On many college and university campuses, the idea of shared governance is often misunderstood and highly debated. The general problem addressed by this study was the lack of clarity regarding faculty's concept of shared governance within an Eastern North Carolina community college that can lead to faculty and administrative conflict. The purpose of this qualitative exploratory single case study was to seek a deeper understanding of faculty perception of the concept of shared governance at a mid-sized, rural North Carolina community college. The study sample included 17 community college faculty members who work at a rural Eastern North Carolina community college. In this study, a qualitative content analysis process was used to evaluate the data to establish themes. The findings revealed that permanent full-time faculty perceive shared governance as an opportunity to provide input to the administration. Faculty identify shared governance as an opportunity to inform administrators of student needs. Faculty also perceive that the process of shared governance builds working relationships with colleagues from across campus. In addition, faculty perceive that shared governance directly impacts learning in the classroom. Faculty have clear expectations that faculty participate in the shared governance decision-making process. Faculty expect the shared governance to be open and transparent and expect trust with the administration to build. It is recommended that institutions establish a definition of shared governance. Administrations to develop policies that establish the shared governance model. Encourage cross-sectional working groups from within the institution to build working relationships. Develop clear communication channels so that the shared governance process is open and transparent. Establish opportunities for administrators to interact with faculty outside of the classroom to establish trust and ensure faculty are active participants in the shared governance process. [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.]