This brief reports on the Ford Foundation's establishment of the Rural Community College Initiative (RCCI) for selected institutions in economically distressed areas of the Southeast, Deep South, Southwest, Appalachia, and western Indian reservations. This is the fourth report in a series by the RCCI Documentation Team. The RCCI program challenges community colleges to become catalysts for change through two mutual and complementary goals: expanding access to higher education and fostering regional economic development. This brief examines the experiences of the nine pilot RCCI colleges and their efforts to acquire the capacities for change, and identifies implications for other institutions facing similar challenges. It suggests that an institution's capacity to meet these two goals requires attention to institutional cultures, leadership style, and organizational infrastructure. In strengthening these areas, community colleges can improve their effectiveness in building human resources and social capacities for survival and success in a changing world. Colleges must look seriously at new roles, partnerships, and marketing, as well as value systems that include team-building strategies, risk taking, and openness to expanded access, economic development, and local cultures. Contains 12 references. (VWC)