The purpose of this study was to examine the degree of success or failure of three Virginia community colleges to establish viable educational foundations and to identify the characteristics enabling them to do so.;Studying Virginia community colleges provided an opportunity to observe fund-raising efforts made in the state where government appropriations decreased the most (during the period 1990-94) and, therefore, had the greatest potential effect. Three colleges with distinctly different geographical locations might shed light on the impact of cultural/social/economic factors on philanthropy; and three institutions of differing sizes (small, medium, and large) might address an economic environment in which 'bigger is better' functions as an assumption for success.;Descriptive data for all 23 community colleges in the Virginia Community College System were gathered from a fourteen-item questionnaire mailed to the development office of each institution, and from unpublished VCCS reports of student enrollment and of system productivity analysis. The three case study colleges were studied through their respective publications (viewbooks, alumni newsletters, annual reports, college catalogues), and through face-to-face interviews with four persons at each institution--the college president, director of development, a significant donor and Educational Foundation Board member, and a faculty representative.;The basic research question addressed in this study was: Do the attributes and activities of the educational foundations affiliated with three community colleges parallel the ten factors for effective fund-raising described by Duronio and Loessin (1991) and Kerns and Witter (1992)? The ten characteristics formed the basis for the theoretical model and the framework for the case study interview questions; a positive relationship was expected--and found--between the characteristics and attributes of three educational foundations.;It was concluded that the ten characteristics used as the model accurately reflected the characteristics for effective fund-raising in community colleges, and that each of the colleges was consistent with the model to a greater or lesser degree. It was also concluded that three factors are especially significant for fund-raising success: a clear institutional image, a professional development office (and director), and accurate and adequate communication among all constituencies.;Further study is needed to evaluate the processes of communication employed on community college campuses and their suitability for institutional needs. In addition, some further research of creative and unique fund-raising efforts by colleges is needed, which the methodology used in this paper did not uncover.

No description available.

The purpose of this study was to determine Virginia Community College System (VCCS) faculty preferences for four possible institutional directions for the VCCS and to explore possible relationships between specific faculty characteristics and preferences for the individual directions. Information derived from the study was to be used to clarify whether or not community college faculty support the broad institutional directions by community college leaders in their efforts to instill a strong identity for this institution.;The population for this study was all full-time teaching faculty in the VCCS for the academic year 1982-83. 323 faculty were systematically selected after first being stratified along the variable of institutional size as determined by full-time student enrollment. Those selected for the sample received a survey questionnaire primarily asking them to rank order their preferences for four possible institutional directions for the VCCS and requesting information about specific faculty characteristics.;It was hypothesized that (1) the majority of VCCS faculty would rank first the direction of Comprehensive Community College, (2) that they would least prefer the direction of Community-Based Learning Center, and (3) that specific faculty characteristics would affect specific preferences.;Information derived from the completed questionnaires (70 percent response rate) was statistically analyzed using multiple discriminant function analysis. The results supported the first two hypotheses but failed to show any correlation between specific faculty characteristics and specific directions with one exception: faculty teaching the majority of their courses in occupational-technical courses were likely to most prefer the institutional direction of Comprehensive Community College.;The results also support the overall conclusion that the heterogeneity of community college faculty negatively affects their unanimity for any one institutional direction desired by national and state leaders of the community college. The lack of support for any one institutional direction may be an important factor in the community college's continuing identity problem with the general public, legislators, and those in higher education.;Further study is needed to clarify which faculty characteristics, if any, affect preferences for institutional directions. In addition, student, administrator, and alumni preferences should also be investigated.

During the past two decades, the image of higher education institutions, collectively and individually, has become more important as competition among colleges and universities for students, faculty, and resources has become more aggressive. In 1979 Mayhew asked whether it is possible for institutions that do not have well-established images to actually create them. This study addresses Mayhew's question by focusing on the concept of image at one institution, George Mason University.;This study examined both GMU's deliberate attempts to improve its image as well as the effects upon image of its inherent culture. Specifically, the two-part research question asked, first, how do GMU's efforts to improve its image compare and contrast to Topor's method of image-building outlined in Institutional Image (1986) and Marketing Higher Education (1983)? and second, to add a new perspective to image-making, how does GMU's "culture" as defined by Deal and Kennedy (1982) affect its image?;The study found that successful image-making at GMU involves the intimate nexus of both academic planning and marketing. GMU's president, George Johnson, keenly is aware of the importance of institutional image-making, and he strives to identify people, curricular programs, and projects that contribute to GMU's positive image. While GMU is striving to establish its own kind of culture, one of innovation, experimentation, and uniqueness, its culture differs from that described by Deal and Kennedy (1982) in that a strong sense of shared beliefs, values, and traditions is not prominent at GMU.;GMU is an example of an institution that, indeed is sucessfully creating an image that is attracting prominent faculty, better students, and increasing resources. The author believes, however, that more attention to building a stronger culture would provide a firmer foundation upon which to base GMU's image. Further study of the role of GMU's evolving culture would shed light on this question.

American higher education is moving into a new phase in which environmental challenges are likely to intensify, threatening the survival of some institutions. Small private colleges, especially those that are reliant on enrollments and the tuition revenue that enrollments generate, are especially vulnerable to environmental challenges. This puts them at a competitive disadvantage with stronger private institutions and state-supported institutions. The formation of interorganizational relationships (IORs) is one coping strategy that may be an important factor for survival.;The purpose of this study is to examine interorganizational relationships in higher education using a comprehensive, theory-based model. The model examines both the partner characteristics and relationship characteristics of IORs. Partner characteristics describe the motivations institutions have for engaging in IOR behavior. It is the resource-based aspect of the model. Relationship characteristics describe the social aspects that help enable and maintain the IOR over time. The performance outcome is essentially the result of the IOR. It is a function of the level of perceived satisfaction among members in the IOR, and the measure of success by which members judge the relationship. Both partner characteristics and relationship characteristics contribute to success.;This was an instrumental case study examining a consortium of six small, private liberal arts colleges. Findings show that partner and relationship characteristics both contribute to the success of the IOR in this case; however, the desire for institutional autonomy is also an important factor in the perceived success of the IOR.

Institutional research is a function of higher education whose role is still evolving. This study investigated the presence or lack of commonalities inherent in the personnel or in the collegiate milieu relative to whether the function was initiatory or responsive. The results of the study indicated that public institutions were more likely to recognize institutional research as a unique function compared with their private counterparts, and that increased size and complexity of a college resulted in institutional research being a recognized function or subfunction in higher education. Factors such as sex, age, prior college teaching, involvement in college governance, educational background and journals read yielded no statistically significant relationship in regard to an initiatory or responsive role of institutional research whereas public versus private and the size of the college did yield statistically significant relationships. Other factors such as membership in professional associations, use and availability of computers, the use of modern management tools and the amount of time spent doing institutional research were marginally significant in separating initiatory from responsive institutional research suggesting the need for further study. Individuals who spent more time doing institutional research perceived the value of the function and were more likely to be initiatory in their approach to it. The major criterion separating private and public institutions was the locus of control for decision making. One of the implications of the study was the need for replication both in other sections of the country and to survey the same population over time in order to measure changes in society, in higher education management, and in accountability requirements. The vignettes are examples of the value of subjective data.

Utilizing a quantitative approach, the researcher examined the extent to which undergraduate students participating in a college work experience program agreed with statements relating their experience in the program to the characteristics of high impact practices and the career readiness competencies. Additionally, the researcher determined which characteristics of high impact practices were statistically related to each career readiness competency. The characteristics of high impact practices are: high performance expectations, investment of time and effort, interactions with faculty and peers, experiences with diversity, receipt of constructive feedback, opportunities for reflection and integration of learning, real-world applications, and demonstration of competencies. The career readiness competencies are: problem solving, communication, teamwork, digital technology, leadership, professionalism, career management, and intercultural fluency. College work experience programs are not formally recognized as a high impact practice. Moreover, there is limited existing research regarding the impact of these programs on career readiness and the connection between high impact practice characteristics and career readiness competencies. Results of this research revealed that all high impact practice characteristics except one (interactions with faculty and peers) had means, medians, and modes representing agreement. In addition, all career readiness competencies had means, medians, and modes signifying high levels of agreement. Using a series of multiple regressions, specific high impact practice characteristics were found to be statistically related to each career readiness competency. This research contributes to higher education discussions regarding high impact practices and career readiness.

No description available.

The purpose of this study was to describe the lived experiences of doctoral engineering students' socialization with their advisors and colleagues. Using snowballing sampling methods, eleven students with research or teaching assistantship from three engineering programs from a large University in the Southeastern US agreed to participate. Face-to-face interviews were audio-recorded, descriptively transcribed, and analyzed using a variation of Colaizzi's method. Participants experienced difficulty adjusting to the workplace norms of the PhD program, which some did not start with clear expectations. Some participants lacked work experience before starting, but were thankful for support from more experienced doctoral students. Most participants were also frustrated by unreasonable time demands and heavy workload around deadlines. Participants were hesitant to share concerns with their advisors, fearing repercussions. Through trial and error and assistance from labmates, participants learned to work independently and become problem solvers. Participants from one rapidly changing and competitive field of engineering experienced additional stressed as they tried to keep pace with scholarly advances and publish more research. Participants' experiences corroborate some prior research about doctoral student socialization, but suggest that engineering their socialization was guided by a constellation of role models and not primarily by their advisors. Also contrary to prior research, even though most participants were international students, they did not experience significant difficulties with cultural adjustment to the US. Their cultural adjustment was aided by large number of other doctoral students from their region of the world and the fact that they had little time to venture out of their labs. Suggestions for future research are discussed.

National employment data forecasts a significant need for graduates in the STEM disciplines for middle-income American jobs. If the American labor force is to keep pace with the global economy, it is critically important that American higher education increase STEM degree production. Currently, minority populations lack access and thus opportunity for success in higher education, but, among them, Hispanic peoples account for about 59 million Americans, are the youngest demographic, and have the highest growth rate of any ethnic group. Hispanic students are inadequately represented in higher education enrollment numbers, graduation rates, graduate degree attainment, and STEM degree attainment. While only 14% of American institutions of higher education are designated as Hispanic Serving Institutions (HSIs), 64% of Hispanic American college students attend an HSI. As a result, HSIs are in a unique position to improve student success in STEM disciplines. A statistical analysis of the grades of Hispanic and White students in introductory STEM courses at three Florida HSI universities, University of Central Florida, Florida International University, and Florida Atlantic University, and two non-HSI universities, University of West Florida and Florida Gulf Coast University, revealed 1) White students significantly outperformed Hispanic students in CHM 2045 at UWF, FGCU, and UCF and 2) White students significantly outperformed Hispanic students in MAC 2311 at UWF and FGCU and 3) Hispanic students at the HSIs (FAU and FIU) earned significantly higher grades in CHM 2045 compared to the Hispanic students at non-HSIs (UWF and FGCU). All other comparisons revealed no statistically significant difference in mean course grades.