The purpose of this study was to research the specifics of the role of community college English as a Second Language (ESL) academic department chair (ADC) through the perceptions of the deans, the ADCs, and the departmental faculty in two large suburban community colleges in the northeastern United States. A mixed methodology was used and included qualitative and quantitative data. Several theoretical foundations were employed: four-frame leadership style theory by L. Bolman and T. Deal; department chairing classification by A. Tucker; and the researcher-developed discipline-specific inventory. Multiple sources of data were incorporated, including: an electronic survey for both qualitative and quantitative input; role-differentiated interviews for three different roles; researcher observations; and a document analysis. Forty-eight surveys and seven interviews with the deans, chairs, full-time, and part-time faculty were collected and transcribed for analysis. The research revealed that the ESL-related characteristics are the most valuable for the ESL ADC to have. In Bolman and Deal's general leadership rankings, the ESL ADCs were viewed consistently with the existing research in higher education (1. Human resources: dealing with faculty and students, 2. Structural: organizing and leading the department, 3. Political: building alliances for scarce resources, and 4. Symbolic: cultivating the department's image, it's vision, and mission), with a notable exception of part-time ESL faculty who ranked the role's political side at the same level of significance as structural, while even starker differences were noted among the part-time faculty of the college where ESL ADC held a full-time administrative role revealing that both symbolic (second highest) and political were of higher importance for an ESL ADC than the structural domain. In department chairing classification, all three participant groups assigned the highest values to Instruction, Student Affairs, and Faculty Affairs categories. A wide selection of other characteristics, skills, and qualities was identified by the research, largely having to do with communication, fairness, and empathy for the diverse ESL student, while mentorship for a new ESL ADC was brought up as one of the most valuable onboarding activities. Professional development program elements were proposed to include training in all four domains of Bolman and Deal's leadership inventory, in the main three chairing categories according to Tucker, and in top ESL-related skills, paired with a mentorship component. [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.]