A study was conducted to: (1) ascertain the characteristics, attitudes and activities of public community college trustees; (2) describe the process by which institutional change occurs at these colleges; and (3) examine the interaction or involvement of trustees with the process of change. A two-phase questionnaire was designed; phase I was used to collect data from 239 presidents of two-year institutions, and phase II was used to collect data from 296 trustees. Findings included the following: (1) explosive or rapid growth in enrollment over the last three years was reported by nearly 40 percent of the presidents; (2) community college boards are smaller than those governing most four-year colleges and universities; (3) nearly 60 percent of community college trustees are elected, most by direct popular vote; (4) trustee meetings at which action is taken are open to the public at 93.3 percent of the institutions; (5) in community colleges, the "unified control" model of board-administration relationships predominates; (6) about 40 percent have a system of institutional governance involving faculty, student, administrative and staff groups; (7) trustees appear to understand and support the concepts of universal higher education and open admissions; and (8) trustees believe that public two-year colleges should be governed as part of the higher education system rather than as part of the public school system. Copies of the questionnaire are appended. (KM)