Objective: Developmental education provides postsecondary students requisite skills to take credit-bearing coursework. Yet, racial disparities exist in which students are most likely to be placed into developmental education. The present study investigates how multiple measures of students' mathematics background ameliorate racial disparities in…

This chapter discusses the importance and common challenges of evaluating community college student success efforts; it includes a broad-based framework for carrying out effective evaluations.

The purpose of this note is to develop insight into the performance of the individual fixed-effects model when used to estimate wage returns to postsecondary schooling. We focus our attention on the returns to attending and completing community college. While other methods (instrumental variables, regression discontinuity) have been used to…

This is the second of a series of reports on trends in national community college enrollments. National community college enrollments continue to decrease, with variations at the state and local levels. The report also examines completion rates published by the U.S. Department of Education (ED) based on institutional level reporting, and those…

Successful colleges require effective leadership and governance. Effective governing boards are comprised of trustees who are committed to excellence in performing their duties. How do governing boards assure they are effective? One way is through ongoing board and trustee education and development, to provide the skills necessary to govern well.…

At the University of Houston (UH), the arrival of a new chancellor/president in 2007 resulted in a strategic environmental scan to determine areas where the university's efforts should be focused over the next ten years. Several major initiatives were launched, including one that sought to make UH a major energy university. The decision to embrace…

This study focused on exploring Illinois community college faculty development coordinators' perceptions about how they are implementing faculty technology professional development programs and providing technical support for part-time faculty in the Illinois community college systems. Also examined were part-time faculty perceptions of the degree…

Discusses the current use of marketing analysis techniques in college planning and presents a step-by-step needs assessment model for community-based planning, involving full participation of college, community, business, and other educational and governmental agencies in determining the needs of the community and the roles the college should…

This document discusses the unique features and philosophy of the community college, and ways of maximizing community and college interpenetration. The central section of the report deals with the role of needs assessment in community education. The concept of needs assessment espoused herein stresses continuation and community participation as…

Describes a quick, economical community needs assessment conducted by Gainesville College, focusing on methodology and use of findings. Explains respondent selection and data collection methods for three groups: community leaders, who were interviewed in small groups using a community reconnaissance method; high school principals; and counselors,…

The "little blue book"--an affectionate title used by admirers of Student Assessment-as-Learning at Alverno College--is written (rather stunningly) "by the Alverno College Faculty." The story behind this paradigm-shifting work on assessment underscores the vital role faculty inquiry plays in institutional and system-wide…

The author argues for development of community profiles to serve as the basis for value decisions and a system of participation accounting to evaluate the progress of the community services program. (Author/RN)

Produced as part of the Targeted Outcomes Field Development Project, this handbook provides basic guidelines that can be used by community colleges for organizing and conducting community impact studies. An introductory chapter touches on the broad range of economic, educational, social, and technological impacts which community colleges have upon…

Drawing upon relevant literature, this paper addresses various aspects of the administration, design, and evaluation of community service programs in community colleges. First, the paper considers administrative issues. It proposes an administrative structure for the Community Services Division, outlines the duties of the dean and director of…

A complete assessment of the impact of community colleges should not only focus on primary college missions, but also on the economic impact of the colleges on their local communities and the state. In calculating the economic impact of the community colleges of the State University of New York (SUNY), three assumptions should be made: (1)…