The purpose of this study is to measure community and student perceptions regarding College of the Mainland (COM). A survey of the literature provides background on sociopolitical forces in the community, the distribution of power and influence in the community, the relationship of the community to the larger society, the relationship of the…

A questionnaire survey of 180 Texas school district superintendents sought to determine both their perceptions of how community power structures influenced school board decisions and their techniques for communicating with their local power structure. The study analyzed four power structure types--monopolistic, multigroup noncompetitive,…