The specific problem of this study was to develop a five-year budget for the San Joaquin Delta Community College District. The choice of a five-year budget was made by the administration after studying the advantages and disadvantages of. shorter and longer term budgets. A term of less than five years did not meet the objectives of the college for the building and educational programs. A ten-year budget would necessarily be less accurate, since the longer the projection, the more vague and theoretical it becomes. The purposes of this study were to: (1) review the literature pertaining to long-range budgeting, (2) examine the practices of long-range budgeting of other community college districts in California, (3) obtain data to be used in developing a long-range budget, (4) develop a continuing long-range budget for San Joaquin Delta·Community College District, and (5} make recommendations resulting from the study.

I’m a first generation, previously low income, Christian, African American administrator at a California community college who struggled and felt alone throughout my journey. This autoethnography helped me make peace within my broken pieces. Within this dissertation, I highlight the impacts and hindrances within my education, family and career experiences. The purpose of this study is to offer the reader an insider view of how I ultimately became an administrator and with this information provide scholarship on how to more successfully integrate African American female leaders into higher education. The bonus chapter provides young women lessons learned along the way to shorten their learning curve on the way up the ladder.

The purpose of this qualitative study was to examine the perceptions of community college administrators in Mississippi regarding the early college high schools located on their campuses. While the ECHS model has become prominent in several states, Mississippi’s efforts to implement the model have yet to be fully examined. Six administrators from three community colleges with ECHS located on their campuses were individually interviewed and asked to share their perceptions of the ECHS model. The participants were asked a series of 12 questions composed by the researcher. The results of the study indicated that each of the administrators overwhelmingly view the ECHS model as a beneficial template and resource for students in Mississippi. Six major themes were described throughout the research: access and opportunity, student achievement, evolving maturity of the students, navigating college/college readiness, benefits to the community college, and community pride. This study provided the first comprehensive assessment of community college administrators regarding the benefits and challenges of the ECHS model in Mississippi. The perspectives shared by these community college leaders are intended to help policymakers and other stakeholders assess the partnerships and benefits of the ECHS in the state.

Employing Museus’ (2014) Culturally Engaging Campus Environment framework, this mixed-method exploratory study sought to ascertain what prospective (proTSCC) and current transfer students from community colleges (TSCC) knew about nationally competitive awards and to identify factors that influenced their decision to apply. Beginning with phenomenological interviews of transfer students and alumni, their responses informed the development of an Access to Nationally Competitive Awards Scale, which was then disseminated to currently enrolled community college students who indicated intentions of transferring to a four-year institution. Transfer students from community colleges (TSCC) make up approximately 19% of enrollment at four-year institutions, yet research has shown that TSCC frequently feel unsupported and lost during and after the transfer process (Schmertz, & Carney, 2013; Tobolowsky & Cox, 2012). Nationally competitive awards (NCAs) fund a variety of opportunities, including study abroad, research, graduate school, and more (Cobane & Jennings, 2017). Currently, there is a dearth of research on NCAs, specifically in relation to access and awareness of these opportunities (Terri Heath et al., 1993). Furthermore, many NCAs require campus support, generally in the form of an institutional endorsement or nomination letter (National Association of Fellowship Advisors, n.d., Guidelines for Institutions section), which places access directly in the hands of institutions. Findings show that TSCC and proTSCC were mostly unaware of NCAs, yet they were eligible for at least one of the study exemplars and highly interested in learning more about these opportunities. Moreover, specific external, individual, and campus environment factors influenced their motivation to apply.

This companion dissertation reports the findings of applied case study research on four community college organizational units that consistently meet or exceed standard performance measures. In addition, prior ample evidence confirms that performance extended significantly beyond what might be explained by available tangible resources alone. The case study contexts are common in higher education in general: a) an external partnership, (b) an ad hoc team, (c) a traditional, cross-divisional service unit, and (d) a grant-funded student service unit. Emerging positive organizational theory and research show promise for revealing performance-influencing phenomena and behaviors that are not adequately represented in standard measures. Therefore, this collaborative case study research was designed to explore positive influences on the success of the four community college units. This companion dissertation contains four manuscripts. Chapter 1 presents an introduction to the study. Chapter 2 contains a collectively written synthesis of the findings from the four individual case studies. Chapter 3 reflects individual research on a partnership that serves as a national model for adult education. Chapter four offers an alternative perspective to developing authentic leaders in community colleges. Key findings across the units suggest the influence on performance of: (a) a people-first culture, (b) authentic, trusting, inclusive leadership, and (c) resource richness beyond constrained tangible resources. Practical recommendations for scholars and practitioners are offered.

Community colleges face a growing crisis in leadership and a critical aspect of this crisis is a shortage of leaders. The representation of women leaders in community colleges has increased more than other sector of higher education. This upswing suggests that community colleges are the most likely place for women to achieve executive leadership status. Yet, community college history is grounded in male dominance and women leaders remain marginalized in the community college system. The purpose of my study was to examine some of the factors that contribute to women executive leaders' success specifically: (a) how women experience their leadership role in the community college, (b) how women vice presidents use transformational leadership, and (c) how women administrative vice presidents have learned to lead. In the literature review, I considered leadership, the community college, organizational culture, women's development and learning. The research approach for this study was an exploratory case study design. The participants were female Vice Presidents in community colleges within the Western United States. To answer research questions about the participants' perspectives on leadership in the community college, use of transformational leadership practices, and learning to lead, I used a survey instrument and conducted interviews. By exploring factors that contribute to the success of women executive leaders, one intention of this study was to arm institutions with information to support the development of women leaders as efforts focus on addressing the leadership crisis, and inform aspiring women leaders while they make their ascent to the executive leadership ranks.

In the realm of higher education, retention is a concept vital to the progression and security of all institutions. This remains true for all nursing programs as well because reports have shown an attrition rate as high as 50% in some nursing programs across the globe. Along with the nursing shortage projected in the next 20 years, retention in nursing programs poses a massive problem for not just higher education but healthcare as well. Therefore, it is important for nursing educators to understand the factors affecting student completion of a nursing program. This two-phase, mixed-methods study sought to answer the overarching research question: What factors contribute to completion of the Southcentral Community and Technical College (SKYCTC) Practical Nursing (PN) program within three semesters? Since the majority of nursing programs utilize a selective admission process for accepting students, the first phase of the study gathered admission criteria on six cohorts of students accepted into the SKYCTC PN program from August 2008 through May 2015. This quantitative data was analyzed to determine if any of the admission criteria were related to completion of the program. For the second phase, qualitative data was gathered through a focus group attended by 11 graduates of the SKYCTC PN program between August 2008 and May 2015. The purpose of the focus group was to gather environmental or academic influences that graduates attributed to their success in completing the program.

The study involved analyzing the counseling services programs in the University of Kentucky Community College System. In addition to this, the study analyzed the academic and professional background of the counselors, determined the present duties and responsibilities of the counselors, and determined the counselors’ perceived ideal duties and responsibilities. The reason for the study was to provide information which can be helpful to different groups concerned with community colleges. Some of the information may be useful to graduate programs concerned with the preparation of counselors who intend to work in community college counseling as a profession, may find that some of this information helps them understand better the general qualifications and role of the counselor. Counselors in the University of Kentucky Community College System may review the data presented and decide that some changes need to be implemented in their counseling services program to better meet the needs of their students.

Community colleges often face challenges with leadership as a result of retirements and turnover. In reaction to these challenges some community colleges have developed Grow Your Own (GYO) leadership development programs. Although the topic of leadership and leadership development has been researched extensively, more research is necessary concerning GYO programs and their perceived impact on participants and their colleges. This study was designed to determine the perceived development of GYO participants as well as the perception of a GYO’s impact on the organization. Guilford Technical Community College (GTCC) in Greensboro, North Carolina has had a GYO program for 30 years. A qualitative research method with a phenomenological theory design was used in this study. After obtaining permission from GTCC the 10 study participants were recruited through emails. Interviews were semi structured with questions designed to encourage discussion around the topic of leadership development. After each participant was interviewed, transcripts of the interview were made by the researcher and those transcripts were coded to determine themes. After the coding analysis was complete, common themes emerged. Each of the participants reported to have had previous roles in leadership prior to coming to GTCC. Most of the participants reported positive change because of attendance in the GYO in the areas of relationship building, networking, changed perspective of college role and mission, and better preparedness for future leadership opportunities. These findings supported earlier research that found GYO programs to be successful in creating valuable relationships across the organization. Research also supported the common theme of relationships formed both horizontally and vertically within the organization. Another common theme addressed in earlier research was the development of social capital development within the GYO program. This happens when individuals are brought together around information, given an action point, and asked to solve relevant organizational problems. This study may be useful for community colleges that already offer a GYO opportunity or are considering developing a GYO opportunity. Further research may be needed to determine the impact of the GYO leadership development training on those reporting to the participants of the program.

The purpose of this quantitative study was to compare the stress, strain, and coping levels between pretenured faculty and recently tenured faculty in institutions of higher education in Northeast Tennessee. Aging faculty population combined with talented people leaving the area is common in rural parts of the United States. There is a need to better understand the occupational factors within the faculty roles in order to better recruit and retain faculty in this region. Four different institutions of higher education in Northeast Tennessee, producing 92 responses, participated in this study. The Occupational Stress Inventory – Revised (Osipow, 1998) was used to measure occupational stress, psychological strain, and coping resources. With regards to one Strain (PSQ) variable, Physical Strain (PHS), those up for tenure in 2016 had a significantly higher mean of Physical Strain than those tenured in 2011. This implies that those up for tenure in 2016 may report more frequent worries about their health and physical symptoms. The data also indicated that there was significance in the Recreation scores of those who were tenured and the Recreation scores of those who have not yet received tenure. In regards to one Coping (PRQ) variable, Recreation (RE), those up for tenure in 2016 had a significantly lower mean than those tenured in 2011. This implies that those tenured in 2011 take more advantage of recreational or leisure time. The data indicated that there was a significant difference in Strain (PSQ) levels according to age groups. The data also indicated that there was a significant difference between Coping (PRQ) levels according to age group. Post Hoc tests were not performed as at least 1 age group had fewer than 2 cases. The variables with the highest means were components of the Stress (ORQ) scale. Role Overload (RO) had the highest mean of 31.92. Those scoring high on this scale may describe their work load as increasing or unsupported by needed resources. Responsibility (R) had the next highest with 26.26. Those scoring high in this area may report high levels of responsibility for subordinates. Interpersonal Strain (IS), a component of the Strain (PSQ) scale, had a mean of 20.92. High scorers may report quarrels or excessive dependency on loved ones. .