Metric-Centric Policy, Practice, and Faculty Equity Issues

This case study of Florida International University is part of a 12-year line of research on changes in public metropolitan research universities. Using IPEDS data, this study focuses on changes (2011–2020) in 20 intersectional, full-time faculty categories that combine Race/Ethnicity, Gender, and Appointment Type. The analysis explores issues connected to metric-centric faculty hiring policies. The results show that during the study period, 2011 and 2020, the FIU full-time faculty composition changed in intersectional categories of Race/Ethnicity, Gender, and Appointment Type. FIU’s metric-centric policies appear to favor the exchange of full-time Permanent lines (tenured or tenured-track) for full-time Contingent contracts (non-tenure). The gains made by non-White faculty, tend to be in Contingent categories rather than Permanent lines.