantly, it is a contribution to the community to hire candidates from the San Joaquin Valley, and the surrounding areas, to teach for Bakersfield College. Bakersfield College is a Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) with 67.93% of students enrolled identified as Hispanic in the 2018-2019 Academic Year. The table below shows the desegregated data for full-time faculty at Bakersfield College by race.

Accessible data table for Faculty Demographic by Race

The Regional Collaborative (RC) will be composed of 4-year partners, which includes both public research-based and comprehensive institutions. In addition, an Advisory Board, which will be composed of key industry stakeholders in the Greater Bakersfield Area, will also be invited to participate in some capacity.

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Faculty Diversity at Bakersfield College

Data from Fall 2018 show that faculty at Bakersfield College are not representative of the student demographic. Scholars argue that institutions that serve a large demographic of Underrepresented Minorities (URM) students have a responsibility to hire faculty and staff that mirror their student population. Furthermore, data show that institutions with faculty of color typically serve students of color with a deeper sense of belonging, higher test scores, and higher persistence rates.

Further, data comparing student demographics compared to faculty racial makeup (both adjunct and fulltime) show that white faculty are overrepresented while URM groups are underrepresented, as shown below:

Accessible data table for Faculty-Student Comparison by Race

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Program Model

Equally as important, is the mentorship and development of faculty of color. According to the literature, it is not enough to diversify the hiring process, it is vital to also foster and cultivate newly hired URM faculty. That is why initiatives like the Faculty Fellowship Program assist with both goals. Not only are candidates given exposure to the classroom, they are also mentored by an established faculty member. Additionally, once candidates are recruited and trained through this program, exemplary candidates can be recruited to assist with campus-wide efforts such as rural initiatives, inmate scholars program, early college, dual enrollment, amongst others.

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Regional Collaborative

Bakersfield College is part of the Aspire Network Regional Collaborative (RC), which focuses on preparing STEM graduate students to transition into teaching positions in community colleges. Further, the RC follows a Collective Impact (CI) model between two and four-year institutions in the Central Valley region as described below.

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STEM Fields Considered for this Program

1. Mathematics
2. Public Health
3. Biology
4. Chemistry
5. Physics
6. Geology

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Eligibility

1. Candidates should be legally authorized to work in the USA;
2. Candidates must be enrolled in the last semester of a qualified STEM graduate program, be a recent graduate of the program, Ph.D. candidates pursuing a STEM path, or have attained postdoctoral standing in a qualified STEM field;
3. Candidates considered for this fellowship should not have had any college teaching experience beyond graduate teaching assistant positions within their programs.

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Program Learning Outcomes

The Bakersfield College Faculty Diversification Fellowship Program:

1. Focuses on preparing fellows from underrepresented minority (URM) groups to gain the professional, pedagogical, and socio-cultural skills for community college faculty positions;
2. Increases the diversity of California Community College faculty by preparing URM candidates to effectively navigate the faculty application and interview process.
3. Increase the retention, progression, and success of URM students by increasing the number of faculty that properly represent student demographics.

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Commitments and Expectations of Fellows

1. Applicants must commit to the full length of the program (1 Academic Year).
2. Applicants are expected to complete the classroom and seminar hour requirement to complete the program and qualify for compensation.
3. Applicants must commit to the Mission, Vision, and Goals of the college and support the advancement of student success by providing an inclusive classroom experience for students from various backgrounds and life experiences.

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Classroom Expectations

Program Fellows will:

1. Work closely with Faculty-of-record on the lesson planning, evaluation, and assessment.
2. Become familiar with classroom technology such as Canvas, Starfish, Banner, etc.
3. Provide individual and group instructional services in a subject area.
4. Assist or tutor an individual or small groups of students in a specific subject area.
5. Distribute instructional materials; answer student questions regarding individual lessons.
6. Prepare students to test in a variety of subjects; distribute and grade tests according to established procedures; record test scores; review tests with students; assist instructors with the administration of assessment and placement tests.
7. Advise students on ways to improve academic performance and related topics for achievement in the Center.

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Compensation

• Fellows admitted into the program are expected to complete 6 hours of classroom time per week for 16 weeks, for a total of 96 hours (fall term).
• In addition, fellows are required to attend the 2, 6-hour FLEX sessions in the fall term (12 hours).
• Adjunct load in spring term (for a max load at approximately $3,500.00)
• The total compensation for each fellow is approximately $6,080.00 (amount varies)

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Application Process

For program consideration, applicants must submit the following documents as part of their online application:

1. A letter of interest specifying why the candidate is interested in teaching students at Bakersfield College. The letter should also discuss how the candidate’s educational experiences have prepared them to teach at a community college with a diverse student body, like Bakersfield College.
2. An updated curriculum vitae with at least three professional references and contact information listed, one of the references needs to be from a current or former supervisor.
3. College/university transcript (unofficial transcripts will be accepted), including all college units attempted.
4. One signed letter of recommendation written within the last six months specifically for the Bakersfield College Faculty Diversification Fellowship Program from an individual who has provided post-secondary academic instruction to the applicant.

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Ready to apply?

Email Maria Wright at maria.wright2@bakersfieldcollege.edu.

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Resources

• CCCCO Call to Action Webinar - June 3, 2020: Video
• Chancellor Oakley's Call of Action Letter - June 5, 2020: Website
• Vision for Success Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Task Force 2020 Report: PDF

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