This study investigates how higher education institutions attract and retain faculty of color. There is a deficit of minority representation in professorship. Specifically, over 80% of all full professors employed at four-year institutions are White (Espinosa et al., 2019). Gasman's (2022) and Bell's (1992) literature has impacted this study tremendously among many other contributions from researchers in the field. Fourteen faculty members of color participated in semi-structured interviews. The researcher utilized the methodology of phenomenology with the research design consisting of individuals of color using snowball sampling. Each participant was interviewed either by phone or virtual meeting in which they were asked eight questions. The questions asked faculty of color to describe their motivation and the challenges for retention for faculty of color in higher education. The data from the participants' responses were coded for qualitative data analysis. Following, interview transcripts with jottings were used so that individuals could share their firsthand experiences and perceptions. This study explored the perspectives of those with firsthand experience to help inform further studies to attract and retain faculty of color in higher education institutions. The research questions focused on how higher education institutions recruit and retain faculty of color. Findings from the first research question suggests how faculty of color describe their motivation for pursuing a career in higher education. The four themes included interest in the field, seeking out the position, prioritization of students, and benefits of the position. The findings about how faculty of color describe challenges for retention of faculty of color in higher education institutions included four trends. The themes included issues with White faculty, issues with White leadership, desired a new opportunity, and unbalanced workloads. Although there has been more of a research focus on hiring more faculty of color in higher education, there have not been major changes for people of color (Settles et al., 2021). Therefore, further research-based initiatives need to take place in order to attract and retain faculty of color in higher education institutions. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://bibliotheek.ehb.be:2222/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]