Experience has indicated that state-level direction and leadership can help the community junior college realize its objectives. With this in mind, the author discusses the nature and requirements of such cooperation. For example, the chief functions of a state director could include promoting the junior college program, providing leadership for its planning and development, and coordinating state-wide junior college research. This would require placing greater emphasis on planning and coordination than on supervision and regulation. Establishment of the director's role could involve such items as definition of the nature and function of the position, subsequent delegation of necessary implementing authority, and insulation of the position from partisan political influence. The functions of Florida's state director in his role as Assistant Commissioner of Education and as Executive Officer of the State Junior College Board provide a current example. The monograph concludes with a nationwide comparison of directors' assigned responsibilities, and of average annual salaries, salary increases, and other benefits. A selected bibliography is included. (JO)