Beyond the tenure track : a narrative inquiry informed by Deweyan Pragmatism
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This dissertation explores the experiences of three faculty who voluntarily left tenure-track positions before tenure review, reframing these decisions as intentional acts of career authorship rather than failure. Grounded in Deweyan Pragmatism and conducted through narrative inquiry, the study examines how faculty navigate questions of identity, purpose, and belonging within a neoliberal academic landscape that prizes productivity and prestige. Participants shared their stories through multiple interviews and a group conversation. Analysis across the narrative commonplaces of temporality, sociality, and place revealed three central resonances: fit and misfit, relational support, and redefining success. Participants described how institutional metrics narrowed the space for creativity and care, yet they cultivated mentoring relationships, collaboration, and artistic or community-based practices that renewed their sense of agency and meaning. The study advances the concept of relational infrastructure: the mentoring, recognition, and care systems that sustain faculty flourishing and make plural academic career pathways viable. It concludes with recommendations for designing flexible career structures, strengthening mentoring and professional development, and preparing doctoral students for diverse scholarly futures. This work calls for a more democratic and humane vision of academic life grounded in relationships, growth, and shared inquiry.
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Ph. D.