Characteristics of Career and Technical Education Faculty across Institutions of Higher Education in the United States

Abstract

The purpose of this article was to examine faculty characteristics of CTE programs across the nation as well as identify the challenges and successes of implementing programs. Findings pointed to the overall decline of CTE full-time-equivalent faculty and the increase of adjunct faculty. In addition, findings demonstrated a lack of ethnic and racial diversity among faculty in CTE programs as compared to white faculty. Further, faculty reported declining student enrollment, budget cuts and decreases in funding, and lack of faculty are growing challenges for implementing effective programs. They identified career placement of graduates, high-quality students and graduates, and student enrollment increases as areas of success. The viability of CTE undergraduate and graduate programs as well as the field-at-large are dependent on the creativity, success, productivity, and problem-solving of faculty as well as their abilities to address and overcome these challenges.