This study addressed the broader issue of the negative impact of the community college practice of hiring large numbers of part-time faculty on graduation rates. Prior research has determined that higher ratios of full-time faculty correlate significantly and positively with community college graduation rates. This study extended the research of institutional models affecting community college graduation rates and investigated the nature of regional accreditation for the adequacy of full-time faculty as a determinate of graduation rates. This study included all public 2-year institutions in the United States. A correlational research design was implemented using data available through the National Center for Education Statistics and the nation’s six regional accrediting agencies for community colleges. Among the major findings in the study, graduation rates were found to be significantly correlated among schools belonging to different regional accreditation agencies. The study also determined that ratios of full-time faculty, institution size, instructional spending, and ratios of full-time students correlated significantly with increased graduation rates. When comparing community colleges among regional accreditors that had no standards for regulating the adequacy of full-time faculty with those who do, graduation rates did not correlate significantly. These results contribute to the body of knowledge for institutional effects on graduation rates and also have important implications for regional accreditors. The results suggest that regional accrediting standards for the adequacy of full-time faculty may need to be more prescriptive in nature to provide a direct impact on graduation rates.

As many of the founding full-time community college faculty began to retire, colleges across the nation intensified their full-time faculty recruitment and retention efforts. They began to replace the retiring full-time faculty with the new generation faculty cohort. The purpose of this study was to understand the role that a comprehensive orientation program played in the socialization process of new community college faculty. Additionally, the study examined the choice of orientation tactics used to socialize the new faculty. Relying on the reported socialization experiences of seven full-time faculty members from six of the seven colleges that comprised a community college district, the study explored how an orientation program facilitated their adjustment process. Finally, the researcher sought to identify ways to improve full-time community college faculty socialization experience. Most of the faculty in this study, although having no specific training to teach at the community college, were able to build relationships outside their individual colleges, acquired new skills, and gained access to valuable district resources, as a result of their participation in a yearlong comprehensive orientation program. Three significant findings resulted from this study. The first major significant finding of this study was that the incorporation of a social apparatus, such as the “retreat” into an orientation program, facilitated group cohesion and identity among the new faculty. The social structure of the retreat provided new faculty with an opportunity to connect with one another at an emotional level. They were able to expand their social networks beyond their immediate colleges. A second significant finding was that faculty became more confident and comfortable in their teaching roles as a result of the skills they acquired following their completion of the comprehensive orientation program. The monthly sessions, which were held every 4th Friday provided the faculty the opportunity to acquire and develop new skills to effectively discharge their responsibilities. The third major finding of this study was that because faculty had access to district resources, to develop their skills, they became more closely tied to their institutions. Finally, recommendations are made to improve new faculty socialization experience during their adjustment process. / text

The purpose of this quantitative study was to better understand the relationship of perceived ethical climate on the organizational commitment and job satisfaction of full-time faculty members in institutions of higher education. Full-time faculty members are the forefront employees of any educational institution, and they have a direct impact on the successful implementation of the vision, mission, and goals of the institution. It is imperative to understand potential factors influencing organizational commitment and job satisfaction because decreased levels of commitment and satisfaction have been linked to lower productivity, stagnated creativity, higher levels of turnover, and deviant workplace behaviors. The nationally reported controversy that occurred in the Sociology Department of The Ohio State University during the 1960s provided the theoretical framework for this research. Four different regional universities, producing 594 responses, participated in this study. A modified version of 3 previously establish scales were used to measure each factor: 1) Three Component Model (TCM) of Employee Commitment created by Meyer and Allen (2004), 2) Revised Ethical Climate Questionnaire (RECQ) created by Victor and Cullen (1993), and 3) Job Diagnostic Survey (JDS) created by Hackman and Oldham (1980). The data analysis found significant differences in self-reported levels of organizational commitment and job satisfaction for full-time faculty members with regards to type of perceived ethical climate (i.e. egoism, benevolence, and principled). Results of this study also indicate that gender differences play a significant role in the self-reported level of organizational commitment. Females reported higher levels of organizational commitment than their male counterparts. There was no significant difference in the self-reported levels of job satisfaction based upon gender differences. Finally, the results of the study included a significant and positive correlation between the total organizational commitment scores and the total job satisfaction scores of respondents.

The purpose of this study was to examine faculty reluctance to providing students with access to course resources via the Internet. The study explored known barriers to the use of technology and the Internet within educational settings and provided opportunity for new barriers to be presented. Personal and professional demographic factors were collected to determine if certain characteristics were identifiable as predictors to web enhancement. An online survey was designed to collect data to address research questions in the study. The survey consisted of 48 questions, including areas for comments and remarks from faculty members. One thousand two (1002) faculty, out of a possible 4,990 responded to the survey. Based on the results, conclusions have been drawn. Female faculty and faculty ranked as assistant, associate, or full professors were most likely to web enhance. Faculty who had taught for between 1 and 15 years at a four-year university, were also more likely to web enhance than other faculty. Faculty in the fields of biology, business administration, communications, computer science, education, English, nursing and psychology appeared most likely to web enhance their courses. Major barriers to enhancement include increased time commitment, concerns regarding faculty work load, lack of person-to-person contact, and difficulty keeping current with technological changes. Recommendations for removing some barriers included the need to recognize and reward innovation, provide incentives to enhance, and establish cultural change within institutions. Meaningful professional development training on enhancement techniques was also recommended, as well as providing release time for enhancement development. Contact standards on campus websites, providing a contact at each institution for research inquiries, and becoming more accessible to the public at large was also needed. Recommendations for further research included completing this study on an institutional basis, and studying the need for ôrevampingö the concept of ôoffice hoursö when used in connection with online courses. In addition, a qualitative study should be conducted on the pros and cons of web enhancement, as well as a time study comparison of students who complete a low level online course then take a higher level on-site course.

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This research sought to ascertain whether differences exist in the levels of student-faculty interactions between students taught by part-time and full-time faculty. Differences in the interactions of students with faculty were examined for four types of content (a) course-related, (b) intellectual, (c) career planning, and (d) informal socializing; for both in-class and out-of-class.