One major challenge that institutions face when launching transformation efforts is that they operate in "silos," meaning that they have separate departments--for example, student services, financial aid, and advising--that operate independently with little communication or coordination. Many successful transformation efforts include a…

The objectives of this research were 1) to study components and indicators for adaptive leadership of the division heads in technical colleges, 2) to study the current conditions, desirable conditions, and needs to develop adaptive leadership of the division heads in technical colleges, 3) to create and develop the model development for adaptive…

Academic department chairs are middle managers in higher education that have unique positions within an institution. This study examined novice department chairs' leadership identity within eastern United States community colleges. Novice was defined as a person having three or fewer years of experience in the department chair position. The gap in…

Purpose. The purpose of this qualitative study was to obtain community college career technical education (CTE) department chairs' lived experiences toward synthesizing leadership skills. This study sought to identify the lived experiences of CTE department chairs at community colleges. The research question was "How do CTE department chairs…

Objective: The purpose of this study was to describe the relationship between community college department chairs and their adjunct faculty. Methods: This was a descriptive phenomenological qualitative study that used individual semi-structured interviews of 14 department chairs from a purposive sample drawn from a midwestern community college.…

Department chairs serve a vital function at community colleges. They are middle managers, mid-level leaders, and faculty members. They serve a unique position within the organization because they interact with nearly every unit: academics affairs, student affairs, senior administrators and students. At a time when professional organizations are…

Department chairs are tasked with a variety of responsibilities including informing institutional decisions, yet approximately 65% of department chairs have reported receiving no training, and two-thirds of those who received training believed it was not adequate. I conducted an external program evaluation of a department chair institute for…

Using a case study design, this research explores how two department chairs, Jan and Tammy, in community colleges implement AB 705, an assessment policy impacting California ESL programs. AB 705 seeks to centralize previous multiple measures legislation in California by requiring the use of high school data in community college course placement.…

Community college presidents play a critical role in making decisions that shape the organizational cultures and policies of their institutions. This study explored the perceptions of 15 public community college presidents in Texas. Using focus groups and grounded theory methods, this research applied analytical frameworks focused on human…

Nationally, the pathway model -- commonly defined as "a highly structured, coherent education experience that is built around and through an area of study" -- has emerged as the preferred structural approach to deliver the curriculum at community colleges. The pathway model provides a new hope to community colleges to create a solution…

The purpose of this study was to explore community college athletic departments and how they connect and facilitate messages to their stakeholders. With limited resources, it's important to understand how the athletic departments are applying best strategies and principles of relational management. Therefore, the goal and importance of this…

Purpose: This conceptual piece applies what we know about student success to introduce a faculty model of success called the Faculty Pathway to Excellence. The model elevates faculty voices in the conversation of student success in community colleges. Method: We collected qualitative data from interviews with faculty at two community colleges and…

The purpose of this qualitative multi-case research study was to analyze the perceptions of academic leaders (faculty [and] department heads) within subcultures (academic units) on a community college campus. A subculture is a subdivision of a macro-culture that formed through differentiation. Differentiation, led to the development of subgroups…

All inclusive postsecondary education (IPSE) programs are "housed" in a particular department, school, institute, or other administrative center on a college or university campus. This decision is unique to each institution and IPSE program. This publication shares the locations of current programs based on a survey and data from…

The purpose of this qualitative case study was to examine how faculty chairs at a large, Midwestern community college understand and engage with the assessment of student learning outcomes within academic programs. This study was informed by two conceptual paradigms of assessment: accountability and improvement. Sensemaking was used as a…