Objective: Traditional-age students attending a rural community college in Kentucky's Appalachian region were interviewed, along with faculty members and administrators, to identify phenomena serving as sources of encouragement or as barriers to retention from the point of entry to the point of transfer. Method: Students' perspectives were…

Discusses the need for effective programs--preservice and inservice--to prepare community college instructors to meet demands for teaching in two or more subjects and to meet the needs of underprepared students. (MB)

Describes a model for new faculty orientation tried experimentally at Canada College (California) in which each new full-time faculty member was given 20 percent released time, the equivalent of one course of the typical workload of five, to participate in a self-paced, individualized orientation program. An appendix specifies the required…

Describes the Personalized Learning Program at Texas Tech University, which explores self concept theory and the relationship of teaching and learning styles to personality preferences, through a program of research and seminars. (AYC)

Reports on a survey of faculty and administrator attitudes toward, and use and knowledge of, instructional television. Suggests strategies to increase the use of instructional television; e.g., create a need for change, promote the advantages of instructional television, and show how instructional television is compatible with institutional…

Reports on a study of the characteristics of community colleges established within universities, focusing on institutional, program, and faculty characteristics; perceived advantages and disadvantages; and perceptions of the future. (DMM)

Discusses major obstacles to excellence in community colleges: failure to develop adequate means for systematic, periodic, performance appraisal; failure to evaluate individual courses and programs periodically and systematically; failure to commit adequate time and resources to continued personnel development; lack of an adequate decision-making…

Offers a review of the work of California's Commission for the Review of the Master Plan for Higher Education, focusing on the Commission's recommendations in the areas of: (1) ensuring both access to education and academic success; (2) college mission and functions; (3) faculty and administrators; (4) governance; and (5) finance. (DMM)

Describes a study of the career paths of 155 community college presidents to determine influences on the rate at which the first presidency is attained. Investigates differences in terms of age and education between presidents who began their careers as faculty members and those who began as administrators. (DMM)

Describes a national telephone survey of 60 community college faculty members to determine differences in opinions about the impact of microcomputers among transfer, vocational, and developmental instructors. Concludes that faculty members in all disciplines agree on the value of the use of microcomputers in the classroom. (DMM)

Reviews literature on strategies to facilitate the effective supervision of part-time community college faculty, identifying common approaches to faculty evaluation (e.g., student evaluations, classroom observations, and artifact collection) and ways of improving teaching performance (e.g., supplying instructional information, and orientation and…

Describes a collaborative program initiated by Evergreen State College and Seattle Central Community College in Washington to promote faculty revitalization, curricular reform, and interinstitutional articulation. Examines the new curriculum of Seattle Central, as an intentionally designed "learning community," structured to sustain academic…

Argues that effective teaching is becoming progressively obsolete because of declining faculty involvement with teaching/learning. Identifies social change conditions affecting the teaching effectiveness of community college faculty. Discusses dimensions of alienation (i.e., powerlessness, meaninglessness, normlessness, isolation, and…

Reports on a survey of 117 full-time faculty and 36 academic administrators in six rural Washington community colleges conducted to assess perceptions of current and ideal purposes and methods of faculty evaluation. Reveals a high positive relationship between faculty and administrator attitudes. Includes a literature review. (AYC)

Looks at three areas in which college administrators should ensure that computers are available for faculty use (i.e., instruction, personal scholarship, and administrative tasks). Suggests ways of overcoming faculty resistance to computers and steps in a carefully planned and managed process of improving computer literacy. (DMM)